Countries

Welcome to AFRICABIZ,

Welcome to Africabiz Online Synopsis RSS Feed edition. Previous issue available at this link

Dear faithful reader,

UNILATERAL DECISION NOT TO PAY BACK DEBTS WILL BE COUNTERPRODUCTIVE FOR AFRICAN NATIONS

Click here for the beginning of the article

Professor Jeffrey Sachs' declaration that African countries should take the initiative to refuse paying back their debts comes from a good intention. It is the sudden impulse from a heavy-hearted person who is sickened by the lack of interest shown by the big powers.

However, three days latter Pr. J. Sachs provided more precision declaring to the BBC's World Business Report: "Africa should say: 'Thank you very much but we need this money to meet the needs of children who are dying right now so we will put the debt servicing payments into urgent social investment in health, education, drinking water, control of aids and other needs". He denied that refusing to pay back debts would bar African countries from accessing the capital markets in the future. "They won't be able to access those markets anyway until the debt is forgiven", he explained, adding that there is no reason why they shouldn't be able to borrow again provided the forgiveness was negotiated in a cooperative manner.

The last words of Pr. J. Sachs contradict his first declaration made at Addis Ababa. It is now question of negotiation instead of unilateral decision by African nations to refuse paying back debts.

That precision is important because no one in the world will be prone to lending money to someone who has publicly refused to pay back debts to former lenders. A unilateral decision by African countries will simply create a lack of confidence towards African countries by the international finance community.

USING DEBTS' PAYMENTTO PROMOTE PRODUCTIVE PROJECTS IN AFRICA WILL MAKE DEBTORS AND CREDITORS HAPPY

According to Pr. J. Sacks, Africa should say: 'Thank you very much but we need this money to meet the needs of children ... and other needs".

Most of these stated needs are social needs. If debts' remittance money are used just for social needs, nothing will change for Africa. Poverty will not retreat because using the money to satisfy social needs will not create jobs in African countries where, right now, exist between 50% to 70% unemployment.

Further, because the money is not used for productive activities, there will be no creation of wealth and consequently no upward evolution of the per capita Gross National Product - currently averaging US$ 350 for the continent.

Finally, after 5 to 10 years during which debts remittance money have been be spent on social needs, the poverty level will remain high - currently 55% to 80% of people in Africa living with less than one US dollar per day.

African countries should lobby for debts' payment reorientation into equity shares
instead of fighting for debt forgiveness or outright cancellation. They should lobby to attract creditors to take participation in projects included in developing schemes with their debts' repayment package. African policy-maker should make sure developing schemes link together agriculture, industry and services.

That is the way to bring prosperity to Africa. As 60% to 80% of Africans live in rural areas, investing to boosting of agriculture development together with the transformation of resulting crops to produce high added value products will do more for African countries' prosperity than debt forgiveness or cancellation.

The utilization of funds to be managed by a joint committee of representatives of a specific Lender and country concerned. Lenders being associated to the management of the funds have the guarantee money will be wisely and efficiently spent. Further, lenders' representatives will also be part of day to day technical and or administrative management of promoted projects. That is also a guarantee for the fulfilling of the profit-making potential of joint projects.

PROFIT-MAKING PROJECTS ARE ENDLESS IN AFRICA

Finding profit-making projects in any African country is not a problem. In fact they are endless opportunities that could trigger double digit growth rate and boost the economy in any single African country. Some have been reported in Africabiz Online's Business Opportunities Section. For instance, this month issue exposed that there is the possibility to establishing 8,000 (eight thousand) medium-scale cassava processing plants to producing 20 million metric tons of Gari - a popular diet in African countries. Table below give the total amount of investment involved and the resulting Gross Revenues:

Total Investment:475,000 US$ x 8,000 units	3.8 billion
Yearly Estimated Gross Revenues: 430,000 US$ x 8,000 units	3.440 billion

No doubt Creditors will be interested to invest in such profit-making ventures. They will be selling equipment and technical expertise and ripping bonus from generated revenues.

The progressive establishment of thousand of global projects (included in African countries developing schemes) like the one above described will absorb African countries debts' load and subsequently boost African economy.

African countries' governments would garner increasing amount of taxes and duties for national budgets. They would have enough financial resources "to meet the needs of children ... and other needs". Build, manage and maintained schools, universities campuses, research centers, health centers and other infrastructure.

In short the economy would start creating jobs to meet demand and producing riches for all. African countries would become credit worthy. Trading would thrive first between African nations and second between the North and the South.

