Leadership is a very precise balancing act. American statesman Teddy Roosevelt is said to have once argued, “The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it.” 



This is one aspect of the balancing act I refer to. The other aspect is the very art of navigating the various moving parts leadership entails. Maneuvering these parts requires leaders to demonstrate skill, intuition, discernment, and perseverance. 



There thus needs to be a framework to guide leadership practices. In the South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, Lämsä and Keränen refer to responsible leadership. 



As they argue, “The principles of responsible leadership are organized in a hierarchical order, based on the level of cooperation between manager and employee.” In an analysis of leadership styles, their study found that responsible leadership was dependent on the presence of various principles, including care, trust, openness, fairness, and empowerment. 



This, they argue, is based on ethical frameworks from both parties. As I went through this study, I contemplated the implications of managing employment relations. This could be considered a ubuntu style of leadership that has its roots in various African societies and cultures. 



In Understanding Organizational Leadership Through Ubuntu, Chiku Malunga argues that ubuntu calls for leaders to determine the way for others based on African values such as honesty, sincerity, dignity, and respect for others. 



This goes beyond the traditional hierarchical notions of leadership and focuses on building strong relationships, fostering social cohesion, creating a purpose, and encouraging environments that promote collective wellbeing. In Ubuntu Leadership – An Explication of an Afrocentric Leadership Style, Eugene Laloo argues that there now needs to be a view to encompass traditionally African leadership theories such as ubuntu. 



As he asserts, “Now is the time to refocus on its further development and refi nement to bring this leadership theory into the fold of general leadership discourse.” It could be argued that mutual respect, a central tenet of ubuntu, is the lens through which discipline, confl ict and harmony in the workplace should be analyzed.



Discipline within the context of employment relations can be viewed in two ways. Firstly, it entails a framework of expectations for employees to follow. Strong leaders are made acutely aware of their roles and responsibilities but also the consequences of not meeting these expectations. What is required is a framework for accountability, which outlines how leaders respond to issues such as performance or conduct. Secondly, it denotes one’s own sense of control – or controlled motivation as some camps refer to it as. 



This is based on values such as respect and humility. Leaders who encourage this sense of discipline are likely to have more engaged and empowered employees.Confl ict resolution is a crucial component of leadership, and leaders must be skilled at addressing confl ict not only promptly but also in a constructive manner. 



Conflict resolution relies on open communication. It is thus imperative for employees to create channels for employees to effectively communicate their grievances and for employees to act as mediators where necessary to fi nd mutually beneficial solutions. 



Leaders must have soft skills such as active listening, clear and effective communication, and empathy in their arsenal. This enables a more conducive and positive environment. Disagreements should thus not be viewed negatively but rather through the lens of opportunity for growth.These ideas strive towards achieving harmony in the workplace. 



Harmony is predicated on the very culture of respect. Here, leaders must demonstrate respect through their actions by emphasizing traits such as fairness or empathy. This fosters a sense of belonging. This inspires cooperation and teamwork and instils a sense of belonging and respect for one another. Additionally, the very idea of harmony acknowledges and celebrates differences. The mutual respect that emerges is ubuntu in practice – as the idea insists, ‘I am because you are’. 



In ubuntu-style leadership, these principles are encouraged and deeply ingrained in cultural norms and traditions. According to writer Sammi Caramela, this approach to employee engagement is integral for productivity, creativity, and innovation. 



Strong manager-employee relations have the potential to decrease employee absenteeism and turnover rates, while poor management can have devastating effects. In fact, this is backed up by a GoodHire survey of 3,000 workers, which indicated that 82% of respondents would leave if they had a bad manager. Indeed, leadership is a very precise balancing act – one enriched by the very idea of ubuntu.

Three creative colleagues exchanging ideas

Expert-Speak: Leadership As A Balancing Act Between Ubuntu Principles And Effective Management

The rapid advancement and implementation of artifi cial intelligence (AI) technologies have signifi cant economic, societal, and ethical consequences for Africa. Efficient governance is crucial to optimizing AI’s advantages while minimizing its risks. This article offers policymakers essential governance issues, suggests strategic methodologies for the appropriate oversight of AI technologies, and presents a framework for AI governance and contextualizes these within the setting of Africa.



Good AI governance must be based on good values. One such value is AI transparency which is essential for AI governance, as it fosters trust, accountability, and fairness. Transparent AI systems allow stakeholders to understand and evaluate decision-making processes, identify and correct biases and assure ethical and legal compliance. The other value is AI truth. Truthful AI prevents misinformation and promotes critical thinking in public conversation, strengthening AI systems’ legitimacy and building social trust needed for widespread adoption and benefi cial integration of AI technology into daily life. The other values are safety and security which are vital for AI systems, as AI interacts with people in different ways, building trust and adoption.



Prioritizing safety reduces accidents and errors in AI-driven industries, safeguarding lives, and money. The other value is ethics. Ethical design and deployment of AI technologies benefit society and minimize harm, including promoting justice, transparency, accountability, and human rights. The other AI value is privacy. Privacy is crucial for AI systems to secure personal data and retain trust in technology. By using strict privacy rules, AI systems protect personal data from unlawful access and exploitation.The AI governance framework proposed in this article entails human behavior, mechanisms for incentives and disincentives, institutional governance structures, policies and regulations, standards, and the law. AI governance involves adhering to AI values, using behavioral science to cultivate a culture that maximizes AI’s potential while minimizing associated risks, and implementing mechanisms to foster a culture that maximizes the potential benefi ts while limiting its associated risks. 



Establishing an institutional structure combining the best practices derived from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is recommended to regulate AI effectively. This entity would set global AI standards, monitor compliance, foster international cooperation, address ethical guidelines, establish safety protocols, provide a platform for sharing best practices and promote transparency.Establishing policies and regulations to control AI involves crafting legal frameworks that ensure ethical AI use, focusing on transparency, accountability, and fairness while protecting privacy and preventing discrimination. Key measures could include mandatory AI audits and strict data protection requirements. 



Governments might also create dedicated bodies to oversee AI practices and enforce these regulations, ensuring AI benefi ts society and adheres to ethical standards.Establishing AI standards involves creating uniform guidelines for AI design, development, and deployment, focusing on technical quality, ethical considerations, and compatibility. These standards should cover data privacy, algorithmic transparency, security, and bias prevention. Lawmakers should collaborate with experts and the public to craft adaptable, informed regulations.



This model proposed above governs the following aspects of AI: data, algorithms, computing, and AI applications. Data governance ensures ethical, accurate, and secure use of AI systems, while algorithmic governance ensures ethical behavior and impartial results. Computing governance ensures safe, responsible, ethical, and sustainable AI technology, as computer technologies permeate every part of life. Well-defi ned governance frameworks build public trust, promote more egalitarian technology access, and incentivize good uses of AI. This governance should include specifi c regulations for AI applications in critical sectors like healthcare and fi nance.



AI governance in Africa is crucial to prevent AI from exacerbating existing inequalities that divide the Global South from the Global North and creating new ones. There is a need for robust governance frameworks to ensure that AI systems are used responsibly, minimizing risks, and empowering Africans to benefi t from AI’s potential especially given the fact that much of the AI technology is developed in the Global North. 



Issues such as the potential for AI to displace workers in key sectors in Africa, such as manufacturing and routine service industries, must be dealt with carefully, as AI might eliminate any hope of Africa industrializing. There is also a need to mitigate the negative infl uence of AI on political processes, such as deepfakes and misinformation campaigns. 



African nations must develop national AI strategies, establish independent regulatory bodies, invest in AI education and capacity-building programs, and play an active role in shaping global AI governance discussions through mechanisms such as the African Union and the United Nations. In conclusion, AI governance frameworks must be dynamic and adaptable to technological advancements. Policymakers should collaborate with technologists, businesses, academia, and civil society to create comprehensive governance strategies that ensure AI serves the public good.

AI, Machine learning, robot hand ai artificial intelligence assistance human touching on big data network connection background, Science artificial intelligence technology, innovation and futuristic.

Expert-Speak: An Effective Framework For Governance Of AI In Africa

A strange question was asked of me, whils speaking at a recent seminar in Dubai, by a gentleman with a flowing white beard.



In resplendent glory and laced with what I thought was the sheer pain of knowing the obvious, yet incapable of convincing anyone, he asked: “What happens if a comet hits the northern hemisphere and the whole world has to congregate to the South, specifically to the African continent. Are you ready?”



I was perplexed. Was this an allegorical query or a metaphysical one?



Was he simply being insulting by suggesting that without the Global North, we don’t stand a chance. And if a reversal was to happen, we would be found wanting?



Because, to me, the comet has already been there for some time now.



The dependence on African minerals, cocoa, cotton, labor, oil, gas, coastline, food crops… indeed, the West and its glory has been built on this for centuries.



Except that, like all good conquerors, these have been extracted and exported out with scant regard for local jobs, local prosperity, and local development.



