With pockets as deep as gold mines, how far are couples willing to go to have the picture-perfect luxe wedding? 



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



The lagoons overlook the snow-white beaches with its swaying
coconut trees, embraced by the turquoise waters of the sea in the island nation
of Mauritius. It’s a scene straight out of a movie, with a couple cavorting in
the distance.



Over 100 guests from South Africa have also gathered on
these sands for the weekend wedding of businessman Lebo Gunguluza and his
long-term girlfriend Lebo Mokoena.&nbsp; 



The total cost of this union: almost $300,000.&nbsp; 



“I didn’t mind exceeding the budget, because you only do
this once,” says new bride Mokoena.



The couple flew over 30 guests and provided them with
five-star accommodation at the LUX* Grand Gaube.&nbsp; Part of the guest contingency included the
behind-the-scenes crew for the wedding, as well as the speakers who had to
spend four to seven days in Mauritius to prep up. 



“We did not want to have a local wedding because we wanted our guests and family to have a different experience. We also wanted our family members who did not have passports and have never flown out of the country to experience a different country,” Gunguluza says.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="924" height="616" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-5.jpg.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-40547" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-5.jpg.jpg 924w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-5.jpg-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-5.jpg-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-5.jpg-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 924px) 100vw, 924px" /><figcaption> Snow-white beaches of Mauritius. Picture: Supplied</figcaption></figure></div>



The weekend celebrations started on a Friday last September
with a cocktail meet-and-greet party. Belly dancers who were dressed in floral
red and yellow danced the evening away with guests, with a local band taking
them to the all-white party on Saturday. 



This was just a build-up to the romantic wedding reception
with shades of blush, ivory, and gold which was to take place on Sunday at 4PM.




“Every time I think about that day, I want to do it again,”
the new bride says.



The couple chose not to have bridesmaids and groomsmen and
the guests were encouraged to dress in black and white. 



“I didn’t have bridesmaids because it makes you choose
between your friends. I felt that if you got an invite to our wedding, you were
worthy enough. So, we wanted everyone to be bridesmaids and groomsmen. I think
we made it intimate and everybody felt like they were VIPs,” says Mokoena. 



Everything fit perfectly as the bride’s two white wedding
dresses were designed by Antherline Couture. 



For the ceremony, she wore a white ball gown with a diamanté
top heavily embellished with beads; while the groom looked dapper in a white
tuxedo jacket designed by Master Suit SA.&nbsp;&nbsp;




The color white was indeed conspicuous.



“I have always felt that white is pure and because I was
signing my life away, I felt I needed to be pure, hence I said my husband
needed to wear white as well,” she adds.



The lavish white wedding was organized by renowned wedding
planner Precious Tumisho Thamaga who ditched her seven-year career in Public
Relations &amp; Marketing to become an event planner. 



Thamaga organizes events and weddings for affluent clients
such as the Gunguluzas.



“They are busy people and they don’t have time to do the
administration and the back and forth of vetting in suppliers,” Thamaga says,
as she takes over the pain of wedding planning.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="927" height="615" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-6.jpg.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-40548" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-6.jpg.jpg 927w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-6.jpg-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-6.jpg-600x398.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-6.jpg-768x510.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 927px) 100vw, 927px" /><figcaption>Lebo Mokoena and Lebo Gunguluza (middle) with wedding guests in Mauritius. Picture: Supplied</figcaption></figure></div>



While working in the corporate world, she had attended many
weddings that she felt were put together in a way that created a disconnect
between the guests and the wedding couple.



“So I saw an opportunity in the fact that there were not a
lot of wedding planners that were black,”&nbsp;
Thamaga says.&nbsp; 



She decided to focus on corporate clients in order to turn
her passion into a profitable business. 



“A lot of people did not expect a black person to be
professional and take the business seriously. 



“It was not just a hobby or someone helping out a family. It
was an actual business and I made sure that I got taken seriously from the
onset,” Thamaga says. 



In order for Precious Celebrations (the name of her company)
to prosper, she had to have a business strategy in place. 



“I made sure that I put a lot of time and effort and
strategized properly what it was that I wanted to actually focus on, and find a
niche [in]. I believed that would separate me from somebody that was already in
the industry,” Thamaga says.



However, her job is not always alluring. 



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="923" height="614" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-8.jpg.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-40549" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-8.jpg.jpg 923w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-8.jpg-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-8.jpg-600x399.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-8.jpg-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 923px) 100vw, 923px" /><figcaption> Lebo Mokoena and Lebo Gunguluza&#8217;s wedding in Mauritius. Picture: Supplied </figcaption></figure></div>



“When I started in the industry there weren’t so many
wedding planners and now it is a different story and everyone thinks it is
easy-peasy and it is glamorous,” she says.&nbsp;




Planning a luxurious wedding takes eight to 12 months and
can cost anywhere between R300,000 ($20,813) to R4.5 million ($312,203). 



The most expensive wedding Thamaga planned was for a public
figure she cannot disclose the name of.&nbsp; 



“It was a destination wedding and the experience from when
the guests arrived to the wedding day was memorable. When they arrived, we had
a cocktail party and we had activities like canoeing and on Sunday we had an
all-white party. [This is] so that people don’t depart on Sunday and may leave
on Monday.”&nbsp; 



Only the affluent sign up. 



“The smallest wedding that I have had to plan had 80 people
and it cost R2 million ($138,000),”&nbsp;
Thamaga says. 



She has turned away some clients in the past because their
budget was insufficient for the type of wedding they envisioned.&nbsp; 



Thamaga organizes 26 weddings, on average, annually, from
countries such as Mauritius, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Botswana and now she plans on
taking her bespoke company global. 



One of the unique aspects of her business is that she has
maintained a good relationship with the suppliers she has in each country, and
has kept her expenses to a minimum. 



“The wedding planning-event planning industry is quite
lucrative if you do it right. I am not the type that would have too much
inventory because I want to feel like the inventory belongs to me; that would
limit my creativity,” she says. 



“I make sure that I don’t have a lot of expenses, I have
coordinators that I have worked with for years and they have full-time jobs.” 



Thamaga’s greatest challenge so far was whether or not to
outsource other wedding planners when her business was increasing. 



“It can be a bit daunting to realize that your business is
growing,” she says.



But she opted to remain boutique.



“I had to decide that it is not about the money. I am
building an empire where I want a legacy and an ongoing relationship with my
clients.”&nbsp; 



She involves her clients every step of the way to bring
their vision to an unforgettable reality, and believes that weddings are
expensive because of the growing aspirations of the young. 



“It is not just in South Africa, it is worldwide,” she says.



Despite the tangible costs of conducting these dream events,
the wedding industry in South Africa is largely unregistered as it is a fluid
market where services and costs are difficult to track and document accurately.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="930" height="618" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-2.jpg.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-40551" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-2.jpg.jpg 930w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-2.jpg-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-2.jpg-600x399.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-2.jpg-768x510.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" /><figcaption> Fred Elu Eboka, a Nigerian designer who dresses delegates as well as the rich and famous. Picture: Supplied </figcaption></figure>



Africans, no doubt, spend millions per year on costs
associated with marital ceremonies. This is the reality of the unregistered
wedding industry. Despite the recession and slow economic growth, the wedding
industry continues to attract many entrepreneurs to its lucrative
opportunities.



As, people never stop getting married.



The Marriages and Divorces report released by Statistics
South Africa last May shows an upward trend in civil marriages. Civil marriages
increased by 0.6%, from 138,627 marriages registered in 2015 to 139,512 in
2016. 



A wedding dress is an important part of a celebration and
the bridal couture market continues to show growth. 



Wise Guy Reports Database Global Wedding Dress Market
Insights, forecast to 2025, states: “The wedding market demand grows
continually, and the wedding garments market has notable increase every year.
In this case, the competition is also very intense among companies. The
involved companies should seize the opportunities to expand the gold mine.” 



A previous client of Thamaga’s has spent R200,000 ($13,876)
on two wedding dresses and this is nothing for Fred Elu Eboka, a Nigerian
designer who dresses delegates as well as the rich and famous.&nbsp; 



He moved to South Africa in 1992 at a time when African
designs were not being celebrated globally.&nbsp;




Twenty years ago, Eboka sold wedding dresses for R15,000
($1,041) a piece, and now sells for R250,000 ($17,344) a piece, depending on
the design.&nbsp; 



“A designer of my caliber in South Africa is undersold
because there are people in the United States selling wedding gowns for $250
and I am here selling them for maybe $80, it just doesn’t make sense. It shows
that our economy is really bad because a designer of my caliber should be
operating on the same level as them, or very close,” Eboka says.



He is a luxury designer.&nbsp;




“When you think of luxury, it is not just the product, it is
not just the textile – it is the whole experience from when you drive in, to
when you sit down and have the designer talk to you and learn about your life.
The whole artistic process contributes to the cost value of the gown.” 



He says that the reason wedding gowns are expensive is
because they are meant to be timeless pieces. 



“Traditionally, wedding gowns are classical couture. It is
not like the normal evening dress that you wear to look beautiful on one night.
A wedding dress is like training for the Olympics. You train for them for the
rest of your life,” he says. 



Eboka also says when designing a wedding gown, you need to
take time to know the client, family and their fancies in order to meet the
clients’ need. 



The material of the wedding gown is usually expensive
because he sources the textiles from across the world, and he takes two to
three months to create a gown, depending on the embellishments. 



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="924" height="614" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-3.jpg.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-40550" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-3.jpg.jpg 924w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-3.jpg-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-3.jpg-600x399.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-3.jpg-768x510.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 924px) 100vw, 924px" /><figcaption> Fred Elu Eboka, a Nigerian designer who dresses delegates as well as the rich and famous. Picture: Supplied  </figcaption></figure></div>



“My designs have a lot of artistry,” he says. 



Eboka is a wealthy man but he still believes that the
industry is not as lucrative as it could be. 



“But we do well, without being arrogant about it&#8230; You have
to be fully aware of the industry and have the intellectual capacity to
understand the potential of the market,” he says.



