Indeed, media coverage of African countries only highlight bad news and catastrophic events: Droughts, inundations, civil wars, genocide, famine, refugees plight, devastating diseases and corruption in ruling circles and high places.
A sober observer, however, who does not stop at clichés, would notice that
there is another reality behind the sombre picture painted by the media.
First he would notice that African nations, in spite of recurrent droughts and persisting devastating diseases - for more than two decades - had not collapsed.
Second, he would notice that African countries have valuable assets: mineral resources, water, plenty of arable land and a resilient population.
Third, big corporations from Europe, America and China are actually investing billions of dollars in mining and oil fields in several sub-Saharan African countries.
Therefore, the bad image painted on Africa is not telling the true reality. In fact, considering innumerable dormant business opportunities existing in any single sub-Saharan African country, one can assert there is not a single African nation that is intrinsically poor.
Ten years ago, in 1997, the author of this text decided to publish a bulletin
to inform the community of international investors about high profit making
business opportunities existing in Africa. For that purpose, businessafrica.net
and africabiz.org were established including a section about "Business Opportunities in Africa",
Since then, every 15th of the month, a business opportunity is briefly exposed in the bulletin dealing primarily with agribusiness, food industry and related other trades. These business opportunities have huge potential to triggering double-digit annual growth rates that could turn upward the economy in African countries.
There Is Huge Potential in Agribusiness Development.
A visit to africabiz.org and clicking around would give an idea about the huge profit making potential inherent to reported projects. They are so numerous that one cannot list them all in this paper. Let us just quickly highlight two examples.
1-
Cassava Agribusiness
Cassava floor/ Gari is a popular food staple in several Western and Central
sub-Saharan African countries. The processing of cassava crops to cassava floor
[54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64]
offers a tremendous opportunity to develop food industries in African nations.
There is the possibility to establish in Africa around 8,000 operations to producing
coarse gari flour and creating about 1,096,000 industrial jobs in rural areas.
For an annual production level of 20 million metric tons of cassava floor, the
market value would be around US$3.8 billion.
In addition, coarse gari flour could be ground to fine flour of gari (granulation:
150 micron) that could be used as partial substitute to wheat flour in bakery.
Here one is talking about a market of minimum 45 million metric tons of fine
gari flour to cater for bakery business all over Africa. That would represent
a market value of US$8 billion.
The setup of these cassava processing (medium-scale) industries would undeniably
boost the production of fresh cassava root, give sustaining financial means to
farmers and provide additional raw materials to producing alcohol/ ethanol.
Ethanol production, on its part, opening the way to new industries: food industries,
pharmaceuticals, paints and glues. To name the few. These industries would represent
a ready huge market of about US$80 billion value that is currently supplied at
99% by imports.
To summarize, the promotion, development and marketing of cassava agribusiness
would be generating a potential market value of about US$90 billions a year all
over 48 sub-Saharan African nations.
2- Natural Pharmaceuticals Produced From Tropical
Fruits.
Nutriments/ food supplements and pharmaceuticals. Nutriceucals (Nutriments
+ pharmaceuticals) are a broad range of chemical / bio products, which composition
is based on natural enzymes (bromelain and or papain). Nowadays, nutriceucals
are used in the developed world to provide nutrition supplements to people: children
growth supplement, elders' anti aging supplement, competition / sports' performance
enhancement, cholesterol control medication, energy supplement, blended vitamins
supplements, chronic conditions support, pigmentation control, skin protection
treatments, weight loss support. Etc.
Currently, nutriment and nutriceucals industries are nonexistent in the African
development landscape. That is an aberration, when one knows that vitamins and
supplements are essential to children harmonious development and growth and to
the improvement of adults dietary and nutritional needs.
Tropical fruits and particularly pineapple's agribusiness [42, 43, 44, 45, 46]
can be used to establish pharmaceuticals industries throughout African countries
to deliver supplements and nutriments to the populations. (Not to forget the
huge world market available for exports).
The actual population level of Africa at the beginning of the new millennium
stands at around 800,000,000 people. If each African consumes per year one bottle
(50 caps of nutriments/ vitamins), the total consumption level would be in the
range of 800 million bottles. Our studies show that the profit margin per bottle
of 50 capsules (produced from pineapple) is about US$2. That means the estimate
profit margin for the industry would be in the range of US$1.6 billion a year.
That is a conservatory estimate. A consumption of one bottle of 50 caps per person
and per month would boost the profit margin to around US$19 billion a year.