Today, of course, the need for Africa has multiplied exponentially. New markets for global companies. Food basket. Source of renewable energy. Critical minerals to make batteries. Rainforests that absorb global emissions. Oil and gas supply. Supply chain diversity for goods.



Security. Geopolitical friendships.



Necessity is often the mother of all inventions.



If there was ever a need to be greedy about Africa, now is perhaps the proverbial feasting season. So yes, I told the gentleman from the East who asked me the rhetorical question. The comet has arrived. It’s refueling in many ways.



Time to smell the coffee and think of not having any one day.



My message was simple. It’s time we replaced greed for Africa or even worse, the guilt for Africa.



No grants. No aid. No concessions.



Instead, let fear be the new dogma to guide investment behavior and global engagement with Africa.



Because leaders in Africa realize the potency of their core.



And African savings are beginning to find their way into African institutions for projects to be developed and derisked for an African renaissance.



And commercial partnerships and transference of know-how will pave the way for mutually- assured success.



Hunger, poverty, scarcity, inflation, disease. Like the effects of climate change, none of these have borders.



And the real specter of having to ‘do without’ is finally descending on the precious few ‘hitherto haves’ of this world. Africa is the salvation to that. As I had read somewhere once: “We were poor. And we ate chicken only when we were sick. Or the chicken was.” Today, it’s different.



The G7 nexus around economic security and competitiveness and a capacity to stand up for their alleged values are linked to global events. A recent European Union white paper on policy articulates: “In order to diversify supply chains, ensure access to energy and raw materials, link up 



with today’s and tomorrow’s growth markets and enhance our political standing in the world, we cannot neglect Emerging Markets and Developing Economies in Asia, Africa, and Latin America&#8230;”



Africa needs partnerships that strengthen our own geo-economic role and capacity.



Thus, a clear case of possible convergence, notably, when it comes to green energy, critical raw materials, digital connectivity and transport connectivity, exists.



Thankfully, we now live in an à la carte world and in the current battle for offers can and must choose as we see fit. That is what has changed forever.



And if the Global North wishes to slumber, the Global South will be the answer, as the aspirations of a billion-plus youth cannot be submerged forever.



As I said, need and fear are inextricably linked.



But intelligence and action appear to be not.



The comet has indeed arrived.

Mount Kenya: One Of Africa’s Last Glaciers, Melting From Human-Induced Climate Change

‘The Global Need For Africa: The Right To Choose Is Here And Now’

We often wonder what the most significant or transformative invention of our times is?



Based on circumstances and identity, everyone would have their own choice of that single change that has impacted them and transformed lives. From the bullock cart to cars to railroads to air and space travel, electricity, ships, defence mechanisms including submarines, jets, missiles, projectiles and drones, energy, industry, infrastructure, the internet, email, television, movies/entertainment, fashion, food, healthcare and so many other options, my favorite has been the invention of commercial aircraft. In many ways, this invention has been the most transformative in my life as it allowed me to efficiently travel and see more than half the world.



We sometimes take things for granted but imagine a world where, just as one example, you had to continue traveling by sea. My father took a month for his travel from the United Kingdom to India after his deputation with the British Army in 1956/1957. Owing to the Arab-Israeli war, the Suez Canal was closed, and they had to travel around the Cape of Good Hope (the southern tip of Africa). It took me over three weeks to travel from Goa in India to Antarctica by sea in 1987. 



These journeys and many more that others have experienced have been cut down to less than a day. The long non-stop direct flights over approximately 9,000 to 10,000 miles are covered in about 18 hours; time that will continue to shorten This innovation and continuous improvement in the standards and safety of aircraft has resulted in the rapid movement of people and cargo all over the world. 



The develop- ment of this industry will continue to be a major driver in unifying the world, building air bridges, and helping to create experiences and interpersonal and cultural bonds through business and tourism. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) report for 2019 stated that 4.5 billion passengers traveled globally in 2019 via 38 million flight departures. 


<div class="wp-block-image">
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The report stated that almost 34.7% of passenger air traffic (domestic and international) was from Asia and the lowest at 2.1% was from Africa. Elsewhere, it has been reported that prior to Covid-19, globally, the number of passengers projected for 2024 was about 10 billion. 



Covid-19 brought global travel to a grinding halt and the gurus immediately predicted a future where the need for travel was going to be limited, as work and meetings could be concluded online. How wrong everyone was! While the num- bers have not quite reached 10 billion, people have started traveling with a vengeance and despite soaring airfares, airports and flights have been packed for the last 12 months. Boeing and Airbus have orders that are going to keep these companies and their affiliates busy for decades.



I picked this subject because of the dismal statistics from Africa. The continent is home to 1.49 billion people or 18% of the global population but contributes only 2% to the global air traffic industry. South African Airways currently operating around 14 aircraft (including wet leases from other airlines) has been in business since 1934 and after its 90-year history has failed to take advantage of a major gap in African travel. Ethiopian Airlines started in 1945 and, by comparison, has a fleet of approximately 148 aircraft today. It’s the only African airline that has attained some level of respect but is still a long way off from being an answer to African travel. 



Other airlines from Kenya, Nigeria and other significant economies have not managed to scratch the surface of air travel. It’s easier today to connect to African countries via Dubai on Emirates than via any African airline. 



Emirates with 260 aircraft and a history since 1985, covers 19 destinations in Africa and many more through its alliance with other African airlines. As per a Reuters report in mid-May, Doha-based carrier Qatar Airways is set to announce investment in an airline in southern Africa to expand its network on the continent.



Africa has a lot to offer by way of tourism and business opportunities. Its population is expected to grow to 2.5 billion by 2050. Countries in the continent need to step up their efforts to establish world-class airlines and associated infrastructure. This has been one of the major reasons for the phenomenal growth of Dubai, Hong Kong and Singa- pore and there is no reason for African countries to be left so far behind.



The other major impediment for travel in Africa is the lagging visa regime in most countries, apart from the East African Community (EAC) countries that have a common visa on arrival for a number of nationalities. The Africa Visa Openness Report 2023 sponsored by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Union (AU) stated that 46% of African countries required African citizens to apply for visas before arrival, 28% countries were visa-free and 26% allowed Africans to obtain a visa on arrival. This remains a challenge for inter-African movement of people which is a basic requirement to enhance tourism and trade. When these statistics are applied to foreigners or non-African passport holders, the numbers get even more dismal. 



In Africa’s largest and most developed economy, South Africa, it is still a challenge to get business permits and renewing a business visa can take up to a year, if not more. In today’s day and age with access to technology, facial recognition, and artificial intelligence, it should not be a major investment to get this basic service resolved.



It’s not that Africa is short of good ideas or leaders. The problem lies in the seriousness of intent and in implementa tion. A common passport for Africans was discussed under the auspices of the AU but nothing has been implemented and while there are leaders like Dr Akinwumi Adesina (President of the AfDB) champion- ing this cause, it remains a dream for now. Even if the passport is not unified, travel within the continent, as between the EU countries, should not be a challenge, especially for tourism and business. Given that there is poverty on the continent and many countries would like to curtail immigration to prevent unemployment and internal unrest, these issues must be separated from genuine tourists and business travelers. 



Africa is seen as a destination for rapid economic development. Policies must change to embrace this reality. The other perennial and lingering issue that impacts the world, but more so Africa, remains climate change. As we continue to ponder about climate change and the future of mankind and planet earth, nature continues to provide a reality check on the lack of progress. Rainfall is welcomed by almost everyone around the world; irrespective of where one lives, we all have our share of it. It not only lowers tempera- tures but is critical for agriculture.



The last 12 months, however, have seen an on- slaught like never before. I was in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) when we had the downpour around mid-April and the country experienced rainfall of 10 inches within 24 hours; the highest in 75 years. Life came to a standstill for 72 hours and it became prudent to stay indoors. When the clouds passed, one saw the impact of rain on a modern city like Dubai.



There was flooding in most parts of the city and while the authorities tackled the problems with their usual efficiency and miraculously brought the city back on track within 48 hours, what is a clear lesson is that the worst is yet to come.



The UAE was not alone in this experience. Almost every part of the world has experienced an inordi- nate amount of rain, cyclones, tornados and unusual weather over the last 12 months. This includes Austra- lia, Southeast Asia, China, South Asia, Russia, Europe, North and South America; none has been spared. Clos- er home, in East Africa, heavy rains recently in Kenya, Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda and Somalia left hun- dreds dead and over one million people displaced. 



To rebuild infrastructure from the destruction alone will require billions of dollars that these African nations, unlike developed countries or the rich Arab states, do not have and will continue to get crushed under a growing burden of aid and debt.



But the past is of little consequence other than to learn from. Let’s look to the future, plan on how to better deal with these events that are acts of God or more likely the consequence of my generation’s unplanned and reckless development and greed.



