The good folks at TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) have debuted the first videos from the powerful TEDGlobal 2007 conference held in Tanzania earlier this year. Called “Africa: The Next Chapter”, the conference featured talks from many of Africa’s current innovators. The first few uploaded videos include South African investment banker Euvin Nadoo – who I met at the Harvard Club in New York in April – describing a continent poised to light up, Ghanaian economist George Ayittey’s lacerating criticism of Africa’s “hippo generation” to inspiring appeal for the “cheetah generation” to arise, former Finance Minister of Nigeria Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala showing how the different pieces of the aid vs trade argument could be reconciled, and finally 19-year-old Malawian inventor William Kamkwamba who won a standing ovation for his shy 3-minute interview, revealing how as a 14-year-old he solved his parents’ energy needs in a village which had no electricity. These first videos are a window into the minds of Africa’s growing entrepreneural class. I can’t wait for the other speakers’ videos.
Starchitect David Adjaye brings his building art to America
YG points to a new exhibit by UK-based Ghanaian star architect David Adjaye opening today at the Studio Museum of Harlem in New York City. The exhibit, Making Public Buildings, introduces Adjaye’s architecture to American audiences by carrying viewers through his working process-from inspiration to completion-through ten projects, both built and uncompleted. Having been awarded an Order of the British Empire by the queen for services to architecture, following several public works including his Idea Stores, which have shaken up the notion of the library, and his Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, Mr. Adjaye is set to take on America. With both a New York office for his company Adjaye/Associates and his Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver opening this fall the star architect has his American debut all lined up. About his current work Mr. Adjaye tells New York Magazine:
We are building a house for an amazing art collector [Adam Lindemann and his wife, gallerist Amalia Dayan] on the Upper East Side. It is quite hermetic. In ten years, 50 percent of the world will live in cities; they are becoming massive. The home is something that becomes an emotional incubator and resuscitator. It is not about tricks but about the way in which you reorient a person’s perceptions by focusing on water or on a tree or on a texture of a wall, making the home a meditative space. For this house, the thing the house reflects on will also be art.
David Adjaye’s Making Public Buildings opens today, July 18, 2007, with a 7pm reception at the Studio Museum of Harlem. The exhibition continues through Sunday, October 28, 2007 (Wed-Fri: 12-6pm / Sat: 10am-6pm / Sun: 12-6pm).
African super-rich grow richer, move to Richistan
As part of my research on the African brand, I interviewed a Nigerian Hollywood public relations professional recently. Though his clientèle doesn’t consist purely of Africans, being a Hollywood connector he frequently encounters Africans with a bit of money looking to use his services for something or another. As we talked, the topic of money came up and the gentleman expounded on the different groups of Africans with money and their attitudes towards wealth. What I found interesting was how the Nigerian connector classified the groups: hustlers, who will do anything for a buck, and dignitaries, whose source of wealth is questionable. In his experience these were the two types of people who make up the affluent African class. Of course I found his tales of the affluent African a little disheartening, but it brought to light the issue of options for African wealth. We all know that the continent is rich with resources, however the access to those resources and who benefits from it’s potential revenue is another story.
The Wall Street Journal’s Informed Reader points to the recent release of Merrill Lynch and Cap Gemini’s 2007 World Wealth Report which reveals:
Globally, the HNWI (High Net Worth Individuals) population grew by 8.3% in 2006, to a total
of 9.5 million individuals. HNWI population gains were particularly strong last year in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, advancing by 12.5%, 11.9% and 10.2%, respectively, and outpacing more developed nations. These gains came amid these emerging markets’ attempts to solidify their infrastructures and become more developed economies.
While this means there is more African representation in Robert Frank’s Richistan, many of us in lower to not-even-close Richistan, are beginning to ask even more questions about what role Africans play in the scramble for Africa’s resources. A BIG question raised in the conversation about African billionaires on Forbes’ list was, where are those billionaires getting their money? The wealth report hints that,
China has been an active player in Africa, investing heavily in various sectors and showing particular interest in mining. Taken together, these factors bolstered the continent’s HNWI population, helping it grow by 12.5 percent in 2006 and increasing its wealth by 14 per cent.