Pictures are an important element of a wedding because they
capture the moment for life. 



International award-winning photographer Daniel West meets
his clients in a restaurant so he can get to know them better and learn the
history of their relationship. 



“We, as photographers, need to click with each couple, it is
actually vital because we are going to be in their space from the beginning to
end.



“So, when we do not gel, we are going to find ourselves in
an awkward situation on the day because we, as photographers, are also
problem-solvers. We don’t just take pictures on the day,” West says. 



His packages start from R18,000 ($1,248) to R60,000 ($4,163)
and he says it is because the couple is paying for the quality of the work. His
packages include waterproof genuine leather-bound photo albums that he says
last a lifetime, as well as 500 images that are both edited and unedited. He
also arranges the location for the photoshoots. 



“It is more than about taking pictures on the day, anybody
can take pictures but the work that I do has more of a boutique feel,” he says.




“You pay to have something like this on the table that will
last you a lifetime,” West says. 



He does not only take pictures on the day but the
photoshoots can take up to three months. 



“Each couple that I take pictures of has a different story
and that is where I draw my inspiration.” 



West says that it takes a while for the business to get to a
point that is profitable because photographic equipment is expensive. 



“In the beginning, it is unfortunately not lucrative because
you have to look into getting the equipment that is up to standard, however, it
took me about seven years where I could get to a point that I could make a
business out of it,” West says. 



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="927" height="616" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-1.jpg.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-40552" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-1.jpg.jpg 927w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-1.jpg-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-1.jpg-600x399.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SnipImage-1.jpg-768x510.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 927px) 100vw, 927px" /><figcaption> International award-winning photographer Daniel West with his clients. Picture: Supplied</figcaption></figure></div>



His annual turnover before expenses is R800,000 ($55,502)
and he has about 25 clients a year.



He believes that the industry is regarded as valuable in
South Africa and it is growing because people are becoming more enlightened
about the photography industry. And social media has become an important
motivator driving this industry. 



“It is vital to have a good photographer for your wedding,
because you as a bride are not quite educated of what is out there and what is
not [in terms of photography].”



A good photographer needs to have foresight. 



“The quality and charisma of your photographer is really one
of the most important things you pay for because if something were to go wrong
on your wedding, like rain, what does your photographer do? Do they stand back
or make a plan?” he says. 



Other luxe services associated with weddings include limos
and chauffeur services, and florists, live music bands and gourmet caterers
flown from around the world.

The more money you are willing to throw, the
more sparkling the champagne, crystal and caviar on the beach

SnipImage (7)

Lifting The Heavy Veil On Wedding Costs

Democracy and social progress die without science and fact-based knowledge. Science and facts are the foundational basis for rational and logical disputation and the possibility of reaching some truths.



Fake news, on the other hand, is a calculated assault on&nbsp;<a href="https://en.unesco.org/sites/default/files/journalism_fake_news_disinformation_print_friendly_0.pdf">democratic freedoms</a>.



The power of the notion of fake news and of its practitioners is demonstrated by how we have all quickly come to accept that there is a category of news called fake news. By doing so, we are running the real risk of being complicit in its legitimisation. My point is: if it’s fake then it’s not news. There is news, and then there is fake stuff, dodgy facts, distortions and lies.



So what’s the connection between science, knowledge and facts?



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">What makes good science</h4>



Science is one important means of producing knowledge and getting to what approximates the truth. Good science results from rigorous processes. Part of the rigour in science and knowledge creation is the peer review process, which is a means of ensuring not only the correctness of facts, but also transparency.



Science must generally also meet the test of&nbsp;<a href="https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8234/7207a1f94c1c3891ee18b151dc1abb41ca56.pdf">replicability</a>. These days data used in scientific experiments often also has to be preserved so it can be assessed or analysed if results are disputed. Ethical norms also govern scientific experiments to prevent harm.



Science is not the absolute truth. Scientific findings are the beginning, not the end, of the quest for truth. Empirical data used in science that can be verified forms a sound basis for robust discussion, debate and decision-making. Science brings a degree of rationality that creates a higher probability that the best interest of society or the public interest will be taken into account in, for example, decision-making.



Science, then, is the habit of exercising the mind to help think through especially difficult and complex phenomena.



This makes science important in the exercise of democracy. This isn’t possible without facts and information that enable – or aid – voters to make an informed choice in elections, for example, or help the making of sound policies that best promote the public interest. Science also enables discerning members of the public to make sense of their worlds and the world.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">So-called fake news</h4>



Fake news, on other hand, is a set of at worst, manufactured or concocted facts that are a perversion of reality. It is the direct antithesis of science.



But fake news isn’t new. It’s as old as news itself and has a variety of aims, including propaganda and spin doctoring. It can be argued that the growth of spin doctoring in the 1990s is the precursor to the exponential growth of fakery. It has also been enabled by the decline of content that enriches public discourse in the context of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/276025568_Mass_media_and_globalization">commercialisation and concentration</a>&nbsp;of media since the 1980s.



These developments led to a decline in the influence of public interest media or media that strikes the balance between commercial enterprise and the public good. And this has led to the reduction in the kind of news and media content that focuses on science.



Science journalism and investigative journalism, in particular, have seriously declined. This has meant that the ability to shine a light on the dark areas of lack of knowledge, superstition, and myths has seriously been diminished.



Specialist reporting is now confined to the content-rich ghettos of those who are highly educated or interested.



Another reason for the growth of fake news and its increasing influence is the loss of confidence in public institutions, including media institutions and the profession of journalism. Fakery has risen to fill the vacuum, driven by individuals and political organisations who position themselves as messiahs with instant solutions to multiple social crises. In their discourse knowledge institutions, science, facts, evidence, experts and reason or rationality are thrown out of the window as the sophistry of the elite.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">The role of social media</h4>



Digital technologies and social media have made it much easier to produce and disseminate fake news. It is a paradox: unprecedented scientific advances and technologies are enabling us to transcend traditional constraints of distribution and literally place information at people’s fingertips. Yet these same technologies seem to facilitate more fake news and information that doesn’t necessarily advance the public good.



In addition, social media largely exists outside the professional norms of fact checking and the use of evidence to support assertions, arguments and positions taken in relation to social phenomena.



Fact checking and peer review are more important than ever because of the reality that false information now flows freely. This can be extremely harmful, particularly in&nbsp;<a href="http://www.publichealthdorset.org.uk/fake-news-the-future-of-public-health-messaging/">public health campaigns</a>.



The attraction of fake news is its apparent simplicity. It has a ring of truth around its claims, even when these are outlandish, and its ability to seem to resonate with what people think are their life-worlds or everyday life. Its ability to reinforce stereotypes, including prejudices, makes a bad situation even worse.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Science, facts and knowledge will save humanity</h4>



Science journalism and investigative journalism which seek to pursue the truth rather than just the reporting of events, are critically important in this age of fake news and fallacies.



It is not an exaggeration to say that the sustainability of the idea of humanity and the environment in the broadest sense of the word depends on science – or the respect for facts, evidence and experts.



Science that allows the public to have a nuanced understanding of life is important to building inclusive, open societies that enable public participation in decision making and progressive social agendas. Science disseminated in ways that are understood by the public and resonate with their life-worlds is important for building trust in reformed institutions and creating new forms of social cohesion in diverse societies.



&#8211;Tawana Kupe; Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University, University of Pretoria



&#8211;The Conversation



<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/113298/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important" />

gettyimages-839340898-170667a

Why Science Matters So Much In The Era Of Fake News And Fallacies

Entrepreneurs have a pivotal role to play in Africa’s unemployment crisis. Today over a third of the continent’s young workforce (those aged 15-35) are unemployed. Another third are in vulnerable employment. By 2035, Africa will contribute more people to the workforce each year than the rest of the world combined. By 2050 it will be home to 1.25 billion people working aged.



To absorb these new entrants, Africa needs to create over 18 million new jobs each year. Governments need to put in place policies that drive economic growth and competitiveness. These in turn, will enable the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This is important because they currently play a significant role in low-income countries, representing nearly 80% of jobs. They are also responsible for 90% of new ones created each year.



The challenge for countries is how to support the growth of SMEs. Various African governments have experimented with ways to help address the US$140 billion funding gap for startups and SMEs. For example, one approach has been to set up entrepreneurship funds.



Based on my experience of watching their performance over the past 18 years, I would issue some words of caution. Some entrepreneurship support models work better than others. And how they are set up – particularly the governance structures put in place to manage them – is key to their success, or failure.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Funding gap</h2>



Access to financing is consistently listed as the biggest obstacle to business for SME’s in African countries. They often face double digit interest rates from local banks. And venture capital penetration is still extremely low. Top end 2018 estimates put it at about $725 million for the whole continent.



To tackle the problem, African countries continue to start new entrepreneurship funds. In July 2017 Ghana launched the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan. The aim is to provide integrated national support for start-ups and small businesses.



Almost a year later, Rwanda secured a $30 million loan from the African Development Bank for the establishment of the Rwandan Innovation Fund. This will focus on investments in tech-enabled SMEs.



As new funds are started, African countries must look to the successes and failures of both global and regional funds to replicate best practices and avoid common pitfalls. African governments should explore replicating models similar to Small Enterprise Assistance Funds and the USAID backed enterprise funds. Both include robust investment selection criteria for funds.



In doing so, African government-backed entrepreneurship funds would operate as fund-of-funds – where a fund invests in another private equity or venture fund rather than directly in businesses themselves – as do many development finance institutions globally such as the UK’s CDC or FMO of the Netherlands.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">The what and the how</h4>



The fund of funds structure creates an arm’s length relationship between the government agency that houses the entrepreneurship fund and the businesses that eventually receive investment. In between, sits a professional fund manager that earns the majority of its income from making good investments, growing companies and exiting them after a period of five to seven years. In this way, there are natural disincentives for corruption and market-based selection criteria for the entrepreneurs who receive investment.