According to a report from Phys.Org, almost two-thirds of the global population or almost three billion to five billion people across the world are going to be affected by inordinate rains unless the production of CO2 is curtailed. As per the report, countries are going to have different experiences based on several factors. As an example, it is projected that Spain, Portugal, Greece and Morocco (countries around the Mediterra- nean Sea) are likely to experience drier climates in the period ahead. Other parts of Europe are projected to have longer wet and dry periods. India and China are likely to experience more rainfall. The United States has its own seasonal hurricanes and tornados. In the last few months, there have been twisters, tornados, hurricanes and thunderstorms across Florida, Michigan, Oklahoma, Indiana, and Ohio. There has been widespread damage to homes, infrastructure, and disruption in business activities.



While there are a lot of reports that are continuously coming from several sources, including the impact of the climate systems El Niño and its oppo- site, La Niña, on weather patterns around the world, the reality is that many people are going to suffer and, in many cases, lose their homes and belongings to nature’s fury. The El Niño effect has seen widespread destruction and havoc closer home in East Africa and governments need to start strategically preparing for the coming 100 years.



Ever since Covid-19 started, the word ‘unprec- edented’ has, to my mind, become the most-used word to rationalize the intensity of any calamity. Each event seems to be more catastrophic than the last.



Sadly, this is not something that will change and ‘un- precedented’ should not become our position of last resort. The planet has had its evolution over millions of years and progressed through five known ice ages in its 4.5-billion-year history. The planet has evolved between glacial and interglacial periods. Many reports have been released that we are living in the fifth ice age, determined by the polar ice caps, but we are more in an interglacial period that is known as the Holocene Epoch that started 11,700 years ago.



When we begin to talk about thousands of years, people lose interest. It’s largely because it does not impact the now.



The reality is that the planet does not need any saving. We need to save ourselves and our species from extinction. Since glacial action is slow, the jour- ney can be made more pleasant and meaningful and the end can be prolonged if we act sensibly. Let’s not wait for COP29 for more conversations and debates to once again prove Voltaire’s words: “Men argue. Nature acts”.

Flying at Night From Airplane Window View

From Air Travel To Climate Disasters, A Reality Check For The World

How the forgotten Afghans of Albania have made their way to a new home.



For a group of Afghan evacuees forced to flee their home country in the fall of 2021, a tourist village on the Albanian coast became more than just a temporary stopover on their way to the United States (U.S.).



Nestled in a large bay on the coast of the Adriatic Sea, Shëngjin is a sleepy little fishing port and the northernmost naval entry point into Albania – less than 12 miles from the Montenegro border. At least, it was a sleepy little fishing port, once upon a time. The town has become a popular vacation spot in recent years, with a string of hotels sprouting along the strip of land between the golden sands of Shëngjin Beach and the scrubby, mountainous ridge that separates the town from the farmlands of Balldren. In the summer, flooded by local day-trippers and scores of visitors from nearby Kosovo, the population of fewer than 10,000 swells almost tenfold. Some locals and visitors feel that tourism has changed Shëngjin; that it’s not the town it once was.&nbsp;



Sitting in the Rafaelo Resort, a luxurious Albanian sprawl of hotel buildings, pools and gardens perched on the water’s edge, Nawid could relate to the feeling of his home changing. Except instead of high-rise hotels and loud music, his home of Afghanistan has seen economic freefall, increasing food insecurity, the almost total erosion of women’s rights, and a rise in torture, arbitrary detentions and extrajudicial killings.&nbsp;



Nawid is one of around 78,000 Afghan citizens – among more than 122,000 in total – who were evacuated from Kabul, in 2021. The joint government evacuations took place over two weeks in August, involving 38 countries, hundreds of flights and at least 195 casualties, including 13 U.S. service men and women. As Taliban forces overran the city and began closing in, thousands upon thousands of people flocked to the airport, desperate to escape. These included those who had worked with NATO and U.S. forces or other international organizations, women and vulnerable minorities, along with chancers who simply fought their way through the crowds to make a break for it. Despite the extraordinary efforts of those on the ground, the Biden administration has faced criticism for handling the operation and its failure to evacuate all of its Afghan allies.&nbsp;



Even for some of those who safely boarded flights out of the country, the path to a new life has been far from smooth. Most of the Afghanis flown out by the U.S. government boarded military aircraft, landed at military bases and began the process of relocation in the U.S. — an effort led by the Department of Homeland Security and dubbed Operation Allies Welcome.&nbsp;



However, thousands also boarded civilian aircraft, commercial or chartered, in the weeks leading up to and after August 31 2021, which marked the deadline for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces. These evacuees landed in destinations such as Greece, Uzbekistan, Iraq and Mexico. Around 2,400 landed in Albania.&nbsp;



Acting in good faith



It might seem surprising that one of Europe’s poorest countries – certainly one of the poorest in NATO – would welcome so many people fleeing a conflict more than 2,500 miles away. Albania is a remarkably pro-US nation, both diplomatically and publicly. The US was instrumental in granting NATO membership to Albania in 2009, which has been a steadfast ally in international affairs, and the general public has long held an overwhelmingly positive view of America. They’re also overwhelmingly in favor of acceding to the European Union, for which Albania has been a candidate since 2014, and Prime Minister Edi Rama is eager to position his nation as a cooperative, beneficial ally to Western causes.&nbsp;



But the welcome given to Afghan evacuees stems from something much deeper than mere diplomacy. Albania has been welcoming displaced peoples for decades, guided by the cultural precept of besa. The concept, which translates to “faith”, emphasizes honoring one’s word and providing protection and sanctuary to those who need it. The country has sheltered Jews during World War II, members of the Iranian opposition group Mojahedin-e-Khalq and Uyghur Muslims, among others.&nbsp;



Displacement is part of the history of the country, and the memories of older Albanians. In the early 1990s, tens of thousands of people fled worsening economic conditions, food shortages, and social and political tensions in the wake of the fall of communism in the country. Some found refuge in neighboring states, while others — notably most of the tens of thousands who crowded aboard the cargo ship Vlora bound for Italy —were turned away or deported. The experience lingers in the national psyche, making for a largely positive and welcoming response to thousands of Afghans from locals who wanted to spare them what they had suffered decades before.&nbsp;



What was meant to be a temporary stopover for U.S. allies gradually revealed itself to be a gilded cage. Once the initial confusion of landing in Albania had passed, many could not believe their good fortune at being accommodated in a five-star resort rather than a camp, while trauma and suffering swept across Afghanistan as the Taliban claimed power.&nbsp;



But, for Nawid and others, living in a resort was not real life. Normal family functions, like preparing meals, were not available to them. While it would seem to most that this life is not so bad, in reality, ongoing resort living takes a psychological toll. It fractures normal life patterns in ways incomprehensible to those who have not endured this kind of situation. They lived in serviced rooms, not homes they could make their own, and meals were prepared by chefs and served at designated times. Anxiety and restlessness grew as time wore on, and no news was forthcoming about processing for relocation to the U.S. The evacuees spent their days waiting, adrift in uncertainty about their future.&nbsp;



In December 2021, the U.S. State Department announced that those who had boarded civilian or chartered flights out of Kabul before August 31 were eligible for resettlement in the U.S. Many of the Afghans staying at the resort, however, had left after this deadline. Private organizations that had evacuated them from Kabul ran out of funds to pay for their room and board, making an already fraught situation even more stressful. These organizations appealed to the U.S. government to assist, but the State Department responded that privately evacuated Afghans were not its responsibility. For the Afghan evacuees, their limbo seemed indefinite.&nbsp;



Rescuing hope



In September 2022, a collective of U.S.-based NGOs, civilians and veterans working together as the American Rescue Project (ARP) — who operate under the mandate that every life matters — stepped in and took it upon themselves to make good on the promise of a better life for the evacuees. They had a very short window to solve the housing crisis before the evacuees were evicted, but also had to urgently start processing the group of just under 400 for their final relocation ‘home’ to the U.S.



With limited resources, its first move was to find a group of trustworthy partners who could act quickly and in the best interest of those they intended to serve. ARP was already working with TradingHouse Global in other conflict zones globally, so turned to them for help. The South Africa-based commodities and goods trader — with vast experience and varied expertise in operating in the most challenging situations in the most out-of-reach places — recognized the need for freedom and autonomy for these people who had lost everything and immediately mobilized a team on the ground.



What followed was a monumental humanitarian mission. It required the sourcing and securing of accommodation, the provisioning of food for three meals a day, specialized medical care, stipends to be paid, and education to be provided, all within a 30-day window.&nbsp;



A friend of TradingHouse Global, the Uruçi Foundation, provided on-the-ground knowledge and support, and the partnership mobilized at lightning speed. They sourced and leased apartments to rent. They financed stipends for basic expenses and worked with suppliers of goods for cooking, knowing that the freedom this provided would offer improved mental health and the beginning of a transition into a ‘normal’ life.



Beyond the logistics, the endeavor required several meetings with Albanian and U.S. officials. There also had to be political and social lobbying in the U.S. to arrange for — and make the final resettlement of — the group a priority at the Department of State.&nbsp;



The results were almost immediate. The U.S. Department of State began processing the group for relocation, arranging interviews, medical examinations, and necessary vaccinations.



