We're Missing Out

I remember a conversation in my intro Sociology class about a year and a half ago. We had just read an article about the AIDS epidemic in Africa (Time, Feb 2001). We were discussing AIDS as a social epidemic, rather than just a medical one. Someone mentioned that African people would never be able to emerge as a competitive group in the global economy, because they are are plagued by so many social, economic and medical problems.

I responded to this comment with a blindly optimistic rebuttal, saying that Africa will not only become a major trading partner in our lifetime, but that the US should begin to invest in Africa before missing out on this opportunity. Africa as a continent has great potential for economic growth. The US can benefit from African consumers, just as Africans can benefit from our investments. I've always thought Africans would soon emerge as a powerful consumer base and that the US should figure out a way to capitalize on this inevitable trend while there still is time.

Today, I learned that we might already be too late. Or, at least, behind the times. Not surprisingly, the country to beat us to this was China. Today's New York Time exposé, "Entrepreneurs From China Flourish in Africa", profiles several Chinese entrepreneurs seeking out their fortunes abroad. What makes these business people different from other ex-patriots is that they travel to Africa, instead of Western nations.

China is not the only country taking the African consumer seriously. Since 1955, there has been a strong relationship between African and Sino countries. (See the Bandung Conference.) South-south linkages, as they are commonly called, might be the only hope to lift Africa out of the quagmire it is in. What is so great about these south-south trade relations is that not only to Africans benefit from capital injection, but its done on economic turns, not as a handout.

I am not suggesting that we all leave to start businesses in African nations. I am not even suggesting that all Africa needs is foreign capital and investment. All I am saying is that this migration of Chinese is just illustrative of a larger trend. China, as well as other industrializing countries, sees Africa as an investment, not as a charity case. The more I learn about US-Africa relations (or even Western-African relations), the more disappointed I become. It is a shame the US is missing out on another great opportunity.