How the fund managers are selected also matters. To ensure true investment independence from the government, fund managers and board members must be chosen in a transparent and competitive process. And once selected, representatives of the government entrepreneurship fund agency can sit on the investment committee for oversight purposes but should respect the fund managers’ independent decision-making.



There are examples of funds being set up without the necessary independent, accountable fund managers. One is the YouWin program in Nigeria. Created in 2016, it was set up to help youth entrepreneurs grow businesses. But senior civil servants handed out awards to friends and relatives.



Government supported fund managers through the FoF model can also catalyse additional investment. By operating in markets and sectors often ignored by traditional private equity funds, Small Enterprise Assistance Funds and enterprise funds have mobilized additional capital for investment-starved companies. African government-backed entrepreneurship funds could do the same by participating in blended finance deals with development finance institutions, social-impact investment funds, local banks and other market players to back growing firms.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Measuring success</h4>



While not actively managing the funds’ portfolio investments, governments have a key role to play in guiding the funds priorities. Priorities may vary by country and given Africa’s growing rates of unemployment, funds should prioritise job creation by evaluating investment on key performance indicators. These would include the number of jobs created per dollar invested, indirect jobs created per dollar invested, and average salary of job. In addition to job creation, governments can direct funds to focus on specific sectors either in need of increased capital or high-growth areas in local economies.



Beyond establishing investment criteria, government-backed funds should prioritise rigorous measurement of investment results and long-term data tracking to inform future investment decisions. The UK British Bank regional growth fund found the cost per job created varied considerably by project from £4,000 to over £200,000. It concluded that a better allocation of funds could have led to thousands more jobs created for the same resources.



Data driven investments can not only lead to a better results, but further curtail issues around potential mismanagement of funds.



Tackling Africa’s job creation challenge requires innovative thinking and initiatives that support private sector-led growth. Looking to the model of Small Enterprise Assistance Funds and enterprise funds, African governments can spur local ecosystems and drive new private capital to regions today seen as unfriendly or too risky to outside investors.



Properly structured investments today could yield much larger dividends tomorrow.



-Aubrey Hruby; Senior Fellow, Africa Center, Georgetown University



&#8211;The Conversation



<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/115927/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important" />

Entrepreneurship Funds In Africa: Distinguishing The Good From The Bad

One of the greatest challenges we face today is uncertainty; a simple word that has often been used naively to describe apprehension. It is, however, one of the most complex words of our times and is anything but simple.



Physics,
mathematics and applied mechanics were my passion since 1973. Archimedes,
Einstein and Newton, among others, made the world a better place; add to that,
a topping of economics and finance from Samuelson and Damodaran and management
from Drucker, and I thought I had life and business covered. Until a decade
ago, we were able to use predictive models of the past and apply them with
reasonable surety, within some standard deviation models, for the future. We
applied some risk factors and gave ourselves a pat on the back when we had all bases
covered; and often term our analysis as a base-case scenario. Perfect. 



In 1999, as part of a fund management business, my team and I were advising buy-side transactions of an Islamic Private Equity fund. The internet bubble was growing and was my initiation to the fast-talking breed of entrepreneurs who had sworn to change the world. 



Have you ever had instances in your life when you are so scared of looking foolish that you don’t question fundamentals? Well, that was our time of looking bewildered. At the end of one of the harebrain schemes that was presented, I sheepishly asked a question about the absence of cash flow. 



That was considered sacrilege at a time when the dotcom entrepreneur’s words were taken as gospel. I was given the greatest explanation of all times and something our world has become synonymous with; “you don’t get it – it’s a leap of faith, you are either in or out”. 



Everything I studied was irrelevant. Much to our eventual delight, we were proven right by staying out of some of those misadventures but the transformation moved at the speed of light. Recalibrated by two major meltdowns (the dotcom bubble burst in 2000 and the financial crisis of 2008) and sabre-rattling on governance, we fast forward to 2019.



In
comparison to 1999, I can only summarize that uncertainty is relative. So what
changed? Nothing and everything! Nothing, because sometimes I feel that we
learned nothing, and everything, because the world is no longer the same. 



I will only deal with two issues. The first relates to the future of employability of the human race. In the 20th century, we were assured of a job in whichever vocation we studied. Today, with the pace of change from the Fourth Industrial Revolution, there are serious questions about what humans will do in the future versus the functions performed by machines. 



The fundamentals have changed and we are not asking questions because we are scared once again. We want to ignore that anything which is quantitative and predictive in nature will eventually be done by machines. However, the qualitative aspects or anything requiring a human interface can never be replaced. 



The role of humans will change but their importance in managing the ecosystem will never change. So there is a need to ask questions, understand this profound reality and change the way we educate and learn. This is critical to provide a sense of certainty.



The second uncertainty is caused by disruption. Our lives and businesses are predictive and so shall be disrupted. What we do will not change but how we do it will. You will still need a doctor to give you advice, comfort and hope but almost everything in the medical field will be predictive. 



It takes minutes to conduct pathology tests and scans and simultaneously get reports. Training of nurses is on fifth generation mannequins that are almost human. Since disruption is becoming a way of life, we need to embrace this reality and start planning for the future that we have no idea about. So go back to basics, unlock the status quo and reengineer.



Humans
have evolved from the stone ages; we have the resilience, tenacity and inherent
instinct to survive and succeed. What will help us along the way is educating
ourselves on the challenges of the future. Leadership will play a far greater
role in the future than ever before. Analysing, recognizing, educating and
managing change is an important aspect of dealing with uncertainty. 



As leaders get predictive and quantitative advice, success will come
from taking that information, making sense of it and most importantly acting on
it. At a corporate level, an important change needed is to break the archaic
organization structures so that decision-making is autonomous at the level of
frontline managers, just like field commanders in a battle field. United by a
common vision, mission, values and goals, a well-trained team will deliver like
synchronised swimmers. Uncertainty cannot be conquered as it is dynamic but it
can be harnessed and managed through effective leadership.

Rakesh Wahi

Educated, Re-engineer and Lead Through Uncertainty

South Africa is on its way to another record with Africa’s tallest building.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



A new superstructure is making its mark in Sandton in the
heart of Africa’s richest square mile. 



The $3 billion project is expected to be completed by the
end of 2019 and beat Carlton Centre’s reign as the tallest building in Africa
since 1973.



The 223-meter, 50-storey Carlton Centre in Johannesburg has
for 46 years stood the test of time as a skyscraper dominating the skyline in
South Africa and the continent. 



The new building coming up in Sandton will be a 55-storey, 234-meter classical Italian eponym paying homage to Leonardo da Vinci, the Italian artist of the Renaissance era. 



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/investment/2019/04/17/re-constructing-the-city-of-opportunity/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Re-constructing Johannesburg The City Of Opportunity (opens in a new tab)">Re-constructing Johannesburg The City Of Opportunity</a>



It adds to the luxurious portfolio of hotels by the Legacy
Living property group. 



As The Leonardo rising from the bedrock and gradually etches
its presence on the skyline, Gijs Foden, Director of Retail Management in
Legacy Living, says it is a beacon that represents economic growth far beyond
the surface.



“From a development perspective, everyone knows about the
crisis in construction. There is light at the end of the tunnel, through a
tough economy. It is a tough market and we are working our way out of it. We
are going up. We are part of the beacon of hope through tough times,” he says. 



South Africa has nine out of 20 of the continent’s tallest
buildings, amounting to 1,277 meters in total and 5,000 steps up a staircase. 



While most of these buildings were erected in the 1900s and
early 2000s, records have stayed the same.



Johannesburg’s Ponte City Tower standing as the third
tallest building in Africa, coming in after Kenya’s Britam Tower at 200 meters.




The Leonardo was initially set out to be a mixed-use
building with 33 floors but has since escalated to dominating the South African
skyscraper inventory. 



Foden says the development will not only provide investment
opportunities for South Africa, but it will celebrate African authenticity. 



Set to be completed in the year of Leonardo Da Vinci’s 500th death anniversary, African art will be the center-piece of the tower. 



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">You look out of the window and that is your canvas. Internally, the art in the building is African art. </blockquote>



“We are supporting the African artist, it is what it is. The
art defines the building. Keeping the essence of the building and at the same
time the warmth and lifestyle will be an attraction, irrespective of the
Italian name,” Foden says.



By following due processes in getting the height approved,
overtaking Carlton Centre’s record, Foden says: “It [Carlton Centre] is still
an icon and no one has been able to beat it. It is different times and it is
also different generations. This is our generation which is going to be a
timeless building for many years to come. It is an urban flight.” 



However, the record by The Leonardo may be short-lived as
yet another African skyscraper may overshadow it by the end of 2021.



&nbsp;The Pinnacle,
currently being built in Nairobi’s financial hub, is set to be a 70-storey
mixed-use development.



According to a yearly study published by The Council on Tall
Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), Beijing’s China Zun 528-meter skyscraper
was the tallest building completed in 2018, making it the eighth-tallest
building in the world.



&nbsp;The study reports
that 16 new buildings entered the 100 tallest lists in 2018; up from 14 in
2017, 76% of these were in Asia. 



Co-Arc Director, Francois Pienaar, says the influx of
skyscrapers in Africa is a way for property investors and developers to exploit
the options of sites. 



“Sites can become very valuable. There are a lot of things
to do with money – [for] better returns for the investment of the land, and
that is why people go up. It takes quite a lot of courage, to go 55 floors. 



You need to have a client who is inspired to do it.
Especially, with the volatility of Africa,” Pienaar says.&nbsp; 



Despite the competition for a piece of the sky, none of the
2019 projected top 30 tallest buildings will supersede the world’s tallest
building in Dubai at a towering 829.8 meters with 163 floors above the ground. 



The Burj Khalifa has boasted this record since its
completion in 2010.



According to Pienaar, the opportunity to build a structure
of this magnitude does not come by every day in Africa. 