In the contrary, a simple debt's forgiveness by international creditors or unilateral decision by African countries not to pay back theirs debts will not produce any improvement in the current economic conditions characterized by rampant poverty.

"CONTRIBUTOR'S GUIDELINES" are available here. We invite you to contribute to AFRICABIZ ONLINE MONTHLY ISSUE - with articles related to "How Africa Could Bridge The Developing Gap".

Many thanks for subscribing to Africabiz. See you here on August 15, 2004.

Dr. B.M. Quenum
Click here for contact & support console

Business Opportunities

TROPICAL ROOTS AND TUBERS (PART VII): D- INVESTMENT AND OPERATING OPERATING BRIEFS ABOUT A MEDIUM SCALE GARI PROCESSING PLANT

Starting from Issue 60, four deliveries (A - Introduction B- Market C - Plantation's creation dealt with the production of a granulated cassava flour that is a popular food in Africa: GARI

A medium scale processing plant tailored to process 10,000 metric tons per year of fresh cassava - at full capacity - is a profit-making operation as shown by investment amount and generated Gross Revenues (in US$ x 1,000) exposed in table below:

INVESTMENT
Total investment	475
FULL CAPACITY YEARLY PRODUCTION
Coarse Gari Flour = 38 metric tons of raw material per day x 22 days per month x 12 months x 24 % gari's yield = 2,407 metric tons of gari per year
OPERATING COSTS
Operational Expenses: Raw material cost - production costs: insurance - utilities - staff and hands - management salaries - packaging - external management assistance - amortization - interests on loan. Etc.	409
PRODUCTION COST PER METRIC TON EX-WORKS
409,000/ 2,407	170
GENERATED GROSS REVENUES
Considering 5% profit margin over production cost	430

More details on operating conditions are available here

Control Your Desktop

TRIPLE PROTECTION IS NOW THE RULE IN DESKTOP SECURITY

You need an AntiVirus + a Firewall + An active HomeGuard that takes care of an intruder - Activex X, Java applets and worms written in malicious codes that could enter your system when you are surfing the Net. In other words, the intruder lures its way into your computer bypassing the Firewall.

The Active HomeGuard is like a policeman who checks the ID card of someone inside a city, while the Firewall is a Gatekeeper. If the person's credentials are good, the HomeGuard let him go his way. In the contrary, if the person has a record at the police station, he may be a suspect for a crime under investigation. Therefore, the person is taken to custody for further investigation.

Activex X, Spyware Objects (capable of redirecting your browser from your chosen browser' default homepage), worms, Trojan horses, exe and zip files being suspects are taken care of as soon as they stealthily entered your computer. The "active" HomeGuard quarantines those beasts in a sandbox. In that virtual jail their activities are monitored to see if they are undertaking unauthorized actions that could be harmful to your computer. If their behavior is correct and not harmful they are released and free to perform their duties on your computer.

Thus, when you install an "active" HomeGuard", any attacking new virus is quarantined in the sandbox and neutralized. In the meantime your traditional Antivirus package will have the time to get the new virus' signature - if it is programmed to perform automatic updates. If your Antivirus does not perform automatic update, you then do it manually.

One way or another you are no more submitted to the "Attacking Window" resulting from the fact that your AntiVirus package lacks a particular virus' signature when a new virus is let loose by hackers. Further, the attacking virus or Activex object cannot lure the firewall (the Gatekeeper) to granting an exist permit to the Internet. You are safe. For instance, when you click on a downloaded exe file, a SurfinGuard's pop up asks if you want to Block, Monitor or Allow the file to be executed. Everything is transparent. You are in control as you perfectly know which file you have personally download.

There are many "active HomeGuards" available. One of the most efficient is SurfinGuard from Finjan Software developers that features Proactive Defense Against Malicious Code. Almost all Microsoft popular applications are screened and protected together with a series of other common applications and instant messaging systems (ICQ).

Visit link above listed and choose SurfinGuard Pro from "Products" tab. SurfinGuard integrates smoothly with other security tools such as Grisoft Antivirus and ZoneAlarm

Freebie Of The Month

START YOUR INTERNET BUSINESS ON THE RIGHT FOOT

Here is Chris Malta's free e-Book: "Starting Your Internet Business Right!" a must have document for anyone who wishes to enter the very exiting and lucrative Internet business. Starting without a guide, you will not make it to the haven of many opportunities waiting to be grabbed. Hard work and patience always pay. However, starting on the right foot is also a recipe to success.

Click here to download Chris Malta's free e-Book that will guide you step by step to Internet business success.