In early 2023, the U.S. government stated that its goal was for all the Afghan refugees in Albania eligible for relocation to the U.S. would be moved by June of that year. It took a little longer than anticipated, but within three years of fleeing in panic from their home country, the evacuees who found refuge in a little tourist town on the Albanian coast are now all U.S. citizens with a new life in a new home country. Seventeen of the 400 people under TradingHouse’s care have chosen to stay in the country and have been welcomed by their new kin.&nbsp;&nbsp;



This is a notable success story in its ability to assist people caught in a global crisis, restoring a sense of security and — perhaps most importantly — a place to call home.



– <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-robinson-67814795/recent-activity/">Andrew Robinson</a>, a South African-born entrepreneur, is passionate about making a difference in people&#8217;s lives and firmly believes in servant leadership. Over the past 20 years, his tenacious business reputation has grown globally; <a href="https://www.tradinghouse.co.za/">tradinghouse.co.za</a>

Tirana’s downtown area with the tallest building in the city – The Plaza Tirana at sunset (85m), Albania, 2018

Limbo, Luxury And The Long Road To A New Home

Artificial intelligence (AI) has made significant strides in all areas of our lives. AI can now monitor patients, safeguard buildings, improve manufacturing processes and write poetry. These are good uses of AI. There are, however, bad uses and characteristics of AI.



For example, AI can discriminate against digital minorities such as people of African descent or ethnic minorities. It can be weaponized with devastating consequences for peace and security. Given that AI is both good and bad, what should be done? We must ensure that AI is used to maximize the good and minimize bad uses. Various strategies have been deployed to maximize the good uses of AI. Furthermore, multiple techniques have been deployed to reduce the bad uses of AI. For example, ensuring that data for training AI systems is representative can minimize algorithmic bias and discrimination.



However, fixing defective algorithms is much easier than improving a flawed human being who intends to use AI negatively. For example, it is far more challenging to change a human being that discriminates against ethnic minorities than to fix an AI machine that discriminates against ethnic minorities. To improve the AI machine, we must apply the best practices of handling data, designing algorithms, and using AI technology, which requires good human behavior.



In AI, discussions of its development, deployment and regulation frequently focus on technological and ethical concerns. However, this discussion’s significant and underexplored aspect parallels human behavior and AI governance. These two generate a complex confluence that considerably impacts how AI technologies are conceived and deployed and how they are regulated. As AI permeates every aspect of our lives, understanding and leveraging this confluence of AI and human behavior is advantageous and is also required for developing AI systems that are both effective and fair. 



Humans are at the heart of AI development, and their decisions, prejudices, and actions affect AI systems.Behavioral science, which studies human behavior   via    psychological, cognitive, and emotional lenses, provides essential insights into how developers and designers should approach the building of AI. It highlights the cognitive biases that can influence algorithm design and the ethical blind spots resulting from prioritizing technical efficiency over social consequences.



Incorporating human behavior into AI governance requires identifying and addressing these human issues. It entails developing frameworks enabling developers to reflect on the potential biases they bring to the design process and cultivating a culture that values ethical considerations and societal wellbeing over technical innovation.



End-user behavior must also be considered when governing AI. Behavioral science provides a lens through which to investigate how people engage with AI systems, such as responding to recommendations, making decisions based on AI-generated data, and building trust in AI technologies. These findings are critical for developing AI systems that are not only user- friendly but also promote beneficial behavioral outcomes, such as improving decision-making processes and preventing the reinforcement of negative biases.



Furthermore, behavioral science can inform public education campaigns on AI, enabling users to be more critical and educated in their interactions with AI systems. Governance frameworks based on behavioral science can raise an understanding of AI’s possible biases and limits, allowing people to interact ethically and effectively with AI.



The link between human behavior and AI governance is dynamic. As AI technologies advance, so will the societal norms and behaviors that shape and are shaped by them. Governance frameworks must be adaptive and ready to respond to new insights from behavioral science into human-AI interaction and the societal repercussions of AI breakthroughs.



This adaptability necessitates a participatory and inclusive governance strategy involving AI developers, users, behavioral scientists, ethicists, policy-makers, and other stakeholders in ongoing discourse. This strategy can help to keep governance frameworks current and thriving in the face of rapid technological development and shifting human behaviors.



Education is critical to guaranteeing the ethical governance of AI since it provides developers and consumers with the knowledge and skills needed to navigate the complicated moral environment of AI technology. Technologists can gain a thorough awareness of the ethical consequences of their work by participating in comprehensive educational programs that integrate ethics, data privacy, and societal effects into the core curriculum of computer science and AI courses. 



Education can help people understand AI technologies, promoting informed and critical engagement with AI systems. By incorporating ethical considerations into all stakeholders’ education in creating and using AI, we can foster a culture of responsibility and accountability. This strategy teaches individuals to foresee and address ethical difficulties and promotes the advancement of AI systems that emphasize human values and social wellbeing. As we set the road for the future of AI, let us not underestimate the value of understanding human behavior in guiding us toward more responsible and beneficial AI governance

AI (Artificial Intelligence) concept. Electronic circuit. Communication network.

The Dynamic Link Between Human Behavior And AI Governance

In an era where the boundaries between work and personal life are increasingly blurred, a new trend is emerging, shifting the way we approach our daily grind and overall productivity.



The trend, known as ‘chronoworking’, marries the concepts of time (‘chrono’) and labor (‘working’) to propose an alternative approach to balancing our professional and personal lives.



Chronoworking is based on the idea that everyone operates on their unique body clock or circadian rhythm – a natural internal process that regulates the sleep-wake cycle and then repeats roughly every 24 hours.



Supporters of the trend recommend that individuals align their workdays with their peak periods of energy and creativity.



For those who find their energy surging with the sunrise, this strategy means harnessing the quiet of the early morning to dive into tasks that require deep concentration and creativity.



Starting the workday as early as five or six in the morning, these early risers can power through their to-do lists uninterrupted by the typical distractions that come later in the day.



By midday or early afternoon, they’ve accomplished a full day’s work, leaving ample time for personal pursuits, family or leisure activities during the late afternoon and evening.



On the other hand, individuals who hit their stride later in the day, often referred to as night owls, benefit from a delayed start.



This flexibility allows them to begin their professional obligations in the late morning or afternoon when their mental acuity and energy levels start to climb.



Working into the evening, they can capitalize on the quiet hours when distractions are sometimes reduced, channeling their peak productivity into their job.



But the flexibility of chronoworking extends beyond mere start and end times.



It includes the potential for split shifts, where an employee works part of their day in the morning, takes a substantial break during their less productive hours, and resumes work in the evening during a second burst of productivity.



For instance, someone might work from 7AM to 11AM, take a break for personal time or rest, then resume work from 4PM to 8PM.



On top of that, chronoworking enables task alignment with an individual’s productivity peaks.



High-concentration tasks such as problem-solving, planning, and creative endeavors can be scheduled for when an employee feels most alert and inspired.



In contrast, less- demanding tasks like emails, administrative duties, or meetings can be placed during the natural energy dips, ensuring that the quality of work remains consistently high across all tasks.



Remote and hybrid work models, which have seen a significant uptick due to the global pandemic, are particularly well-suited to the principles of chronoworking.



The elimination of commute times and the inherent flexibility of working from home allow employees to easily adjust their schedules to fit their internal clocks.



While the concept of synchronizing work schedules with one’s internal clock is not a novel idea, the shift towards more remote and hybrid working models has spotlighted its potential benefits.



The traditional nine-to-five workday, once the standard, is increasingly viewed as an outdated model that fails to consider the varied rhythms and lifestyles of today’s diverse workforce.



By allowing for work schedules that honor individual circadian rhythms, employers might be able to foster a more motivated, satisfied,and productive workforce.



It’s important to understand, however, that chronoworking is not a one-size-fits-all solution and



may not be feasible for all industries or roles.



Positions that necessitate fixed hours or a physical presence, such as those in healthcare, retail, or manufacturing, might find it challenging to fully implement chronoworking.



The enthusiasm for chronoworking is grounded in the belief that the future of work is not about clocking more hours but about working more intelligently.



By aligning work with our body clocks, we can achieve greater efficiency and outcomes, both for individuals and organizations.



As the workforce continues to evolve, some believe that the principles of chronoworking offer a promising path toward a more adaptive, fulfilling, and productive future.



Could this be the moment to challenge and move beyond the traditional nine-to-five, and clock-in to a work schedule that’s in harmony with our natural tendencies?



The evolution of work may well depend on our willingness to sync our working lives with our personal biological clocks, and, in doing so, establish a new era of work that is as fulfilling as it is efficient.

Young man on a video call in a cafe

Chronoworking: Why Our Workday Needs To Punch In To Our Body Clocks

True power is living the realization that you are your own healer, hero, leader.” – quoted by Diego Perez



Indeed, success has always been built on that simple principle. The African story of the recent past has belied that. This needs to be regained and reinforced.



I was in Lusaka some weeks ago attending the launch of the Lobito Corridor project; an ambitious rail line brought together for deliverance by the mighty United States (U.S.), the beleaguered European Union, three ambitious African nations and two of Africa’s premier institutions, the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and African Development Bank (AfDB).