Considering these two agribusiness opportunities, one sees the global market
value would be far above US$120 a year for the whole continent. And far more
beyond that figure if production for exports is taken into account.
To-date, there are more than 20 agribusiness opportunities listed in Africabiz
Online bulletins: in cereals crops development (sorghum, corn, rice, millet and
fonio - millet like cereal crop in Western African region,) livestock development
and fish farming and animal feeding production. Opportunities that show there
is a huge "dormant" agribusiness potential in African countries.
Further, in addition to agribusiness, there are plenty other investment areas
such as infrastructure and Healthcare development and building. For instance,
there is not a single clinic that matched developed countries standards in the
whole West African region (180,000,000 inhabitants.). A healthcare facility equipped
to top notch international standards established in the West African region would
attract a clientele of businesspeople and expatriates (about 3% of the area's
population above outlined) who currently use to go to Europe, America and Asia
for treatment.
Above briefly outlined "dormant" business opportunities in African countries demonstrate that mining industries and oils fields' exploitation are not the sole and unique investment areas available in Africa that could garner double-digit profit margins on vested money.
Lucrative Markets for Foreign Investors, Equipment Suppliers, Know-How Providers
and Technical Assistance.
The implementation of above briefly described business opportunities need the
implication of several actors and performers: local investors and international
investors, financiers, marketers, distributors and technical partners.
For instance, the cassava floor business opportunity as above reported (possibility
to setup around 8,000 medium-scale processing units around the continent) would
necessitate (1)- Know How acquisition (2)- Equipment purchase and setup (3)
- Blank Start-up Assistance (for three months) (4)- Spare Parts procurement-
Etc. These supply-markets would have a global value of US$3.6 billion. [US$450,000
x 8,000 units].
Foreign investors would also gain profit earning from equity shares participation.
The more opportunities would be implemented, the more there would be equipments
for sale, know-how and technical assistance to be signed and financing provided
for implementation. Etc. Remember, to date, in Africabiz Online monthly bulletins,
more than 20 business opportunities have been exposed that could be developed
like cassava and pineapple agribusinesses that have similar profit-making potential
in double-digit growth rate range.
Dr. Quenum & Associates have The Right Business
Model.
To enter the promising African market (ready to take off) as above briefly described,
Dr. Quenum & Associates are the right partners in business development as they have designed a fluent and efficient business model, to make joint-ventures between local African investors and foreign companies / partners a successful undertaking.
First, the right business opportunity for a particular sub-Saharan African country
is spotted. Second, local investors (private and institutional) are contacted
to form the local pool of investors. Third, a complete business plan is drafted
followed by investment schedule. And foreign partner (equity share partners and
technical partners) are contacted and linked to the local African investor pool.
Finally, financing partners are solicited. Etc.
Advertisement Platforms
Further, several advertisement platforms africabiz.org, businessafrica.net, freelanceworldwide.net
and businessafrica.net/bizafrica/ are available at very competitive pricing (compared
to classical media - paper, television and radio) for equipment suppliers, investors
and technical partners to post offers and propose services.
Trust our experience to guide you introducing your business into 48 sub-Saharan
African nations.
Dr.
Bienvenu-Magloire Quenum is the principal/
managing director of Dr. Quenum & Associates, IBC. He is an experienced Investment & Business
Planner with 25 years consulting practice in African countries. He is the
editor in chief of Africabiz Online
2-The
Big Book of Humorous Training Games (Big Book of Business Games
Series)
by Doni Tamblyn and Sharyn Weiss (Paperback - Jun 27, 2000) 4-The
Big Book of Team Building Games: Trust-Building Activities, Team
Spirit Exercises, and Other Fun Things to Do
by John W. Newstrom and
Edward E. Scannell (Paperback - Dec 1, 1997) 6-101
Teambuilding Activities: Ideas Every Coach Can Use to EnhanceTeamwork,
Communication and Trust
by Greg Dale and Scott Conant (Paperback - Sep
2004)
"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".
...................................................................................................................... HAPPY
AND SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS YEAR 2008
Africabiz Online wishes you all and your loved ones
a very festive Xmas 2004 and a successful business year for 2008.
Your
feedback / objection / contribution is welcome. Visit WorldWide
BizCenter,
and choose General
Information (as topic) to
create a thread for discussion. On the top of the WorldWide BizCenter page,
there is a HELP link to assist you making an efficient
use of the discussion board. This
link also is useful
Many
thanks for subscribing to Africabiz. See you here on Jan 15, 2008.
