Interesting LinkedIn Post by JP Følsgaard Bak, known for his legal and entrepreneurial background
And the winner is?
The African Continent!
Trust me, in two years there will be a stampede from Europe and the USA like the gold rush in California!
I am sure the coming president of America has seen this and will plant the Stars and Stripes strategically there soon.
Why?
After decades of negligence, the world woke up one morning and said: why did we not see this coming?
Why did we ignore the upcoming biggest consumer market in the world?
Why did we miss the boat?
Maybe it is not too late, but the problem is the wake up calls in general did not come with a coherent strategic plan for how to join.
Every country has their own ideas and many corporate entities are looking for answers in their old manuals for how to explore new markets.
However, what I have learned through my extensive travel and stay throughout the Continent is first and foremost the following:
In order to get success in Africa it is not enough to provide financial injection.
It is much more important to help the domestic businesses by transferring knowledge and technology, and thereby give them a sustainable ownership of their own destiny.
Exactly the same formula created the commercial success of the US, when Europe after the Second World War, transferred hundreds of of years of scientific research to America and when China after joining WTO in 2001 got the latest technology (voluntarily or not) from the US.
NOW, it is Africa’s turn to be on the receiving end of the know how and access to technology and the digital transformation that created the modern world.
More symbolic, the circle of power will go back to the place where the human race was born.
Here is my reasoning:
1) the global consumer markets are saturated with products and the suppliers need a new fresh off-taker sizeable enough to maintain their
growth!
2) The Continent is at this point ready to take ownership of her own resources securing enough income to become independent of foreign financing.
The time might be over soon, where the natural resources are extracted out of the continent as were they pieces of soil.
3) the Continent is now ready and motivated for industrialization and due to the number of people (in particular young) available for the workforce the continent is probably the only adequate alternative to Asias dominance as the worlds assembling hub.
And here comes the first luck Africa has experienced since the start of civilization.
Asia is, due to the increase in labor cost, forced to seek new areas for the production of consumer electronics and guess, who is capable and willing to take over?
Africa!
My prediction is that in five years the IPhone and other devices will be produced at the continent not only for consumption there but for export to rest of the world.
Europe had its time. The US had its time and recently Asia had its time.
Trust me! Now the next 20 to 30 years at least belong to Africa!
Learn from history and act accordingly!