Breaking his 30-storey skyscraping record, Pienaar, who is currently working on The Leonardo, adds:&nbsp; “It takes a lot more when it comes to delivering services and the kinds of aesthetics that take place.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/lists/2019/03/15/richest-cities-in-the-world-the-top-10-cities-with-the-most-billionaires/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Richest Cities In The World: The Top 10 Cities With The Most Billionaires (opens in a new tab)">Richest Cities In The World: The Top 10 Cities With The Most Billionaires</a>



“The building has a skin outside which is imported from
Spain. It is a new invention from Spain that reduces the heat load on the
glass. We have produced a building that is responsible for the climate. We are
trying to keep the building energy-efficient,” he says. 



As the global economic outlook develops, there is fierce
competition for a piece of the sky. 



The taller the building, the more money it pulls in. 



As the South African economy picks itself up, the lingering
shadow of the Leonardo will represent a symbol of growth and a new dawn.

leonardo

A Statement On The Skyline

Turns out there is literally no difference between lab-grown diamonds and natural diamonds, well, apart from the price.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



Ever wondered what the difference between lab-produced
diamonds and natural diamonds was? Well, nothing. They are exactly the same. 



As with most things of value, a great deal of information
has been produced over the years about the price of diamonds. In short, many
believe the real price of diamonds is far lower than what ‘big business’ would
have us believe and that it is driven up by our insatiable hunger and the
social importance we place on the stones. 



In line with this, there is a widely-held belief that they
are not rare and the market is being deliberately controlled to create the
façade that they are difficult to produce. Therefore, their price is dictated
by the fact that they symbolize the most enduring of all human emotions – love.



&nbsp;With that out of the
way, in recent times, society has developed a pragmatic relationship with
diamonds, rather than a romantic one that has long sustained the industry. 



It might be that we live in the era of instant gratification
or that we have stopped romanticising the idea of waiting millions of years for
the precious stone, but more people have embraced the idea of purchasing
lab-grown diamonds.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wealth/2019/04/08/from-medicine-to-nanotechnology-how-gold-quietly-shapes-our-world/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="From Medicine To Nanotechnology: How Gold Quietly Shapes Our World (opens in a new tab)">From Medicine To Nanotechnology: How Gold Quietly Shapes Our World</a>



Unlike an imitation gem like cubic zirconia, it has the same physical characteristics and chemical components as a natural diamond but production time is much shorter, enabling producers to create it in a matter of weeks. 



Lab-grown diamonds producer Ross Reid offers FORBES AFRICA a very sobering perspective with the following analogy to describe man-made diamonds. 



“If a couple can’t fall pregnant using conventional methods,
they do IVF where the baby’s origin of life is manmade. Is that not a real baby
when it’s born?”



The room falls silent as all contemplate this question.



“So by that logic, it is a real diamond,” Reid states
emphatically.



Reid is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Inception
Diamonds, One of South Africa’s first Diamond companies to offer lab-grown
diamonds and fine jewelry.



The world’s leading diamond producer, De Beers, however, has
a different perspective.



“We view natural diamonds and lab-grown diamonds as very
different products as they have completely different production processes.
Natural diamonds are created in the earth, under intense heat and pressure over
billions of years. Each diamond is rare, finite and unique,” says Bianca
Ruakere, a De Beers Group spokesperson.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="585" height="611" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Diamond2.png" alt="" class="wp-image-40193" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Diamond2.png 585w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Diamond2-300x313.png 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Diamond2-287x300.png 287w" sizes="(max-width: 585px) 100vw, 585px" /><figcaption> De Beers Lightbox range. Picture: De Beers</figcaption></figure>



Reid says he recognizes the market potential for global
growth in being able to offer conflict-free, environmentally-friendly lab-grown
diamonds, especially to the millennial market.



“With the creation of laboratory-grown diamonds, it allows
you to offer the consumer the same thing optically, physically, and chemically
at a big discount. So you can have the same beauty, the same hardness, the same
look and the same feel for less money,” Reid says.



Large diamond producers have also recognized the same
potential.



De Beers Group has been producing synthetic diamonds for
industrial purposes for more than 50 years. “Last year, we launched Lightbox in
the United States to market a range of fun, fashion jewelry using lab-grown
diamonds. They are accessibly priced, and a distinct product offering compared
with natural diamonds,” Ruakere says.



&nbsp;Price is not the only
reason that encourages the market to opt for lab-grown diamonds. They are also
other ethical factors such as having a guarantee that the rock on your finger
is conflict-free.



&nbsp;Shogan Naidoo, who
proposed to his fiancé, Preba Iyavoo, on Valentine’s Day at the popular
independent cinema house, The Bioscope, did so with a healthy bank balance and
clean conscience. 



They were traditionally engaged in July last year, so by the time the ring engagement happened, Iyavoo was caught completely off-guard and was pleasantly surprised. 



“Shogan is the most endearing person, but he’s not romantic
in the slightest,” says a giddy Iyavoo, who recalls the proposal that happened
in a filled theater, with a movie Naidoo had created just for her. 



The couple are besotted with their lab-grown diamond. Naidoo
says after doing exhaustive research to find the perfect ring to propose with,
all conventional options had failed him.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2018/09/03/blood-diamonds-to-blockchain-diamonds/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Blood Diamonds To Blockchain Diamonds? (opens in a new tab)">Blood Diamonds To Blockchain Diamonds?</a>



&nbsp;He says his final
ring choice far exceeded his expectations in price and design. Naidoo explains
that Iyavoo has a very specific preference and that he was not willing to
compromise in getting her the perfect ring but the one he initially wanted was
in the range of R80,000 ($5,500).



&nbsp; “We were planning a
wedding and we’d just bought a house,” he says. The exorbitant cost of retail
rings led him to search out of the box, and eventually the box returned with
the perfect gem.



&nbsp;The couple who lead a
very environmentally-conscious lifestyle, say they are especially proud to be
the custodians of this ring because they are guaranteed it’s conflict-free and
no miners were exploited.



&nbsp;Reid says he has to
grapple with a great deal of scepticism because many are not ready to fully
embrace the idea of lab-grown diamonds despite their advantages. 



“The Federal Trade Commission has changed the definition of
a diamond. It does not need to come from the ground.



“We have opened up the market for people to be able to
afford beautiful pieces without compromising on quality,” Reid says.



Change is inevitable and with that, there will always be
those resistant to it. But one thing is for sure, society’s relationship with
diamonds are changing.

diamond

Lab-grown Diamonds: Never Mined, It’s Man-Made

South Africa is a linguistically and culturally diverse country. There are 11 official languages and several other minority languages. But English continues to be preferred as the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.praesa.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Paper6.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">language of learning and teaching</a>.



Many South African children are still in the process of learning English by the time they first start going to school. In a single English-medium classroom, one can find children with various levels of English proficiency; from children with English as their mother tongue to children who have never learnt English before.



This situation poses a range of challenges for both the teacher and the children. One of the biggest challenges is that a certain level of proficiency in English is required for the children to be able to perform well academically in an English-medium school. It’s a <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.pearson.com/us/higher-education/product/Owens-Language-Development-An-Introduction-7th-Edition/9780205525560.html" target="_blank">widely known fact</a>that academic success is very much dependent on language competence and proficiency.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/entrepreneurs/2019/03/27/african-curricula-that-mean-business/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="African Curricula That Mean Business (opens in a new tab)">African Curricula That Mean Business</a>



This means that there’s a great need to understand how language develops in children’s early school careers. It is also important to understand the cognitive mechanisms that underlie language learning. To further explore how this happens in the early years of schooling I did a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13670050.2019.1571009" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">study</a>&nbsp;involving pre-primary children in an English-medium school in Cape Town.



The group consisted of children who were still learning English as well as children whose mother tongue was English. The children were very diverse – there was a total of nine different home languages in the group of children who were still learning English.



The findings showed that the ability of children to develop their language skills didn’t depend on whether they were proficient when they started out. Their ability to learn and advance – or not – was in fact dependent on a range of other factors, none of which had to do with English language proficiency.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The findings</h2>



The research aimed to understand the link between language and working memory development. I did this by tracking how working memory developed for the children chosen to take part in the study.



Working memory is the ability to store and use information in the short-term and is important for our everyday lives. For example, we use working memory when we need to remember an address that we just heard while we are looking for a pen to write it down. Working memory also underlies many important academic competencies, like reading and mathematics.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2019/03/26/the-robots-are-coming-how-to-stay-relevant-and-re-skill-yourself/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="The Robots Are Coming: How To Stay Relevant And Re-Skill Yourself (opens in a new tab)">The Robots Are Coming: How To Stay Relevant And Re-Skill Yourself</a>



The children were broken into two groups: those with English as their primary language, and those still learning English. They were given the same tasks; these were an English language assessment and working memory tasks. They were assessed three times over the course of the year – at the beginning, middle and end.



The results showed that both groups improved over the year on the assessment of English language abilities. The results also revealed that great improvements were made in language development during the first year of formal schooling. 



Results from the working memory tasks indicated that children who were still learning English, as well as the children who have English as their mother tongue, performed the same on these tasks and achieved comparable scores. Children in both groups saw their language abilities and working memory abilities improve over the year.



The most interesting finding is that the route, or trajectory, the children’s cognitive and language development followed was the same for both groups, regardless of the English abilities they had at the beginning.



Importantly, the result that working memory scores between groups were comparable also indicated that the amount of knowledge of English that a child had didn’t affect their working memory abilities.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2019/03/07/how-tech-can-revolutionize-education/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="5 Ways Tech Can Revolutionize Education (opens in a new tab)">5 Ways Tech Can Revolutionize Education</a>



What this points to is that, if a child’s working memory scores are low and the trajectory of the development is not the same as their peers, there may be cause for concern. In this case, the children should be referred to an occupational or speech therapist for further assessment. Our research shows the fact that they’re struggling can’t simply be explained away as a “symptom” of the child not knowing English well enough.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Falling through the cracks</h2>



Studies like these are important for giving professionals better ways of seeing if a child has a disorder or is only struggling because they have not acquired a sufficient level of English yet.



