Summary of Address to MEFMI Executive Forum

Mr Hendrik du Toit, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Investec Asset Management
Over the past 15 years perceptions of Africa have evolved from deeply pessimistic to the more recent wave of Afro-optimism. The Economist graphically personifies that in moving from its “hopeless continent” front cover to the more recent “Aspiring Africa”. 

The dynamic Nigerian Finance Minister, NgoziOkanjo-Iweala articulated this change when she wrote: “After decades of genuine struggle, Africa’s time has arrived, and its people are crying out to be recognised…the question for global investors and international policymakers is whether they want to share in the profits”. The quality of life indicators confirms this. With instances of Malaria and HIV significantly down over the past decade and life expectancy on the rise, the term ‘hopeful continent’ is appropriate. The political situation confirms this. By the end of the Cold War Africa had only three functioning democracies out of a total of 53 countries. Today only four countries lack multi-party constitutions. Annual Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has settled at around $50bn over the last few years. Africa’s demographic tree is one of the healthiest in the world. Africa’s natural resource abundance continues to set it apart.
    
In spite of all these positive factors, this is not the time for naïve Afro-optimism. By all standards Africans remain poor. The other side of the demographic coin is the need to provide urban industrial and services jobs to growing cohorts of educated entrants to the labour market. If their aspirations are not met, the threat of social instability will threaten the African success story. Corruption remains a huge concern.

Africa has spawned some of the world’s most remarkable entrepreneurs. Elon Musk (South Africa), the technology billionaire, Paul Maritz (Zambia), one of the builders of Microsoft, Johann Rupert (South Africa), creator of the luxury goods giant Richemont, KoosBekker (South Africa), the media entrepreneur who is behind Tencent of China, Strive Masiyiwa (Zimbabwe), founder of Econet Wireless and AlikoDangote, Africa’s richest man, are all in a class of their own. These people prove that Africa can compete. Our challenge is to inspire African nations to want to compete on the international economic stage, just as Asia has done. We must move from growth as the objective to competitiveness, because that translates into sustainable, long-term growth. In order to do that we need to use the scale of the continent – or at least its economic blocs such as SADEC, ECOWAS, COMESA and East African Community (EAC) – because most of the individual countries are too small to be meaningful markets or production platforms for global competitiveness. It is time for common infrastructure and clear delivery to ensure that people, businesses and investors can move within these blocks without difficulties. I am very encouraged by what I see in East Africa, but much more should be done, especially in the other regions.

Africa will only move to the next level if there is clear leadership at many levels and effective implementation. Finance ministers, governors, permanent secretaries and senior business people need stand up and be counted now. Over the past decade heads of state and political leadership have largely taken us in the right direction; now we have to execute and drive standards.

It is my firm belief that the people in this room have and can make a huge contribution in the years ahead. They will have to stand up against corruption, speak out where necessary, make sure that policies are implemented and communicated and remind their compatriots about the competitive world in which we try to operate. We must provide our own solutions for our challenges and not blindly follow other nations, especially the West. We must build our societies on the right values and good education.  Our orthodox business-friendly policies have worked over the last decade. We must continue with these and single-mindedly, like the Asians before us, pursue stability, competitiveness and prosperity. Then and then only can we claim that Africa has arrived.  Over the next decade our journey must be one from policy to practice. It is all about execution and implementation. Here in Washington it is appropriate to quote Abraham Lincoln, who said that the best way to predict the future is to create it. We, as Africans, have a future to create!

In the 21st Century it is also appropriate always to keep China in mind. So let me conclude with a thought from Deng Xiaoping, the man who put China back on the road to prosperity: “It won’t do to hold too many meetings and write lengthy articles… Shenzen’s rapid development was the result of doing solid work, not the culture of delivering speeches or writing articles”.  Let us get down to work. Africa deserves it.