They unveiled plans to link the copper-rich regions of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the Angolan port of Lobito. A corridor replete with hopes. A smooth trade route from the world’s richest copper belt to the Atlantic Ocean to facilitate the transportation essential in the region, fostering business and trade.



This is in perfect harmony with Washington’s increased soft-power strategy reflecting a broader geopolitical intent to strengthen ties with Africa.



Not that this is altruistic though.



The global clean energy transition requires significant amounts of critical minerals vital to the manufacturing of solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles, batteries etc. And they are crucially essential in several applications of the defence, ICT and pharmaceutical industries.



Add to that the U.S.’s Inflation Reduction Act and the pressure to bring manufacturing back to 



American shores.



To make America great again will need raw materials from across the Atlantic. Interestingly, the accelerated pace of the transition will require six times more mineral inputs by 2040.



But the net-zero objectives of the Global North will not be achieved without Africa’s green minerals. Africa holds substantial reserves  of bauxite, chromium, cobalt, copper, gold, iron, lithium, manganese, platinum, uranium and more.



Thus, the great race ahead; strap on your belts for the ride.



Yet, China’s present dominance is all-pervading at the moment; positioned as they are with its longer history and sheer size of investments in the core sectors in Africa.



Overall, China has spent more than a trillion dollars in projects to secure the supply of key resources.



Therein lies the ‘once-in-a- lifetime’ opportunity.



Usually, when elephants fight, the grass suffers.



This time around, the African savannah holds the strings to the entertainment ahead.



For African leaders, the question is less about the U.S. or China but more about what Africa can negotiate out of its resource advantage.



Africa must capitalize on its mineral endowments to drive transformative sustainable growth, economic diversification, and local and regional development through value-added processing and manufacturing; it must optimize the resource value to underpin productive transformation, integration into global trade systems and development of local industries.



Sustainable mining as a catalyst for the local procurement of goods and services, the shared use of infrastructure as well as an anchor for renewable energy development is a fair aspiration.



Yet it is crucial to ensure that all this does not come at the detriment of African communities, bearing the brunt of vested interests, pollution, and environmental damage.



A substantial amount of critical minerals is to be found in areas of rich biodiversity, fragility, and conflict, as well as lands traditionally belonging to indigenous peoples.



But events have conspired in Africa’s favor.



We hold the key to solving significant global challenges.



Hence, we should be agnostic and seek partners that will drive our economic objectives as equals in the global fight for equity and prosperity.



African institutions such as the AFC are at the forefront of embedding these priorities into policies.



The continued success will hinge on: a) balancing the criticality of access to mineral resources with the African perspective on environmental and social risks; b) improved infrastructure for local value addition, refining, processing, and developing local downstream industries; and c) inspiring international cooperation to shift from historically-exploitive, extractive and export-driven models into sustainable investments, technology transfer, capacity-building and financing models that lift the continent meaningfully.



If mining fails to be a catalyst for sustainable development supporting renewable power generation, local procurement and infrastructure, we will have failed.



The Lobito Corridor promises to be that potent example where the corridors of power ensured that it’s not another rail line to transport our riches but will enrich us, the people on the continent, in its wake. And thus, help to solve the world’s problems while serving its own people. Diplomacy and negotiations change. All of that needs the ‘self-belief’ that it’s our tryst with our destiny and we have to run with it ourselves.

ELECTRIC VEHICLES CONGO MINING COBALT

Digging Deep: Why Africa Must Capitalize On Its Mineral Endowments

What do Uber, Netflix and TikTok have in common?



It’s one word.



And working out how to remove it will become the most important strategic discussion for CEOs across the globe in the coming years.



It should already be the most important word.



And that word is friction.



The companies I named at the start are all early examples of how you can have global success by removing friction from your customer’s lives.



Uber, for example, removes friction by making it much easier and faster to pick up a ride than the metered taxi model it replaced.



Netflix removes friction by delivering quality, binge- able content without delaying consumer gratification with adverts or timetables.



And TikTok takes it to another level by removing the friction of viewers needing to spend time choosing what to watch. Its algorithm calculates what people want based on how they interact with the app. In fact, the more you think about it, the more obvious it becomes that the best companies are masters at removing friction. Google (frictionless search), Wise (frictionless  cross- border payments) and Amazon (frictionless shopping) are just three more examples.



On the other hand, the brands we love to hate are the ones that waste our most precious asset. Time.



For example, don’t you get frustrated with the excessive form-filling when hiring a car, queueing at a bank branch, or holding for a call center agent?



I know I do.



Fortunately, this is all about to change, and companies that have clung on to life like limpets despite wasting millions of hours of their customers’ lives will have to adapt to survive because of the widespread adoption of large language models, like ChatGPT.



Take the example of Klarna, a leading global payments and shopping service.



On February 27 2024, they announced that their new AI assistant had handled two-thirds of customer chats in its first month. That’s the equivalent workload of 700 full-time agents, which equates to an estimated



$40-million improvement in their bottom line. They went on to say that the AI agents were on par with customer satisfaction scores, were more accurate in errand resolution (leading to a 25% drop in repeat inquiries) and were able to resolve queries in less than two minutes, compared to the previous 11.



You don’t have to be a call center expert to understand that these are just staggering improvements which showcase the potential of moving from human to artificial intelligence. And you have to remember that this is version 0.1, and we should expect exponential improvements over the next few years.



In fact, the idea that a machine will be able to better communicate with humans in a more personalized, knowledgeable, and empathetic manner is no longer just science fiction. It’s fast becoming a science fact. 



Having just spent a wasted hour on the phone with my internet service provider, I can’t wait. I would pay extra to be able to deal with a bot that listens to my problems, understands my history, is able to take decisions without escalating, can respond not just in my language but in my accent or dialect and is able to pick up on any number of visual and audio queues to better understand me and make me feel valued and appreciated. Perhaps even loved.



And if this leads to hours-long call times because customers feel compelled to share their personal trials and tribulations, why not?



After all, our buying decisions are based on emotions, and who better to exploit that than a machine?



Because unlike human agents, the virtual kind are available 24/7 in every single corner of the globe and they know more about us than any human ever can.



These are not just my fantasies. The markets agree. When Klarna shared its AI successes, it was reported that a leading traditional call center company saw its share price drop in just one day.



CEOs now have no choice but to switch their investments from human to artificial intelligence to provide frictionless services.



The benefits for investors and customers are clear. It’s equally obvious that the millions of knowledge workers who operate today’s phones will have to find new vocations, and they will have to find them fast.



Which begs one big question. Do we really want a frictionless world if the cost is that human capital becomes worthless

TikTok To Be Banned From UK Government Phones

Remove This To Win, But Beware Of The Consequences

<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
True power is living the realization that you are your own healer, hero, leader.” – quoted by Diego Perez
</blockquote>



Indeed, success has always been built on that simple principle. The African story of the recent past has belied that. This needs to be regained and reinforced.



I was in Lusaka some weeks ago attending the launch of the Lobito Corridor project; an ambitious rail line brought together for deliverance by the mighty United States (U.S.), the beleaguered European Union, three ambitious African nations and two of Africa’s premier institutions, the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and African Development Bank (AfDB).



They unveiled plans to link the copper-rich regions of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the Angolan port of Lobito. A corridor replete with hopes. A smooth trade route from the world’s richest copper belt to the Atlantic Ocean to facilitate the transportation essential in the region, fostering business and trade.



This is in perfect harmony with Washington’s increased soft-power strategy reflecting a broader geopolitical intent to strengthen ties with Africa.



Not that this is altruistic though. The global clean energy transition requires significant amounts of critical minerals vital to the manufacturing of solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles, batteries etc. And they are crucially essential in several applications of the defence, ICT and pharmaceutical industries.



Add to that the U.S.’s Inflation Reduction Act and the pressure to bring manufacturing back to American shores.



To make America great again will need raw materials from across the Atlantic. Interestingly, the accelerated pace of the transition will require six times more mineral inputs by 2040.



But the net-zero objectives of the Global North will not be achieved without Africa’s green minerals.



Africa holds substantial reserves  of bauxite, chromium, cobalt, copper, gold, iron, lithium, manganese, platinum, uranium and more.



Thus, the great race ahead; strap on your belts for the ride.



Yet, China’s present dominance is all-pervading at the moment; positioned as they are with its longer history and sheer size of investments in the core sectors in Africa.



Overall, China has spent more than a trillion dollars in projects to secure the supply of key resources.



Therein lies the ‘once-in-a- lifetime’ opportunity.



Usually, when elephants fight, the grass suffers.



This time around, the African savannah holds the strings to the entertainment ahead.



For African leaders, the question is less about the U.S. or China but more about what Africa can negotiate out of its resource advantage.



Africa must capitalize on its mineral endowments to drive transformative sustainable growth, economic diversification, and local and regional development through value-added processing and manufacturing; it must optimize the resource value to underpin productive transformation, integration into global trade systems and development of local industries.