While this seems like a good answer, I’m not sure many Africans will buy it. But I don’t want to be labeled a “player hater” so I will point you to this statement by the Informed Reader:
So when it comes to business and markets, the firms that cater to the top of the high end will continue to do the best in the coming years. Think megayachts instead of yachts, beachfront estates instead of McMansions, and Bentleys and Maybachs instead of Mercedes and BMWs.
Paul Redfern adds, “The report says much of the income is spent on luxury items, art collections, jewelery and charitable causes.” Maybe this growing area will give enterprising Africans such as my Hollywood connector friend a green card to Richistan. As another hustler friend of mine said, “Don’t hate, participate” – legitimately of course.
What’s your Africa strategy?
Many of us can agree that today, Africa plays a major role in the development of the global economy. The magazine covers and celebrity reports are a small part of how Africa has become a major player. A large part of my consulting work has to do with helping organizations develop an Africa-related strategy which both addresses the customer’s demands AND provides opportunities for Africans. Whether yours is a foreign or Africa-based company, today you MUST have a strategy which communicates your companies position on the Africa-related issues emerging daily. Any company or organization that has not begun to understand the role Africa’s development is playing in their market stands to become obsolete. In today’s world, NOT having the right Africa-related strategy is a sure sign of an organization’s ineffectiveness both domestically and globally.
Some organizations will simply implement a clichéd aid campaign as a response, but the smart ones will see the bigger picture and realize that Africa’s development is tied to their own long term goals and the goals of their customer. You can promote “Save Darfur” t-shirts but if the shirt is made in China, your company can quickly lose years of credibility with the customer.
It’s probably most important for Africa-based companies to develop an Africa-related strategy. With all the attention that various parts of the continent is getting, they too must adjust to the new found attention to remain relevant. In essence the world’s issues are playing out in their backyard. There are detailed reports of the Chinese push into the continent, and as Tom Barnett says, the Americans are landing. These and other foreign strategies will severely affect how Africans do business. It is important for Africa-based companies to re-think their production and competition strategies. While the age-old image of the starving African has long hindered the growth of many African industries, there are new opportunities which, if approached properly, could easily allow an Africa-based company to become a major player in the global market.
It’s times like this that are important to organizational growth. As a CEO, you can either stick your head in the sand and hope that the change is temporary, or adjust your organizational strategy to take advantage of the opportunities which are already affecting your customers. So what’s your Africa strategy?
Africa’s next chapter convenes at TEDGlobal 2007
One of the most important events for Africa’s technology, entertainment, and design industry development, TEDGlobal 2007, is in full swing in Arusha, Tanzania. Coming from vacation I have been reinvigorated by all the developments coming out of this seminal event. Now in it’s 3rd day, the conference has already given me more than enough insight into innovative ideas behind Africa’s next chapter. With all the information and idea sharing at this event, the African blogosphere is sure to be fueled for a long time to come. Below are some important resources for keeping up to date with the happenings in Tanzania. I’ll be watching and listening closely as I hope you all are.