In the context of a classroom with various languages and proficiencies of English, it is easy for a child with a disorder to be overlooked.



Along with the under-resourced schools and over-burdened teachers, heterogeneity among learners results in them not receiving the support that they need, be it academic or linguistic. Those whose primary language is English as well as those learning English suffer alike. The upshot is clearly seen in the worsening educational crisis in South Africa.

Focus on schoolgirls raised hand in classroom with teacher

A New Language Doesn’t Hamper Kids Learning. Other Things Do

Mountain Gorilla conservation in Rwanda is a great success story. A number of extreme conservation measures – like daily monitoring and protection, veterinary interventions and controlled ecotourism – have enabled the population to bounce back after a precarious low in the 1960s and 1970s that was brought about by habitat destruction and poaching.



But the population remains fragile. Today <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264335852_Mountain_gorilla_tourism_generating_wealth_and_peace_in_post-conflict_Rwanda" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">only around</a> 1,000 mountain gorillas live in two isolated populations: one in the Virunga Volcanoes – straddling the borders of Rwanda, Uganda and DRC – which has increased from 250 to 600 individuals in about 30 years; and a group in the Bwindi National Park in Uganda with about 400 individuals.



The survival of this particular species is important for a number of reasons. Firstly, mountain gorillas are some of our closest living relatives. They can therefore help us understand human evolution and behaviour. 



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/travel/2019/03/04/a-solution-to-improve-madagascars-local-economies/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="A Solution To Improve Madagascar’s Local Economies (opens in a new tab)">A Solution To Improve Madagascar’s Local Economies</a>



Secondly, they fulfil an important role in maintaining the health of tropical forest ecosystems – for instance by dispersing seeds. And finally, they are a tourist attraction that generates revenue for Rwanda and supports conservation activities throughout the country. In the last two years, tourism has contributed over US$400 million to the national economy.



In Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park gorillas have been leaving the confines of the protected area to raid crops – like eucalyptus and bamboo – on nearby agricultural plots. Leaving protected areas is a huge risk to their safety.



My colleagues at the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund’s <a href="https://gorillafund.org/karisoke-research-center/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">Karisoke Research Centre</a> and <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.mpg.de/en" target="_blank">Max Planck Institute</a> and I wanted to understand why the gorillas were ranging outside protected areas into croplands. <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://research-repository.uwa.edu.au/en/publications/going-to-extremes-for-sodium-acquisition-use-of-community-land-an" target="_blank">We found</a>that when the gorillas left the national park they often headed straight to eucalyptus trees. Our nutritional analyses showed that eucalyptus are more than a hundred times richer in sodium than the gorillas’ staple foods inside the park.



This led us to conclude that sodium was the main incentive for the gorillas’ escapades. All plants inside the park are low in sodium except a couple of species that grow near the top of the volcanoes.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">For the love of sodium</h4>



We measured sodium content in samples from 34 of the gorilla’s main dietary items and quantified sodium intake by 22 gorillas in three social groups over one year.



The gorillas obtain up to two thirds of their sodium when consuming eucalyptus.



Sodium is a micro-nutrient that’s critically important for physiological processes, like muscle and nerve function and maintaining fluid levels in various parts of the body.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2019/02/26/technology-is-useful-but-drones-alone-wont-save-africas-elephants/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="OPINION | Technology Is Useful, But Drones Alone Won’t Save Africa’s Elephants (opens in a new tab)">OPINION | Technology Is Useful, But Drones Alone Won’t Save Africa’s Elephants</a>



Sodium deficiency can affect bones, growth, and reproduction. A sodium deficit <a href="https://www.elsevier.com/books/wildlife-feeding-and-nutrition/robbins/978-0-12-589382-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">can trigger</a> a specific hunger for it which causes animals to go out of their way to obtain it.



This is as true for gorillas as it is for humans.



It’s possible that the gorillas were eating eucalyptus for other reasons. Perhaps for minerals we didn’t investigate – like iodine – or because of the medicinal benefits that it has. But we also found that gorillas often ventured into the region’s colder subalpine or alpine zones where they targeted plants known as giant groundsels and lobelias. These turned out to be rich in sodium as well.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Human-wildlife conflict</h4>



Crop raiding is the main source of conflict between people who live in close proximity to the park and wildlife. Farmers <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283489950_HUMAN-WILDLIFE_CONFLICT_MANAGEMENT_EXPERIENCES_AND_LESSONS_LEARNED_FROM_THE_GREATER_VIRUNGA_LANDSCAPE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">generally perceive</a> crop damage by mountain gorillas as a big deterrent to their agricultural development.



The risk is that encounters between gorillas and local people will add to tensions, and lead to local communities being hostile towards wildlife, hampering wildlife conservation efforts.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/travel/2019/03/25/in-search-of-africas-last-eden/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="In Search Of Africa’s Last Eden (opens in a new tab)">In Search Of Africa’s Last Eden</a>



Close contact between gorillas and people also increases the risk of disease transmission – such as respiratory diseases and intestinal parasites – which could have a detrimental impact on this highly vulnerable ape population.



To discourage the gorillas from crossing into farmlands near the forest, there may need to be a change in agricultural practices such as relying less on plants sought by gorillas for their nutrients.



An ideal scenario would be to establish a buffer zone containing nutritionally unattractive and unpalatable plants. If sufficiently wide, it would discourage gorillas from crossing into croplands.



-Cyril Grueter; Senior Lecturer, University of Western Australia



-The Conversation



<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/114376/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important" />

gettyimages-674481115-170667a

Rwanda’s Gorillas Have Figured Out Where To Find Their Sodium Fix. But It’s Dangerous

It was confidently billed at the time as the “deal of the century”. The Sino Congolaise des Mines (Sicomines) was the most significant Chinese investment project in Africa when it was agreed in 2007.



The infrastructure agreement gave Chinese partners mining rights to cobalt and copper in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). These minerals are used in electric vehicle batteries and electronics, including smartphones and laptops. In exchange, China agreed to build much-needed infrastructure projects such as urban roads, highways and hospitals.



In addition to new infrastructure, the Sicomines deal was expected to provide a significant boost to the DRC’s economic growth. The view was that the agreed volumes of mineral production would contribute to higher levels of exports, tax revenue and inflow of US dollars.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/woman/2019/03/19/in-pictures-noella-coursaris-musunka-the-trailblazer-in-the-congo/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Noëlla Coursaris Musunka The Trailblazer In The Congo (opens in a new tab)">Noëlla Coursaris Musunka The Trailblazer In The Congo</a>



More than a decade on, the Sicomines deal has not lived up to expectations. There have been infrastructure project delays as well as unexpected costs. There have also been problems associated with poor quality roads and infrastructure and inadequate environment and social impact studies.



On the economic front, mineral exports from the DRC&nbsp;<a href="http://www.intracen.org/country/democratic-republic-of-the-congo/">have indeed risen steeply</a>. But sharp cyclical fluctuations show that the country is heavily reliant on both the Chinese market and the price of a few minerals. In addition, the Sicomines deal won exemption from taxes until infrastructure and mining loans were fully repaid. This means that the DRC will not receive any substantial income from the agreement in the foreseeable future.



The Sicomines agreement demonstrates one of the main problems with deals of this nature. It never included any guarantee of the actual value that the Congolese population would get in exchange for the country’s main source of wealth.



As we argue in a recent International Affairs article, the Sicomines deal provides lessons for other African countries. Future deals like this present an opportunity to change the model followed in Sicomines and by most Sino-African trade relations. This has, to date, essentially involved China supplying value-added manufactured goods and high-skilled workers. In exchange, African countries have agreed to export mainly primary-based resource products. And African workers are hired for unskilled, low-cost tasks.



It needn’t be this way.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wealth/2019/04/08/from-medicine-to-nanotechnology-how-gold-quietly-shapes-our-world/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">From Medicine To Nanotechnology: How Gold Quietly Shapes Our World</a>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Protecting the host country’s interests</h4>



The first decade of the deal shows that Chinese companies have focused their efforts on benefiting from access to valuable natural resources. But the interests of local communities have been neglected.



In addition, several of the problems affecting the building of infrastructure have arisen because quality control responsibility was assigned to the same two Chinese companies responsible for execution. These were China Railway Engineering Company and Sinohydro, a large state-owned hydropower and engineering company.



This highlights the potential trap of these deals. The level of contribution to development depends, to a great extent, on the ability of inexpert local institutions to manage complex multilateral projects.



There is a solution to this. Host countries should create committees of experts, if necessary with regional and international support. Alternatively, they could contract independent specialised consultants to guarantee that national interests are satisfied.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/economy/2019/01/16/ford-and-ibm-among-quartet-in-congo-cobalt-blockchain-project/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Ford and IBM among quartet in Congo cobalt blockchain project (opens in a new tab)">Ford and IBM among quartet in Congo cobalt blockchain project</a>



Instead of negotiating with a unique consortium of companies, these teams would participate in the development of a public procurement process to award the project to the most competitive bidder. Additionally, the committees would be in charge of monitoring implementation of the contract. This could include extraction works, quality of infrastructure, compliance with environmental and social standards.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Learning through small pioneer initiatives</h4>



China has shown that it is ready to take risks and engage in enormous African infrastructure development projects. And that it’s prepared to do this even when western donors are not willing to allocate funds.



To some extent, China’s favourable attitude towards deals such as the Sicomines agreement is based on the same logic as the infrastructure loans received from Japan in the 1980s. These were mutually beneficial: they fostered Japan’s development and they were very lucrative for Japanese firms.



But there are many potential complications with the multi-billion dollar resource-backed credits offered by China to African countries recovering from conflict.



With this in mind, African countries could take a more incremental approach. They could foster development through a process of gradual reforms, implemented through several pioneering small deals.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/economy/2017/09/06/china-really-helping-africa/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Is China Really Helping Africa? (opens in a new tab)">Is China Really Helping Africa?</a>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Changes that are needed</h4>



Any new agreements should include precise objectives and financial resources to guarantee training and upskilling for workers.