Sustainable mining as a catalyst for the local procurement of goods and services, the shared use of infrastructure as well as an anchor for renewable energy development is a fair aspiration.



Yet it is crucial to ensure that all this does not come at the detriment of African communities, bearing the brunt of vested interests, pollution, and environmental damage.



A substantial amount of critical minerals is to be found in areas of rich biodiversity, fragility, and conflict, as well as lands traditionally belonging to indigenous peoples.



But events have conspired in Africa’s favor.



We hold the key to solving significant global challenges.



Hence, we should be agnostic and seek partners that will drive our economic objectives as equals in the global fight for equity and prosperity.



African institutions such as the AFC are at the forefront of embedding these priorities into policies.



The continued success will hinge on: a) balancing the criticality of access to mineral resources with the African perspective on environmental and social risks; b) improved infrastructure for local value addition, refining, processing, and developing local downstream industries; and c) inspiring international cooperation to shift from historically-exploitive, extractive and export-driven models into sustainable investments, technology transfer, capacity-building and financing models that lift the continent meaningfully.



If mining fails to be a catalyst for sustainable development supporting renewable power generation, local procurement and infrastructure, we will have failed.



The Lobito Corridor promises to be that potent example where the corridors of power ensured that it’s not another rail line to transport our riches but will enrich us, the people on the continent, in its wake. And thus, help to solve the world’s problems while serving its own people.



Diplomacy and negotiations change. All of that needs the ‘self-belief’ that it’s our tryst with our destiny and we have to run with it ourselves.

Feedback from the Davos meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF) has always been useful. Historically, the discussions with world leaders, both political and corporate, provide insight into what is expected in the year ahead. The post-event mood after the meetings was generally vibrant but 2024 was a departure from the past. Is it because WEF is losing its luster or because world leaders did not want to face the tough questions that were expected at Davos? Geopolitically, it was a disaster, as several world leaders were missing from the January 2024 WEF meetings; France’s Emmanuel Macron was the only leader from the G7 countries. Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Rishi Sunak and many other leaders were conspicuous by their absence. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was present for a special address. The Russians were missing and so were their oligarch parties that are part of the pomp and show during Davos.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="754" height="1024" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/21-September-2023-Wahi-6-of-6-754x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-61671" style="width:397px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/21-September-2023-Wahi-6-of-6-754x1024.png 754w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/21-September-2023-Wahi-6-of-6-221x300.png 221w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/21-September-2023-Wahi-6-of-6-768x1043.png 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/21-September-2023-Wahi-6-of-6-1131x1536.png 1131w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/21-September-2023-Wahi-6-of-6-1508x2048.png 1508w" sizes="(max-width: 754px) 100vw, 754px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Dr Rakesh Wahi (Photo by Yeshiel Panchia)</figcaption></figure></div>


Africa has been gaining in prominence at the WEF meetings and delegations from South Africa, Rwanda, Ghana and a few other countries continue to be torchbearers for the continent. Some inter-esting debates on technology, AI and the challenges of the future were thought-provoking this year but to a large part, there was nothing to write home about. In 2018, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank, along with several other multilaterals, founded the Africa Investment Forum as an alternative to WEF Davos. The vision was to move away from talk and politics to a platform for action. For African countries, this platform is far more valuable than the money that gets spent in participating in Davos. The outcomes are measurable and are focused on Africa and our leaders need to focus on answers relating to the African continent and not be bystanders to the deafening silence at a global platform.



The unanswered and embarrassing questions before world leaders include, but are not limited to, the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, and climate change. The issue of Ukraine will remain unsolved as long as the West continues to fuel and fight a proxy war against Russia. Although, the United States’ (U.S.) Repub-lican party has reportedly applied some brakes to the funding of the war, there is relentless hysteria being stirred regarding Russia’s aggression and intent to start similar campaigns along other parts of its border. Finland and Sweden are the most recent additions to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) which now has 32 members.



We can only speculate that despite any adjectives that have been used to describe Putin, one thing that he most certainly is not, is a fool who would even, in all his arrogance, think that Russia could take on the collective might of NATO in a conventional war. Looking purely at data that is in the public domain, Russia has 40% of the ground troops, 20% of aircraft and 28% of the naval power of NATO. This is a disincentive for Russia to go to war with any NATO country. Where Russia has a distinct advantage is in nuclear capability and this should not be taken lightly. Putin has made his intention clear; if NATO gets involved or pushes his hand, he has limited choices.



When Ukraine began its quest for membership to NATO, Russia warned them not to do so for reasons that are known to the whole world. None of the superpowers want their cold war enemies setting up bases near their borders. What would the U.S. do if Russia were to set up a base in Mexico? The Cuban missile crisis of 1962 almost brought about a nuclear war when the U.S. found out about the Soviet Union’s plans to establish nuclear weapons in Cuba.



History has taught us many lessons and self-preservation is an adequate motivation for nations to act in self-interest. The only way fighting between neighbors can come to an end is if the two (with the help of affected and interested neighbors) sit down to talk. This can only happen if NATO countries take a step back to stop fueling the war through money and weapons, stop expand- ing NATO and ask Russia to stop any further aggression. By now, Putin would also have understood that continuing this conflict is not sustainable, even for Russia.



The discussion on Ukraine is not complete without acknowl- edging the growing conflicts of interest. Other than in supplying weapons, Western countries, mainly the U.S., have significant economic interests in Ukraine, most of all in securing agricultural capacity for all times to come. Several major multinational corporations owned and controlled by some of the largest U.S. financial institutions are alleged to be the beneficiaries of privatization and concessions in Ukraine. Unfortunately, as the media continues to report on the horrific consequences of war, there is silence on the conflict of economic interest that will continue to catalyze the war.



We are also facing a major crisis in Gaza. It has been six months since the attack carried out by Hamas against Israel on October 7 2023. I do not believe that there is any human being with a soul who will condone the killing and suffering of innocent women and children at the scale that is going on in the war between Israel and Hamas. This time around, the U.S. is supporting Israel and has time and again blocked any move made at the United Nations Security Council calling for a stop to the bloodshed. What is going on in Gaza will have far greater consequences for the world than the war in Ukraine. The world is likely to get more and more polarized and instead of progressing forward and making the world a better place, there is going to be more hate and regression.



In the last two years, these two conflicts have cost the world far more than any other recent crisis. Some Pentagon sources have quoted that the direct cost of the war for Russia in Ukraine, to date, has been more than $210 billion. This does not include the economic loss to the world in the form of price escalation, the slowing down of economic activity and the setting up of duplicate and expensive supply chains. Financial weekly newspaper Barron’s has quoted Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) sources projecting the global cost of lost output in excess of $2.8 trillion. WEF sources quote figures for the destruction in Ukraine to be between $400 billion and $1 trillion. The German online platform Statista has projected that it will conservatively cost about $410 billion to rebuild Ukraine. These are numbers that for the common man mean very little, other than point to an alarming fact that people in Ukraine will stay below poverty levels for a long, long time. Imagine if this money was poured into developing countries to help them with infrastructure, education, healthcare, energy transformation, agriculture, water and food security.



Agriculture and food production in Africa needs to be catalyzed on a war footing. There is a lot of land in Africa that is currently been bought and/or being leased by multinationals with a view to creating clusters to export agricultural products. There needs to be scrutiny by the African Union and African multilaterals on how to manage the needs of African nations. Why export food when there are so many nations in Africa that continue to import food products? We need compelling incentives for Africans and African-owned companies to grow the agricultural base in Africa.



My favorite activity after the end of a long day at work has always been to watch local and international news networks and catch up on current affairs. In the last few months, my interest has largely been in catching up with elections in different parts of the world. With more than two billion people going to the ballot in over 50 countries this year, a lot of interesting discussions are going to take place on the future of many countries and on geopolitics in general.



Talking about elections; the U.S. elections have always been of interest. It took me a long time to somewhat understand the elections system. It was always interesting to watch the primaries, Super Tuesdays and town hall debates: a seemingly well-structured election system to finally select leading candidates for the Republicans and Democrats who then battle in a final contest for a winner-takes-all. This year has been with mixed emotions but mainly disappointment. I was 13 years old when the Watergate scandal broke in 1972.



We used to hear the news on the radio for updates on the case leading to Richard Nixon’s resignation; the only president in U.S. history to resign, although three others have been formally impeached.



These blemishes aside, one has looked up to the leadership in the U.S.; Barack Obama was my most recent favorite. We are not to judge who Americans choose to lead them but for a country with over 340 million people, I most certainly think that there is enough talent to bring in younger, smarter and less-conflicted individuals to lead the most powerful country in the world.



The sitcoms will continue for the rest of 2024 but sadly, the fate of the world in many ways will rest on the decisions made by Americans this year.