Live updates:
Soyapi Mumba is Twittering TEDGlobal
Ethan Zuckerman of My Heart’s in Accra is live-blogging
Other bloggers at TEDGlobal 2007:
TEDFellow Erik Hersman, of White African
TEDFellow Rafiq Phillips at WebAddiCT
DNA
David McQueen
Africa Beat, by Jennifer Brea
Bankalele
Mental Acrobatics
AfroMusing
TEDFellow Mweshi
TEDFellow Fran Osseo-Asare, of Betumi: The African Food Network
TEDFellow Soyapi Mumba
TEDFellow Ramon Thomas, of NETucation
Ndesanjo Macha, who writes Digital Africa, in English, and Jikomboe, in Swahili
Fifthculture
Ellen Horne at Radio Lab in Tanzania
ClassV
Sam Ritchie
Harinjaka (in French)
Kenyan Pundit, by TED Conference speaker and blogger Ory Okolloh
Timbuktu Chronicles, by TEDGlobal conference director Emeka Okafor
and of course you can get official updates at the TED blog site
Africans on TIME’s 100 most influential people list
TIME magazine has released it’s annual picks of the 100 most influential men and women whose power, talent or moral example is transforming the world. The list is broken up into groups of Artists & Entertainers, Scientists & Thinkers, Leaders & Revolutionaries, Builders & Titans, Heroes & Pioneers. Here are the Africans who made TIME 100 most influential people list. The African country represented and the categories they appear in are in parentheses.
- Youssou N’Dour (Senegal, Artists & Entertainers)
- Peter Akinola(Nigeria, Leaders & Revolutionaries)
- Barack Obama (Kenya/USA, Leaders & Revolutionaries)
- Amr Khaled (Egypt, Heroes & Pioneers)
- Monty Jones (Sierra Leone, Scientists & Thinkers)
- Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa, Builders & Titans)
Business management programs travel to Africa
Businessweek reports on French business school, HEC, which is leading the way by taking the management programs to Senegal. The program’s focus is on the African cotton industry. Could this be a new trend in African business development?
We need to adapt to local contexts and cultures. When we go to Africa, we need to respect the local specificities but at the same time we have to adapt our own approaches to the reality in those countries. We cannot import our own view. We have to have a different perspective and be open to different views. This is what corporate social responsibility is all about. We think we have a responsibility to contribute to these countries. – Bertrand Moingeon, Associate Dean for executive education and professor of strategic management.
Also the NYTimes reported on the African cotton industry back in January.
This week in African Style 4/7 – 4/13/07
- Untapped: the scramble for Africa’s oil.
- Africa in pictures.
- Danny Glover joins Bob Marley tribute ‘Africa Unite’.
- African governments not doing enough.
- Gallery opening: NY thru the eyes of African immigrants.
- Plugging Africa’s kids in to $100 laptop.
- The silent takeover of the continent (Africa) by South African businesses.
- Gay travel in Africa.
- Luxury hotels emerge in post-peace Sudan.
- Africa’s internet infrastructure: an interview with Eric Osiakwan and Ethan Zuckerman.
- Madonna returning to Africa, but not to adopt.
- Africa is a continent, not a crisis.
- Is South Africa living up to its responsibility as Africa’s leader?
- Afrigator goes mobile.
- Climate change and Africa.
- Madonna to do charity work in Malawi.
- Africa and the information age.
Chosan performs Blood Diamond from Bling is Dead
A few months ago some New York-based artists and arts organizations organized a concert to benefit Nah We Yone, a grassroots nonprofit organization that helps rebuild the shattered lives of refugees, asylees and asylum seekers from the African diaspora who have fled to the New York Metropolitan area due to ongoing political instability throughout the African continent. The title of the concert, “Bling & Blood”, set the tone for various African artists to voice their opinions about the effects of the blood diamond trade on the African continent. Here’s a video of Sierra Leonean hip-hop artist Chosan performing his song “Blood Diamond”, a song he penned as part of the Bling is Dead project. Thanks to director Dante Kaba for the footage.
This week in African Style 1/20 – 1/26/07
• Oprah Winfrey defends her South African school in open letter.
• Dakar Rally takes drivers through Portugal, Morocco, Mauritania, Mali and ends in Dakar, Senegal.
• Bill Gates and Africa’s green revolution.
• Fashion Television reports fromCape Town Fashion Week Spring 2007
• The World Economic Forum is under way in Davos, Switzerlad and the World Social Forum gets under way in Nairobi Kenya.
• China’s President on tour to teach Africa how to fish.