LIVESTOCK
& GAME DEVELOPMENT - PART II: - BASICS ABOUT
ANIMAL FEED FORMULATION
In most African countries,
livestock's sector is controlled and managed by small pastoralists/herders/breeders,
who use traditional pastoral methods and techniques. Herds's feeding
depending on the availability of rain--pastures that become scarce or are completely
scorched and wiped out during drought periods. Therefore, herdsmen wander
from place to place with cattle, searching for grazing pastures.
This practice is not the best way to produce quality meat animals - as animal
lose weight between grazing places -, and also because bloody clashes often occur
with sedentary farmers whose plots are destroyed by wandering animals.
Therefore, in order to produce quality meat and supply the demand in Africa,
and suppress recurrent social disturbances in rural areas, resulting from clashes
between wandering herders and sedentary farmers, the establishment of animal
feed industries in each single African nation is a necessity.
- By products and Raw materials Suitable for Animal Feed
Formulation
Agriculture and agribusiness wastes: hays, leaves (kenaf plant's
leaves for example [23, 24],
roots and tubers's pulp, peels and pellets [54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64];
brewery sludge and wastes [30, 31, 32];
essential oil industry wastes (spent residue of pepper, cardamom, ginger and
other seeds to producing essential oils 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52);
cocoa-shell powder, cocoa beans, cereals, banana peels, papaya peels; fruit industry
and vegetable processing wastes: orange peel, spent lemon, orange waste, potato
waste, tomato waste, mango kernel, water-melon seeds, pineapple waste (leaves
and pulp34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46);
mango seed extraction, oil-cakes and oil-meals [25, 26, 27, 28];
coffee waste and extracted tea leaves; blood collected from slaughterhouse [78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87]
- are suitable for animal feed formulation.
1-Handbook
of Livestock Management
by Richard A. Battaglia (Paperback - Jul 21, 2006)
2- Raising
Small Livestock:
A Practical Handbook
by Jerome D. Belanger (Paperback - Feb 11, 2005)
3- The
Homesteader's Handbook
to Raising Small Livestock Goats, Chickens, Sheep. Geese, Rabbitts, Hogs,
Turkeys, Guinea Fowl, Ducks and Pigeons
by Jerome D. Belanger (Hardcover - April 1974)
4- Backyard
Livestock:
Raising Good, Natural Food for Your Family, Third Edition by Steven Thomas
and George P. Looby (Paperback - Jan 2, 2007)
5- Keeping
Livestock Healthy:
A Veterinary Guide to Horses, Cattle, Pigs, Goats & Sheep, 4th Edition
by N. Bruce Haynes (Paperback - Nov 1, 2001)
6- Alternative
Health Practices for Livestock
by Michael Keilty and Thomas Morris (Hardcover - Jan 1, 2006)
Sometimes,
after an application's uninstall using Microsoft Windows Add-Remove (Start/
Control Panel/ Add-Remove), the uninstaller may keep on popping up at
odd moment during other computing sessions, again and again. That is a real nuisance
that ruins computing experience, as to stop the popping up uninstaller, one would
need to go through the sequence of Alt+Ctrl+Del to kill the
culprit process - and doing that the occurring sessions is perturbed and one
may need to restart the system.
- Windows Add-Remove (Start/ Control Panel/ Add-Remove)
does not perform a complete uninstall
When an application is installed, it spreads several components into different
locations into the system. Not only in System32 folder, but also in Registry
and other "obscure" folders and places:. associated desktop icons, Start menu
entries and keys in the Registry. Etc.
Windows Add/Remove does not perform a thorough uninstall to removing all bits
of files loaded into locations above listed. Most of the time, even the Registry
is not completely cleaned up.
These left over files slow down the system and sometimes nagging uninstallers
keep on popping up during other computing sessions.
The European
Union, led by its most industrialized country, Germany, is a dynamic player in
international trade. 27 "old" industrialized countries pulled together
assets and resources to offer innumerable business opportunities for exporters.
It has established a
website that features an Export Help Deskto help developing countries
gain a foothold in trade with the EU.
It's a free service that offer tons of useful information. There you have access
to information on qualifying for advantageous import tariffs, plus documentation
guides, tax requirements, trade statistics, downloadable customs forms, trade
leads, useful links, and more. It's an easy-to-use site with valuable information.
