Comments on: “If you make Africans rich, they’ll be less poor”

By: Mentalacrobatics · Except South Africa v Accept South Africa

Mentalacrobatics · Except South Africa v Accept South Africa — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 00:41:00 +0000

[...] data would transform the results completely. I first noticed this during Idris Mohammed’s talk at TEDAfrica in which most of his statistics on the economy of Sub Saharan Africa excluded South Africa. While [...]

By: Mohammed Yousri

Mohammed Yousri — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 09:05:49 +0000

Leave it to the capitalists, are you insane? Though Idriss makes a good point in clarifying the detrimental role aid plays in undermining local innovation hence economic progress, it is naive to assume that wealth creation is the solution to Africa’s problems. People with too much money always assume it is wealth that the poor want but it’s not, it’s a decent living, a job, food, security.

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 15:47:51 +0000

After spending time in the slums and refugee camps ofo Uganda, I have to agree with this premise. For each person suffering in Africa, someone is profiting from it. That injustice can be equalized, as the rise in cell phones and commensorate rise in incomes proves. Someone needs to stop the liberals from trying to “fix” poverty and let private enterprise, equality under the law, and freedom of expression grow to create wealth in Africa.
Thank you for an excellent point of view.

By: …My heart’s in Accra » Incremental infrastructure, or how mobile phones might wire Africa

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 22:13:39 +0000

[...] I’ve been thinking a great deal about the “entrepreneurship-first” path – possibly best exemplified by financier Idris Mohammed’s statement, “If you make Africans rich, they’ll be less poor. That’s my poverty reduction strategy.” Almost every discussion of business opportunity in Africa focused on the amazing growth of the mobile phone industry. That growth has been astounding, but it’s hard to know whether that growth will be replicable in other sectors. There’s a couple of circumstances that I think are critical to understand in the rise of mobile networks on the continent: [...]

By: John

John — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 05:59:42 +0000

I agree totally.Our biggest problem in Africa is our leadership.They are stooges, sycophants,theives,opportunitists,,name it.The populous could see things differntly, but their works must be supported by the governments which is rare.