I am ending this piece on a sad note; it’s a personal loss. My business partner of over 20 years, Zafar Siddiqi, passed away at the end of February. We take a lot of things in life for granted; life is one of them. We just believe that what happens to others will not happen to us. Death pauses us when it happens close to home. Each of us rely on familiar faces (personally and professionally) when we have moments of triumph or periods of uncertainty. Coming home after his burial, I was left with the sad real- ity that the face I was so accustomed to turn towards, for over two decades, will only smile from a picture in my office. We both have been through some of the biggest challenges setting up our media and education businesses; one thing we mutually agreed on was to never give up. We put our faith, our blood, sweat and tears into these dreams and built them one brick and one day at a time. Today, we have the best teams and people around us, but the loss is of someone who shared my pain each day of this journey. Rest in peace, dear Zafar.

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From WEF To War To Polls And Politics, An Interesting Year For The World

Lauded as the key to Africa’s economic fortunes, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has been met with much excitement. Indeed, this area holds great economic promise for the continent but there are some glaring gaps that require consideration – particularly from a social dimension. Established in 2018 by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, AfCFTA entails the creation of a consolidated marketplace for goods and services throughout the African continent. 



According to a 2022 World Bank report, this agreement could generate vast economic benefits, embracing 1.3 billion people and a combined GDP of $3.4 trillion. If fully implemented, the agreement is expected to increase income by 9% by 2035 and help uplift 50 million individuals from extreme poverty. It aims to boost intra-African trade, promote industrialization, foster economic diversification, and ultimately lead to increased economic growth and job creation. As the agreement outlines, this integration will be strengthened and underpinned by allowing the free movement of individuals across the continent.



Yet, there has been little consideration of the impact of this movement on social security, an important policy tool that addresses socio-economic challenges, contributes to long-term development, and promotes a more equitable and resilient society. 



In Africa, particularly, its impact cannot be overlooked.



Without the necessary safeguards in place, the AfCFTA exists as nothing more than a romantic ideal. Intra-African migration has increased by 30% in the last decade and is on an upward trajectory. However, existing systems may find themselves under strain as demographics shift and the demand for services and support transcends traditional geographical boundaries under AfCFTA. As it stands with current policies, African migrant workers and their families may lose their social security benefits when they return to their home nations because these benefits are often limited to specific territories. 



Compounding these concerns is the limited scope of social security coverage on the continent. According to the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) World Social Protection Report, only 17.4% of the population in Africa receives at least one social protection benefit compared to 46.9% globally. This low level of access to social protection is attributed to the labor market structure on the continent and limited domestic resources allocated to social protection. As AfCFTA takes hold, there is a need for social security coordination to expand social protection coverage, especially for migrant workers and their families.



There are some considerations. First, it should guarantee the equal treatment of all workers in order to prevent unfair discrimination against migrant workers. Second, it must consider all elements of a worker’s career to ensure comprehensive insurance coverage and the determination of benefits. Third, there should be a recognition that residency, employment, or economic activity in one state allows for the acquired rights and benefits to be upheld in another state. 



Fourth, the applicable laws should be established to prevent double benefits or double obligation to contribute towards a social security scheme. Fifth, these efforts must make social security benefits transferable or exportable by reducing restrictions on the payment of benefits and receipt of services when workers reside in a different country. In this regard, African countries should adopt crucial policy measures to develop the social dimension of this area by ratifying and implementing the existing ILO conventions and recommendations regarding migration and social security. 



The equality of treatment, among other principles and standards, should be incorporated into domestic law. Moreover, African countries must also conclude social security agreements to coordinate and ensure the portability of social security rights and benefits. In this regard, bilateral labor arrangements or Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) should include social security provisions. Additionally, unilateral measures developed by sending and receiving countries must be taken, such as the inclusion of national social protection floors. Beyond social security, the social dimension should include initiatives that address practical obstacles to the AfCFTA, such as language barriers, xenophobia, exorbitant cross-border remittance fees, and lack of information and awareness.



As researcher and postdoctoral fellow Balkissa Diallo argues, “For the true elimination of trade barriers, AfCFTA efforts must embed the facilitation of African migration into their structures — and also consider existing dynamics that prevent this from happening.”



If AfCFTA has any real hope of succeeding, it must also integrate with society beyond the economic policies and trade agreements.

Safaricom Plc Headquarters and Kiosks Ahead of Earnings

Developing Further The Social Dimension Of The African Continental Free Trade Area

Five years ago, I couldn’t imagine asking boards and business leaders whether robots would one day run their companies.



However, the massive increase in awareness of the potential of large language models is forcing executives to explore how to use robots and artificial intelligence in day-to-day decision-making.



In fact, the rise of executive robots has already started.



For example, in May 2023, Forbes reported that Dictador, a progressive premium brand rum distiller, had appointed an AI CEO called Mika.



It is gimmicky for sure, as humans are still very much controlling her AI strings, but as Mika reportedly said in an interview with Reuters, “My decision-making process relies on extensive data analysis and aligning with the company’s strategic objectives.” She went on to explain how she was devoid of personal bias, which helps ensure that strategic choices are prioritized in line with the organization’s best interests, not hers.



This sounds amazing. So, is Mika the forerunner of the mass adoption of AI for corporate governance and leadership roles?



For once, the likely answer is yes, absolutely.



For starters, the demand for a solution like this is apparent.



Humans regularly make bad decisions, and more often than not, this leads to someone losing a lot of money.



Why, for example, did OpenAI’s board sack Sam Altmann (before he returned as CEO in November last year)?



What led Elon Musk to rebrand Twitter to X?



And why didn’t Silicon Valley Bank diversify its risk away from startups?



Decisions like these wipe out trillions of dollars of value every single year. And these three examples are just the tip of the iceberg.



Further, those impacted aren’t just the super-wealthy. Often, it’s the poorest who see their life savings and pensions hit hardest.



All of which means there is a huge interest from everyone, from governments to investors, to find ways to improve decision- making and corporate governance.



We already spend billions of dollars for consultants and business schools to develop leaders and models to help companies maximize profits while minimizing risks.



But these billions will quickly switch to AI alternatives if there is even the smallest of probabilities that technology will help improve a stock’s potential returns.



So, the demand is there.



But how long will we have to wait for the likes of the already hugely-impressive ChatGPT to offer intelligence that can not only answer questions in narrow fields but actually analyze data from multiple sources, draw inferences, consider interdependencies, develop execution plans, draw up funding requirements, consider resource allocations, raise funding and build support along with all the other tasks and activities that are required in any modern-day business?



Mustafa Suleyman, founder of DeepMind and Inflection.AI, explores this question in his recent bestseller, The Coming Wave.



Specifically, he asks how long it will be before machines answer and act on prompts such as “Please design and execute a strategy that will allow me to make $1mill on Amazon in as few months as possible with just $100K of investment.”



His conclusion? “Aside from the legal requirements of registering as a business on the marketplace and getting a bank account, all of this seems to me eminently doable. I think it will be done within the next year and probably fully autonomously within three to five.”



When an industry insider as respected as Suleyman makes a comment like this, we should sit up and listen.



And it makes absolute sense when you consider that a potent combination of factors is driving development in AI. Breakthroughs in machine learning algorithms, dramatic increases in computing power, the abundance of extensive data sets, advancements in cloud computing, enhanced global connectivity, escalating demand across industries and the democratization of access through open-source initiatives are just some of the factors propelling it at exponential rates.



And, of course, the biggest factor of all is perhaps the simple fact that we are now using AI to build AI, as more and more code is being written by machines, not developers. So perhaps the real question isn’t whether or even when robots will run companies. Shareholders and boards might do better considering what types of leaders they need to employ to manage the transition from human to augmented to algorithmic leadership. This is not an easy question to answer. There is no template for designing leadership systems for robots. Perhaps ChatGPT has the answer?

Robot working at desk, 3D Rendering

Expert-Speak: Will Robots Run Companies?

In 1849, Jean-Baptiste wrote “plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” – “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” 



Apparently, turbulence doesn’t change reality but embeds it. I don’t agree when I see what’s happening in Africa today. 



A continent long battered and bruised by exogenous factors, now battling climate, the new enemy.



Emissions are shamelessly borderless yet all pervading.



Rivers are running dry, crop patterns are changing and erosion is destroying livelihoods in Africa, despite our near-zero contribution to global warming. For an already beleaguered continent, the specter of ensuing hunger and famine could be a death knell.



Adapting Africa’s food systems to climate change is imperative as a rise by 2 degrees celsius will profoundly affect African food security. And remember that almost $100 billion is spent on food imports currently.



The import bill gets worse with wars and geopolitics that make prices soar making it unaffordable to many. Remarkably, more than 50% of food imports is by the Big 5: Morocco, Egypt, Algeria, South Africa, and Nigeria.



Large, well-endowed countries are the worst offenders. Worryingly, imports are basic necessities like grain, sugar, and other staples thus underlining the frightening fragility of food security.



Already one in five Africans go to bed hungry.



But this is a continent that is home to 60% of the world’s arable land. Data now shows that barring the Big 5 countries, the smaller ones are actually becoming net exporters of food.



Challenges exist of course: 30% to 40% is added to the cost of goods traded between African countries because of poor infrastructure. In Madagascar, the erstwhile road to the Alaotra-Mangoro region stunted agricultural productivity.