In parallel, the terms of the agreement should create the conditions for the transfer of know-how in a way that helps local companies to move to higher value added activities.



African governments could take into account China’s experience. The Chinese government decided that in some strategic sectors (such as the automotive sector), foreign investors had to create a joint venture with a Chinese partner to enter the market. This strategy has contributed to the emergence of several competitive domestic firms and national champions.



Finally, as economic diversification prompts an increase in GDP per capita, additional taxes collected from extracting industries could be invested in other economic activities to promote development.



The model has the potential to enable projects that would otherwise be impossible in fragile and conflict-affected African economies. But the Sicomines deal shows that it’s necessary to address particular challenges if China’s new financing schemes are to accelerate development in Africa.



&#8211;Andoni Maiza Larrarte; Professor, Department of Applied Economics I, UPV/EHU, Universidad del País Vasco / Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea



&#8211;Gloria Claudio-Quiroga; Associate Professor of Economics at Francisco de Vitoria University in Madrid., Universidad Francisco de Vitoria



-The Conversation



<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/114571/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important" />

gettyimages-960743648-170667a

The DRC And China’s Sicomines: Why Future Deals Should Be Different

Last week, the German billionaire Reimann family, whose JAB Holdings owns Krispy Kreme, Panera Bread and Pret a Manger, admitted to profiting from, and taking part in, Nazi abuses and slave labor during the Nazi regime.



The acknowledgement came after German newspaper&nbsp;Bild&nbsp;reported&nbsp;that Albert Reimann Sr. and Albert Reimann Jr., both dead, were active in the Nazi Party and used Russian civilians and French prisoners of war as slaves during World War II. The family—which includes four billionaire children of Reimann Jr. worth an estimated $3.7 billion each—plans to donate about $11 million to a “suitable organization,”&nbsp;according to family spokesperson Peter Harf, though it hasn’t yet announced which. Harf also claims the family had already been looking into its ancestral ties to Nazism, commissioning German historian Pauk Erker to do so in 2014; his work remains ongoing and is expected to be completed in 2020, a spokesperson told&nbsp;Forbes.



But the family was far from alone in participating in Nazi activities or profiting from the Nazi regime. More than a dozen European billionaires and their families whose business roots predate World War II—including Kuehne and Nagel’s Klaus Michael Kuehne and Knorr-Bremse AG’s Heinz Hermann Thiele—had ties to Nazism through contracts, slave labor, the appropriation of stolen goods or other means.



“These kind of stories never come as a surprise. In 1944, one third of the whole workforce in Germany was forced labor. This means that almost every company which produced back then was in one way or the other involved in the war economy,” says Roman Köster, a German historian. “From 1942 it proved very complicated [for German businesses] to maintain production [that] was not in one way or the other related with the war.&#8221; He adds that&nbsp;Bild&#8216;s findings in the case of the Reimann family are worse than others due to the abuse and mistreatment of these workers, though a Reimann family spokesperson says Albert Reimann Sr. and Albert Reimann Jr.&nbsp;did not personally assault or harm any laborers.



Many of these billionaire companies openly acknowledge, and apologize, for those ties, though monetary responses are more rare.



“With the passage of time, it gets increasingly difficult to make a legal argument around reparations, unless the claimant can show conclusive proof of theft by the defendant’s ancestors,” says Karthik Ramana, a professor of business and public policy at the University of Oxford whose research has also encompassed ethics. “What potential claimants are left with then is moral suasion—and given the stakes for incumbents, I wouldn’t hold my breath in expectation of a flood of reparations.”



As billionaire Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/global/2000/0807/0315036a.html#41e625474b69" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told Forbes in 2000</a>regarding his teenage ties to the Nazi party, &#8220;Perhaps even you did something in your youth that you now know was stupid. Why did I not reveal this past foolishness myself? Simple. I was afraid it would hurt my business.&#8221; Kamprad died in 2018 and his three sons, all billionaires, inherited part of the Ikea empire and are among those whose family members had Nazi ties.



Businesses didn’t only profit from forced labor. “Contracts with the Nazis were not uncommon for an exclusive circle of entrepreneurs who were in the friendship circle of SS leaders or had other connections,” says Christopher Kopper, a German professor of economics and business history.



Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, the richest woman in the world with $53.3 billion, inherited a nearly $50 billion stake in beauty giant L&#8217;Oréal, a company that reportedly thrived under the Third Reich. Frenchman Eugène Schueller, L&#8217;Oréal’s founder and Bettencourt Meyers’ grandfather, was said to have been a known anti-Semite.



More notable was the fact that Schueller reportedly established a partnership between paint and varnish manufacturer Valentine, where he was a co-director, and German company Druckfarben to supply paint to the German Navy. Between 1940 and 1943, Schueller’s tax returns show his income increased nearly tenfold, from 248,791 francs to 2,347,957 francs, according to the 2017 book&nbsp;The Bettencourt Affair:&nbsp;The World’s Richest Woman and The Scandal That Rocked Paris. Scheuller was later charged with economic and political collaboration with the Nazis but never convicted. L&#8217;Oréal declined to comment.



While Schueller operated from France, German businesses more often had ties to the Nazis. “Like the majority of Germans, the majority of business owners acted in an opportunist way,” says Kopper.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5ca26a9931358e79cac06532/960x0.jpg?fit=scale" alt="quandt
"/><figcaption>Herbert Quandt (left), here pictured with his wife Johanna, and his father Gunther employed about 50,000 slaves laborers at family factories in order to fill Nazi army Contracts. The Quandt family is now the largest shareholder in BMW.AFP/GETTY IMAGES</figcaption></figure>



The free labor of those captured by Nazis—in concentration camps or as prisoners of war—was another way businesses profited from the war. The Quandt family, which is the largest shareholder in German car company BMW and includes billionaire Stefan Quandt (worth $17.3 billion) and Susanne Klatten (worth $20.1 billion), also had ties to the Nazis.



Family patriarch Gunther Quandt and his son Herbert (Stefan and Susanne’s grandfather and father)&nbsp;employed about 50,000 slave laborersfrom Nazi concentration camps at family factories during the Third Reich, according to German documentary&nbsp;Das Schweigen der Quandts,or&nbsp;The Silence of the Quandts. The slaves were used to fill Nazi army contracts, specifically for batteries, firearms and ammunition through the Quandts’ company Accumulatorenfabrik AG. The Quandts also acquired (without paying) a number of Jewish businesses seized by the Nazis—a practice of appropriation that was not uncommon, be it of stolen property, business or art.



BMW, in which the Quandt family became major shareholders after World War II and which accounts for the majority of their wealth, separately profited from forced labor and from the Nazis, as the company supplied the German army with arms,&nbsp;according to BMW’s website. &nbsp;A spokesperson for Quandt family did not reply to a request for comment, but as BMW celebrated its 100th year in 2016, the company released a statement&nbsp;saying that&nbsp;“To this day, the enormous suffering this caused and the fate of many forced laborers remains a matter of the most profound regret.” The company&nbsp;gave money to the German Economy Foundation Initiative&nbsp;which provided compensation for former forced laborers.



German media conglomerate Bertelsmann profited from both slave labor and more direct means. Prior to World War II, the company—whose vice chair, Elisabeth Mohn, is currently worth $3.2 billion—was a relatively small publisher. But by the late 1920s, it began publishing, and profiting from, antisemitic and nationalistic and Nazi texts, according&nbsp;to the company’s archive. It soon became&nbsp;the number one supplier of books to the German armed forces, publishing paperback books that were popular with soldiers. To increase its profit margin, the company likely used Jewish slave labor to make the books, according to a report commissioned by Bertelsmann in 1998. Heinrich Mohn, Elisabeth’s father-in-law and the son of Bertelsmann’s founder, was not a member of the Nazi party but nevertheless benefited from the economic growth, says Kopper.



Bertelsmann has since worked to make reparations for its actions. In 2000, it joined 6,000 German companies in paying a collective $4.5 billion to people who performed slave labor for the Nazis. And Elisabeth Mohn, a prominent philanthropist, has worked to promote Jewish-German relations, while her late husband, Reinhard Mohn, was one of the first to establish an independent commission to look into the company’s history with the Nazi party, a spokesperson for the company said.



Some wealthy European business leaders actively shunned working with the Nazis. Frenchman Marcel Dassault—whose grandchildren Olivier, Thierry, Laurent Dassault and Marie-Hélène Habert are each worth $6 billion—built fighter planes and bombers for the French army during the beginning of World War II, according to the company’s history. But after Germany seized control of France, Dassault—who was reportedly Jewish (he later converted to Catholicism and changed his last name from Bloch to Dassault)—refused to cooperate with the new regime. He was arrested by the Vichy government and labeled a “dangerous individual for national defense and public security.” He was eventually sent to Buchenwald concentration camp, where he was offered a job running a factory in exchange for freedom. He refused the offer and remained in the camp until it was liberated in 1945.



But even some business tycoons who were anti-Nazi chose to work for the Nazis rather than lose their business or put themselves and their family in danger. Both Kopper and Köster point to engineering entrepreneur Robert Bosch, whose son Robert Jr. and his family were worth $4.6 billion in 2006.



“I am happy for the Jews, Turks, and Buddhists to worship their own gods and idols; as long as they are good people, I love them, too,” Bosch wrote in 1885 in a letter to his fiancé. He went on to become a founding member of the Verein zur Abwehr des Antisemitismus, an organization similar to the Anti-Defamation League dedicated to fighting antisemitism, in Stuttgart in 1926, according to Bosch’s company historian.



“Bosch himself and parts of the management staff were strictly against Hitler and even supported resistance groups,” Köster says. “Nevertheless, the company was deeply involved in the war economy and employed thousands of forced laborers and very often did not treat them well.”



The company concedes&nbsp;that Bosch was “entangled with the rearmament” of the Third Reich. A spokesperson confirms that it employed about 20,000 slave laborers and had contracts with the Nazi party. But it also helped to rescue Jewish associates and support the resistance movement, providing money to help Jews emigrate and hiring them in an effort to help them avoid persecution.



