Is Africa About To Regain Its Natural Status In The World?

Believe it or not, Science and History have it on record that the benign African Continent is the source of all mankind. Many Anthropologists have argued this fact without any definite conclusion but none has come out to disprove this fact or given us any real proof of any alternative source of humankind. We cannot deny the fact also that the Continent is a natural source of raw materials and was once the source of 'cheap' labour which propagated the slave trade between the 14th and the 16thcentury. This diabolical and predisposed trade enforced by the Europeans at the time robbed this innocent Continent of its development and wealth. In fact, 'it was gold from the great empires of West Africa, such as Ghana, Mali and Songhai, which provided the means for the economic take off of Europe in the 13th and 14th centuries and aroused the interest of Europeans in western Africa. Indeed it was also the wealth of West Africa, especially as a source of gold that encouraged the voyages of the early European explorers.'( http://www.understandingslavery.com)

Africa is slowly coming out from its economic doldrums, fighting meticulously with tact and precision and with faith and humility will emerge victorious just as its historical past proved. For instance, Barnaby Philips of Al Jazeera reported from Lisbon that Angola is now one of the largest destinations for Portuguese exports, and thousands of Portuguese are emigrating to Angola every month to look for work. (http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2012). Already the continent is opening its arms to all genuine co-operators and investors who have the Continent at heart and are willing to do unadulterated business with it and take advantage of the immense resources the Continent is endowed with to benefit each other.

The Chinese, the last to see the light have now taken the lead in the new scramble for such wealth in Africa and are taking advantage of the lack of serious competition from the rest of their rivals to amass the best they could before the others follow suit. But whether their intentions are genuine or not is yet to be seen.

China is now one of the main bank rollers in the oil industry in Angola. Other African Countries benefitting from Chinese investment projects include; Gabon, Zambia, Mauritius, Nigeria, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Algeria and Ghana. They are aiming at stabilizing the Continent by embarking on key projects spanning hydroelectric power systems, electric power lines, irrigation, construction, dams, harbours and extractive industries.

The Chinese however, have adopted a very clever strategy in their dealings with the African Countries to ensure their long stay on the Continent. Unlike their European and American rivals, they have refused to meddle in the politics of the respective Countries they deal with but rather focus on the purpose of why they had gone there for. Wherever they go they manage to kill two birds with a single stone. For any investment project they undertake in any Country they make sure that they carry a large labour force from China with them creating job opportunities for their unemployed youth to fill those vacancies left behind. At times their labour force supersedes that of the host Country. For example In March 2007, the Mauritius government announced its approval for a Consortium of Chinese companies to establish a business park on the island. An amount of US$500 million which was earmarked for a manufacturing zone to house 40 Chinese businesses, created 5,000 jobs for the locals and 8,000 for Chinese contractors.

The only thing that Africa must watch out for in her dealings with the outside world is that she should ensure that the Continent does not become a dumping ground for 'cheap' produce from China or any potential investor for that matter.

To see some of the investments happening in Africa made by China log on to: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1884396,00.html

One intriguing and astonishing fact that people fail to highlight when it comes to the history of the Continent is, inspite of its traumatic past and the deprivation it suffered from its invaders people still harbour some negative feelings about it. For example in the 18th century, racist views of Africa were most famously expressed by Scottish philosopher David Hume: 'I am apt to suspect the Negroes to be naturally inferior to the Whites. There scarcely ever was a civilised nation of that complexion, nor even any individual, eminent either in action or in speculation. No ingenious manufacture among them, no arts, no sciences.'

Whilst some changed slightly over time, there were still some who continued to hold these derogatory views. In the 19th century, the German philosopher Hegel simply declared: 'Africa is no historical part of the world.' Later, Hugh Trevor-Roper, Regius Professor of History at Oxford University, expressed openly the racist view that Africa has no history, as recently as 1963. What a load of twaddle. Obviously, these men never read anything about the early African Explorers like Ibn Batutta, the Moroccan Muslim traveller (1304-1369) who made over 75,000 miles around the globe from North Africa to the Horn of Africa, West Africa, Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in the west and to the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China even more than Marco Polo, (1254-1324) the Venetian did.

We now know that contrary to what some people perceive about Africa, we can almost certainly confirm that human history actually began there. All the earliest evidence of human existence and of our immediate hominid ancestors has been found in Africa. The latest scientific research points to the fact that all human beings are likely to have African ancestry link.

'Africa is not just the birthplace of humanity but also the cradle of early civilisation that made an enormous contribution to the world and is still marvelled at today. The most notable example is Kemet the original name of ancient Egypt – which first developed in the Nile valley more than 5,000 years ago and was one of the first monarchies.' (http://www.understandingslavery.com)

Douglas Chartey
UK