So while the Reimann case may be disturbing, it would be foolish to believe it is rare. A number of long-rich European families— not to mention numerous major companies that still exist from that era but don’t have billionaire ties—have histories marred by their relationship with the Nazi regime.



“You would have a lot of trouble finding any ‘innocent’ companies which existed back then,” says Köster.



-Madeline Berg; Forbes Staff

960×0-1

More Than A Dozen European Billionaires—Linked To BMW, L’Oréal, Bosch—Have Families With Past Nazi Ties

There is something about Durban that is genetically connected to me. My father stopped in Durban in 1956 on his way back from the United Kingdom where he served for two years with the British Army. He spoke to us about his brief experience at a time when South Africa was at a different stage in history. I guess it was in my destiny to follow in his footsteps. I have been to Durban many times and it has been an inadvertent calling. 



When we launched CNBC Africa, I went down to Zimbali to
attend a lekgotla; “a consultative process between a group following a common
goal”. The guest of honor was none other than the then Commissioner of SARS,
Pravin Gordhan. I continued this flirtation with Durban through the years
including visits to Pietermaritzburg for work, the World Economic Forum in
2017, Zimbali for golf and then a trip from Durban to Johannesburg on Rovos
Rail; nothing, however, was as memorable as my visit on March 8 to attend the
2019 Leading Women Summit (LWS). 



In its fourth year, the summit, timed with International
Women’s Day, is in many ways a lekgotla, celebrating the progress of women in
Africa. The event in Durban was inspired by the efforts of Roberta Naicker,
Managing Director of the ABN Group, and Renuka Methil, Managing Editor of
FORBES AFRICA and with the support of the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government.
Looking at the agenda of the star-studded event (including supermodel and
cultural innovator Naomi Campbell), I was sure that we had something special.



After my interactions with a diverse group of individuals
during LWS, I reflected on where we are, not just as humans, but as society.
Roles and responsibilities between people have changed over the years and there
has been distinct convergence in shared beliefs. Expectedly, a lot is dependent
on the starting point of each journey; in the developed world, progress seems
to have been made at a faster pace, whereas, in the developing world, there is
a lot more that needs to be done. A common thread that joined every
conversation was that we all originate from a woman; our mother. And I dare
say, that there would not be a single man alive who would ever discredit that
relationship. Yet, there seems to be a disconnect on every issue that emerges
from the conflict of gender equality.



To my mind, transformation is not a light switch but a
journey of realization. The results are relative to a start point of that
voyage and if affirmative actions are taken, with visible progress, the process
is on the right track and will be rewarded. Like anything else in life, the
change must come from introspection on what is right, and not because it’s
fashionable. There must also be catalysts for change; in this instance both men
and women. An interesting issue discussed was a reality that some women kicked
the ladder after reaching the top; not facilitating succession for future
generations. The bias, therefore, is not unidirectional but brought about by
complex human behavior. 



I come from a strong value system where equality is a given.
In my world, responsibility is shared based on our contribution and inherent
strengths and not on gender or ethnicity. With this belief, we have walked the
talk on diversity. It’s a living value where your seat at the table, as a man
or woman, is because of what you bring to the party. In today’s business
environment, this is the only path to success because leadership is far more
complex than ever before. It is about inclusiveness; having the ability to look
ahead clearly, stay focussed and lead through disruption and change. It is about
empowering and holding accountable the right people to deliver. 



I have a very strong belief that the rear-view mirror is but
a reflection of the past and therefore must only be used for lessons and not as
a benchmark of the future. Everything that has happened until this very second
can never be reversed. Events consciously or unconsciously have happened, and
we must be the better for them. Learn from that. Living in the past will only
make you miserable. 



The only thing we can influence is the future. Break the rear-view mirror in your lives and bring about the change you want to see. What happens from this moment on, is in our hands. We can decide our future. If, however, we continue to go forward with the same values, then we have learned nothing and therefore nothing shall save us from becoming irrelevant. Be bold and courageous. Above all, lead ethically.



-Rakesh Wahi

Equality As A Living Value

In January, Africa lost Oliver Mtukudzi. His friend and
fellow musician Yvonne Chaka Chaka fondly remembers the global icon.&nbsp; 



In October 2012, Zimbabwe’s Oliver Mtukudzi, South Africa’s
Yvonne Chaka Chaka and Kenya’s Suzanna Owíyo produced Because I Am Girl with
musicians from around the world.



It was released to promote the global launch of Plan
International’s ‘Because I am A Girl’ campaign, marking the first UN
International Day of the Girl Child, on October 11.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/arts/2019/01/25/tribute-to-oliver-mtukudzi-zimbabwes-man-with-the-talking-guitar/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Tribute To Oliver Mtukudzi – Zimbabwe’s ‘Man With The Talking Guitar’ (opens in a new tab)">Tribute To Oliver Mtukudzi – Zimbabwe’s ‘Man With The Talking Guitar’</a>



Dressed in African prints, they sang together, spreading the
word about the empowerment of the girl child. 



Mtukudzi’s bass and Chaka Chaka’s soulful voice in harmony,
they became more than co-artists; they become brother and sister. It was the first
performance of many for the two.



Seven years on, Chaka Chaka is teary-eyed about Mtukudzi’s death 23 days into 2019, when not just she, but Africa lost a music legend.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">In a strange coincidence, Mtukudzi died the same day the continent lost the father of South African jazz, Hugh Masekela, last year.</blockquote>



On the phone for this interview, Chaka Chaka describes
Mtukudzi as a soldier at work. 



“When he was on stage, he was a totally different man. When
he had his guitar, it was like a soldier. Like a soldier who has a gun at
work,” she tells us.



“I think there were two different people. Offstage, he was
just an ordinary man, and on stage, people ate out of the palm of his hand.



“I’ve never known Oliver to never be fit. He has been a
skinny man and he would just twist that body with a guitar and that gravel
voice of his. A big voice in a small body,” she says.



“He has never called me Yvonne, he has always called me
Fifi… Fifi means sister.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“The man was always humble, he never raised his voice, I have never seen him angry and all he has ever wanted is just to see Africa thriving. He wanted to see Africa beautiful. He wanted to see Africa with less disease, less hunger, less corruption, a happy Africa – that was his wish.”</blockquote>



One anecdote Chaka Chaka shares is when Mtukudzi was made a
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in Zimbabwe in 2011.



“You know he sat there with me and asked, ‘so, what does
this entail, my sister? You have been a goodwill ambassador for a long time.
You will tell me what needs to be done. How should I act? How should I react?
How should I do things?’



“And I’m like, ‘no, but you know, you are more of a star
than me and you have been in this industry long before I’. He was just so
down-to-earth and had no chip on his shoulder.”&nbsp;




The last performance the two did together was in October
last year in Harare during the Jacaranda Festival, attended by more than 2,000
people and other artists around the continent.



“Oliver was not in his changing room or at home. He stayed
there and watched other artists perform, which was so great,” says Chaka Chaka.



“This year, he promised that we would do it [the Jacaranda
Festival] in Bulawayo,” she said. They had planned to make it a big show and
use their status as goodwill ambassadors to encourage and inspire more youth.



&nbsp;But sadly, that
promise will never be fulfilled.



“The legacy he will leave behind is a legacy of love, the
legacy of pro-African and I think for me he was a pan-Africanist. That’s what
he was,” she says.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/arts/2019/01/23/zimbabwes-oliver-mtukudzi-dies-at-66/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Zimbabwe’s Oliver Mtukudzi Dies At 66 (opens in a new tab)">Zimbabwe’s Oliver Mtukudzi Dies At 66</a>



To this day, Neria is still one of Chaka Chaka’s favorite
songs by him.



&nbsp;Mtukudzi, who died
aged 66 of diabetes, was laid to rest on January 27 in his home village of&nbsp; Madziwa.



Thousands sang and danced to the melodies of his songs.



President Emmerson Mnangagwa declared him a national hero,
posthumously, a status that has previously been reserved for ruling party elite
and independence veterans.



He may be gone but his music will live forever in the hearts of the fans that loved this legend who soldiered on until the end.

Music Midtown 2002

Oliver Mtukudzi The Soldier With A Big Voice – Yvonne Chaka Chaka

Six years ago a major development was announced in South Africa. Billed as a game changer, it was meant to alter the urban footprint of Johannesburg, Africa’s richest city, forever.



The Modderfontein New City project was launched amid much fanfare, expectation and media hype.



Zendai, a Chinese developer, bought a 1600-hectare site north-east of Johannesburg for the development, which it quickly dubbed as the “New York of Africa”. Early plans showed it was to include 55,000 housing units, 1,468,000 m2 of office space and all the necessary amenities for urban life in the form of a single large-scale urban district. The cost estimate was set at R84 billion.



The developers believed that Modderfontein could function as a global business hub and would become Johannesburg’s main commercial center, replacing Sandton. The project would also change Johannesburg’s international profile by strengthening relations with Asian corporate interests.



But, despite the release of futuristic computer-generated images which led to significant publicity for the project, it was never built. Instead, the land was eventually sold off. Another developer has since begun construction on a much more scaled down project, in the form of a gated-community style housing development.



Modderfontein has faded away from the public consciousness. The story of why it failed has never been adequately told in the media.



Our research, which took place over the course of several years, sought to understand the factors which led to the project’s demise. We also wanted to find out how Modderfontein’s failure relates to the broader African urban context.



We found that the project was hindered by conflicting visions between the developer and the City of Johannesburg. Moreover, unexpectedly low demand for both housing and office space meant the original plan for the project was incompatible with the city’s real estate market.



The project’s trajectory also shows how African “edge-city” developments, which are generally elite-driven and marketed as “eco-friendly” or “smart”, can be influenced by a strong local government with the means and willingness to shape development.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Conflicting interests</h4>



Zendai’s aspirations to produce a high-end, mixed-used development did not fit with the City of Johannesburg’s approach. Rather than a luxurious global hub, the city wanted a more inclusive development – one which reflected the principles outlined in its 2014 Spatial Development Framework.



At the heart of the framework is the desire to reshape a trend that saw capital leave the old central business district for affluent Sandton at the dawn of democracy in 1994. This was accompanied by an upsurge in securitised suburbs further north towards Pretoria, the country’s capital city.



These spatial trends were incompatible with the ideals of South Africa’s new democratic government and its strategy to mitigate the effects of apartheid-era planning. During apartheid, black people were prohibited from living in more affluent areas, which were reserved for the minority white population. Instead, they were forced into sprawling “townships” on the periphery of cities, far from work and economic opportunities.



To this end, the city demanded that Zendai include at least 5 000 affordable homes in its plans. It also wanted to ensure that the development was compatible with, and complemented, Johanneburg’s public transport system. The city was willing to contribute funding for the necessary infrastructure and inclusive housing.



Yet Zendai remained steadfast in its commitment to its vision, eventually deciding against fully integrating the city’s wishes into its planning application. This saw the city draw-out the planning process.



Meanwhile, problems were mounting for Zendai. The owner, Dai Zhikang, was eventually forced to sell his stake in the project to the China Orient Asset Management Company. Rather than continuing with the project, the asset managers sold the land to the company behind the new housing development on the site.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Smart cities in Africa</h4>



Over the last decade, a variety of developments like Modderfontein, including Eko-Atlantic in Nigeria, New Cairo in Egypt, and Konza Technology City in Kenya, have been touted by both public and private sectors as panaceas for Africa’s urban problems. The thinking is that as the developments are disconnected from the existing urban landscape, they won’t be burdened by crime or informality. However, these projects can take badly needed resources away from the marginalised areas of the city.



To make them more palatable to domestic and international audiences, the developments are usually marketed as “smart” or “eco-friendly”.



But these developments can fail at the point of implementation. This is because, as speculative projects, they generally don’t recognise the need to fit in with the wishes of the local authorities or adapt to the existing city. In the case of Modderfontein, the city government had the capability to push back against the developers and, in the <g class="gr_ gr_10 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="10" data-gr-id="10">end</g> tried to shape the project to better fit Johannesburg’s urban realities. &#8211; The Conversation



-Ricardo Reboredo; PhD Candidate in Geography, Trinity College Dublin



-Frances Brill; Research <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="5" data-gr-id="5">fellow</g>, UCL



<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/112420/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important" />

1131846342

What A Failed Johannesburg Project Tells Us About Mega Cities In Africa

Chris Pilgrim, the new CEO of Transnational Academic Group West Africa and Lancaster University Ghana, on the potential game-changers in higher education on the continent.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



It is to a verdant academic campus in Ghana&nbsp;&nbsp; that Chris Pilgrim will be packing his bags from the dunes of Dubai. As the new CEO of Transnational Academic Group (TAG) West Africa and Lancaster University Ghana, Pilgrim will provide students across emerging markets access to post-secondary and executive education. 



TAG currently owns and operates Lancaster University’s campus in Ghana, Curtin University’s Dubai campus, and South Africa-based ABN Training in partnership with the Australian Institute of Management in Western Australia. 



Pilgrim, who has helped develop TAG’s expansion in Africa and has over 25 years of experience in the higher education sector, spoke to FORBES AFRICA about skills-building, STEM and job creation:



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/current-affairs/2019/02/02/education-quality-and-the-youth-skills-gap-are-marring-progress-in-africa/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Education Quality and the Youth Skills Gap Are Marring Progress in Africa (opens in a new tab)">Education Quality and the Youth Skills Gap Are Marring Progress in Africa</a>



1. Are more universities looking to set up here?



A. With over half a million African students studying abroad annually, the continent has the highest outbound student ratio (number of outbound tertiary students/total number of tertiary students) in the world. Along with this annual migration of students comes capital flight, increased brain drain, and a hesitancy to build further world-class higher education capacity on the continent.



TAG partners with globally top-ranked universities to provide the highest quality of higher education in emerging market nations, thereby reversing, albeit modestly, the flow of students. 



Our campus in Ghana, in partnership with Lancaster University (ranked sixth in the UK), provides world-class higher education capacity for West Africans, and it has seen students from other countries, including outside of Africa, take up enrolment. 



TAG’s Lancaster University Ghana is the only comprehensive UK university campus in mainland Africa, and while TAG is undertaking steps to open similar branch campuses in other African countries, other investors and top-ranked universities have not moved to open campuses in the region.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/DA3A0125-copy-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-39470" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/DA3A0125-copy-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/DA3A0125-copy-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/DA3A0125-copy-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/DA3A0125-copy-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/DA3A0125-copy-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/DA3A0125-copy.jpg 1365w" sizes="(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /><figcaption> Chris Pilgrim, the CEO of Transnational Academic Group West Africa and Lancaster University Ghana.</figcaption></figure></div>



2. How can Africa build skills, capacity and create more jobs?



A. While there has been a modest growth of employment in the formal job sector in some countries, many of Africa’s youth are more likely today to take up work in the informal sectors and in family enterprises. 



Africa, as a region, has the largest youth population in the world, and with over 11 million young people expected to enter the job market each year, its economies are stretched to productively absorb Africa’s greatest asset – this youth population. 



While the continent’s education capacities and output are integral to leveraging this youth population into a potential demographic dividend, investments, both private and public, into relevant higher education capacities, particularly STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) capacity, are limited. 



In the long-term, addressing the underlying causes of unemployment and skills-gap lies in increasing enrolment in secondary and tertiary education, with a focus on STEM, thus enabling graduates to participate in the new economies and globalization emerging with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). Innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship are fundamental to creating the jobs of the future.



3. What is the increasing role of STEM programs?



A. While the vital importance of STEM education to infrastructure development, healthcare, energy security, agriculture, and the environment are well cited over the past decade, the role of STEM and digital skills in preparing for 4IR are potential game-changers. 



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/focus/2019/02/04/kenyan-approach-holds-promise-for-boosting-early-childhood-education/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Kenyan Approach Holds Promise for Boosting Early Childhood Education (opens in a new tab)">Kenyan Approach Holds Promise for Boosting Early Childhood Education</a>



African nations need to develop “future-ready curricula that encourage critical thinking, creativity and emotional intelligence as well as accelerate acquisition of digital and STEM skills to match the way people will work and collaborate in 4IR” (Source: WEF 2017 The Future of Jobs and Skills in Africa). 



Lancaster University Ghana has been delivering relevant computer science curriculum since its inception, and is set to launch programs in engineering this year, followed by additional programs in STEM disciplines.



4. How are you creating future leaders?



A. TAG Ghana works closely with Lancaster University to assure that our students receive an education that is relevant both locally, and in the global context. We work closely with industry and the community to understand their needs so our graduates are employment-ready. 



– Interviewed by Methil Renuka

Group portrait of graduates in campus corridor

4 Ways To Develop Employment-Ready Graduates

Preparation is key for having a successful a job interview. What you do the night before a job interview has an impact on your interview. What can you do to make sure this impact is a positive one?



1.Get a good night’s sleep.



Getting a good night’s sleep is the most important thing you can do before an interview. When you’re well rested, you’re more alert and focused, and you won’t have to resort to caffeine or sugar to stay awake. Being sleep deprived can also increase feelings of stress or anxiety, neither of which is helpful going into a job interview.



Of course, it can be hard to sleep because you’re anxious about the interview. If you find yourself having trouble getting to sleep, try a relaxation exercise like meditation or yoga. Whatever you do, take your mind off of the interview – overthinking it is most likely what’s keeping you awake.



READ MORE | <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="5 Questions You Should Never Ask During A Job Interview (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/current-affairs/2019/01/11/5-questions-you-should-never-ask-during-a-job-interview/" target="_blank">5 Questions You Should Never Ask During A Job Interview</a>



2.Review your resume and cover letter.



Review your resume and cover letter, as well as any answers to questions you might have filled out on the job application. Focus on key statistics you’ve listed, major accomplishments, and relevant skills. This is especially important if you’re applying to multiple positions and sending out different versions of your resume and cover letter.



By reviewing your documents, they’ll be fresh in your mind and you’ll be able to answer any questions relating to them quickly. This shows the hiring manager that you are confident, both in your abilities and in the interview itself. If you have to think too hard about a question relating to your resume or cover letter, it could signal to the hiring manager that you weren’t truthful on your application and raise a red flag.



3.Prepare a list of questions to ask.



Asking questions is one the most critical things you must do in a job interview, so it’s important to prepare some questions in advance. By having a few questions already prepared, you won’t draw a blank when the hiring manager asks you. Great questions to ask inquire about the company culture, job responsibilities, or what a typical day looks like. Review the job description to see if there’s anything from there that you’d like clarified. This will often be covered during the interview, but if not, you’ll be ready to ask about it.



4.Plan out your route.



Plan out your route and how long it will take you to get to the interview location. If you’re driving, consider traffic conditions and weather that could cause delays. If you’re taking public transportation, check to make sure that the subway or buses are running on schedule and nothing has changed due to planned work. If you’re doing a video interview, plan out your location, and check your video and microphone to make sure they work.



Always leave yourself a minimum of 30 extra minutes, regardless of how you’re getting to the interview. If you’re early, you can find a nearby cafe or just sit in your car and relax. Nothing is worse than stressing about being late, except for actually being late. Avoid both of those things by leaving much earlier than you think you need to. For a video interview, get yourself set up 15 minutes early.



5.Plan what you’re going to wear.



Deciding what you’re going to wear in advance takes one less thing off of your mind in the morning and allows you to focus your energy on more important things. Make sure your clothes are free of wrinkles, stains, and pet hair. You can also pack your bag the night before, so that all you have to do is grab it and go in the morning.



By starting your interview preparations the night before, you&#8217;ll be able to focus fully on the interview itself during the day and put 100% of your energy into it.



-Ashira Prossack

Category: Focus

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

More from Focus