But now a new road has reduced travel time from eight hours to three.



Farmers are thrilled to see an increase in their margins as they reduce their losses.



Sadly, however, the agricultural value per farmworker in sub- Saharan Africa is still only $1,526 while in the United States, it exceeds $100,000. Heartwarming stories of resilience, adaptation and innovation exist, and it means this will improve.



Panuka Farms in Zambia modernized its cold storage and switched to greenhouse cultivation. This reduced food losses and climate-proofed production.



They now supply high-value vegetables such as English cucumber and replaced imported fresh produce to local retailers. New jobs were created as recent graduates now manage the farm.



In Lesotho, Happy C&amp;J Village Farm added a borehole and drip irrigation to directly water individual plants rather than casting spray over a large area. The process conserves soil nutrients and minimizes water waste.



Plastic tunneling protects lettuce, cabbage, tomato, and potato from hail. Thus, crops are grown throughout the year despite the increases in climate change leading to hailstorms and chilly weather.



Scaling up climate-smart practices, strengthening research and seed systems, support from agro-meteorological studies is in vogue for better crop management.



A moot point, however, is how agricultural subsidies in developed countries and intra-Africa tax on food products still unfortunately affect African production.



A population of a billion-plus, forecasted to be two billion, will, therefore, not sit idle. Mouths to feed and poverty will be fertile land for social unrest and untold human suffering otherwise.



Technology is crucial and transference of global knowhow an imperative. Market integration through improved intra-Africa infrastructure, regional cooperation and policy level-support are gradually forthcoming.



Institutions like the Africa Finance Corporation are at the forefront of initiating, developing, and investing in local value-addbased industries, and provide financing and logistics support to enhance export earnings and employment.



Necessity is the mother of all invention.



The African continent is not a basket case. Countless crises, conflicts and catastrophes have been encountered and managed on the continent. We are tough when the going gets tough.



When the world writes us off, we typically rise and survive.



Food self-sufficiency is a paramount condition to growth. It will be our biggest export as well. Let’s make our own granary and then for the world.



We owe it to all humanity

Paul Manga, a subsistence farmer, gathers his withered maize

Food For Thought…Africa Is Not a Basket Case

As we progress further into 2024, a year guaranteed to be full of complexities and uncertainties, the heightened demand for genuine expertise to guide us through our challenges will become more important than ever.



The dilemma we face is that too many people are in a rush to claim their expertise, making it increasingly difficult to discern genuine or real experts from those who are still learning the ropes.



In today’s era of digital self- promotion and personal branding, the term “expert” is thrown around like confetti at a wedding celebration raising the question: do all those who lay claim to the title genuinely warrant it?



So-called experts are everywhere. Individuals self- assign this once prestigious title along with others like coach, consultant, and specialist to impress others, attract fresh business prospects, gain speaking opportunities, or boost their book sales.



A novice cook who decides to share a few recipes on a blog declares himself a culinary expert. A traveler who describes his own limited experiences on a social media platform promotes himself as a world travel consultant.



A person who successfully quits smoking for a few months positions herself as a “quit smoking coach”.



There’s also the individual who completes a coding bootcamp and subsequently calls herself a software development guru, the parent who has raised four children who markets himself as a parenting expert, and the former manager who proudly identifies as a management specialist.



And in the age of social media, many individuals with modest followings or experience in online marketing present themselves as digital marketing gurus. They may offer expert advice on growing one’s online presence, yet that expertise often lacks a solid track record of successfully driving results for clients.



Perhaps even more common are individuals who have made their own personal fitness transformations who brand themselves as fitness experts.



While their dedication to personal fitness is commendable, true fitness or coaching expertise involves a deep understanding of physiology, nutrition, and personalized training plans.



It seems that the whole idea of being an expert doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve dedicated your life to mastering something these days. It’s more like a jacket you can throw on, and it seems like anyone with a tiny bit of knowledge can wear it.



Put simply, being an expert has become a trendy label, applied to anyone with a hint of knowledge.



So if you need the services of a true expert, and you want to gauge the extent of an individual’s expertise, what might you look for?



True expertise isn’t simply being one step ahead of your neighbors on a particular topic. It’s about knowing more than most people in a particular field.



Becoming an expert usually requires substantial education or training, thousands of hours of practice, and a deep understanding of the subject.



And true experts continually learn to stay updated in their field.



Some also regard experts to be those individuals who not only have extensive knowledge and experience in a particular area – but who are also effective communicators who can explain complex concepts to others, making their knowledge accessible and understandable. For those seeking to become experts there are also some considerations.



While, the internet often promotes the notion of instant expertise, genuine greatness is a product of ongoing effort and unwavering commitment.



It means that those on the path to becoming experts must resist the urge to assert their authority prematurely.



It’s also important to recognize that true authority should be conferred upon them by others who recognize their expertise rather than being self-proclaimed. None of us get to call ourselves experts. It’s a term best applied by others to describe an individual’s accomplishments and expertise.



In other words, you can’t claim the expert title yourself. Only when others label you an expert, does it become a reality.



As we start a brand-new year full of challenges, issues, and opportunities, we don’t need more experts but we do need more apprentices or those willing to take the time to develop expertise. If you are finding yourself in need of guidance or expertise, look out for those who embody the principles of unwavering dedication, continuous learning, and a proven track record.



In a world awash with self-proclaimed experts, let’s champion those who have truly earned their stripes, and in doing so, let us collectively raise the standard for what it means to be an expert in 2024.

Businessman Signing Digital Contract On Tablet

Raising The Bar For What It Means To Be An Expert In 2024

Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a revolutionary tool, reshaping industries, streamlining processes, and improving decision-making. The success of AI is because we now have access to more data, and we possess adequate computational infrastructure to analyze such data. AI has enormous potential in the legal field, promising to transform how legal practitioners function and individuals access the justice system. 



However, this potential is not devoid of ethical concerns and obstacles.



The function of AI in the legal domain is diverse. AIdriven research tools can rapidly analyze extensive legal databases, furnishing attorneys with insights in a previously unattainable manner. It entails the utilization of chatbots and virtual assistants to provide individuals with legal guidance, thereby enhancing the accessibility of legal information. 



AI saves time and money when producing legal documents using document automation tools.



Predictive analytics can predict legal outcomes, enabling litigants and attorneys to make well-informed decisions. Online dispute resolution platforms provide a viable substitute for conventional litigation, enhancing the efficiency and accessibility of dispute resolution. Nevertheless, as AI gains prominence in law, we must exercise caution and remain vigilant regarding the obstacles to this revolutionary technology.



The first such obstacle is the fairness and bias of AI systems, which are potential sources of concern. Algorithms for machine learning are trained using historical data, which may contain societal biases. AI could perpetuate and even exacerbate preexisting discrimination in the legal system if these prejudices are not addressed. AI development must prioritize fairness and equity, necessitating ongoing vigilance to identify and address bias in AI applications. Secondly, the opaqueness of AI decisionmaking processes raises concerns regarding transparency and accountability. In legal contexts, individuals have a right to be informed of the reasoning behind decisions made by AI systems.



Legal experts and technologists must collaborate to guarantee the transparency of AI systems and allow individuals to contest AI-generated outcomes. However, AI technology is lagging, and AI systems are subjected to the accuracy-transparency dilemma, whereby the more accurate the AI model, the less transparent it is, and vice versa. This is because the high accuracy of the AI model correlates to the increased complexity of the model. Furthermore, the more complex the AI model, the more accurate it is, but this results in reduced transparency of the model.



Thirdly, there is the problem of the security and privacy of individuals. Legal issues frequently necessitate the use of confidential personal data. Implementing robust data protection measures to secure individuals’ rights and privacy is critical.



Legal professionals must thoroughly contemplate the ethical and legal ramifications and enforce rigorous data security protocols when dealing with personal data. This requires technology, which is not necessarily available in many African countries. The African Union (AU) must ensure that groups of countries jointly procure such technologies to reduce the burden of the cost of this technology.



Furthermore, we must train enough people to deploy such technologies. Fourth, as AI’s capacity for legal research and document automation expands, concerns may arise regarding the potential displacement of legal professionals. However, rather than replacing legal professionals, AI should be considered a supplement to their work. By utilizing AI, legal professionals can increase productivity, decrease expenses, and improve their capacity to render expert opinions.



Fifth, legislative bodies and governments must establish transparent regulatory frameworks for AI. These regulations must delineate principles of ethics, foster transparency mandates, and stipulate the responsibility of these AI systems. Achieving an optimal equilibrium between fostering innovation and safeguarding the rights of individuals is a highly challenging endeavor and requires the training of regulators and lawmakers to understand these technologies. 



The AU can be a catalyst to ensure such knowledge is accessible across Africa.



Sixth, a potential benefit of AI in law is its capacity to improve the accessibility of justice. Tools propelled by AI can increase the accessibility of legal information for those who cannot afford legal representation.



Online dispute resolution has the potential to offer economically viable substitutes for conventional litigation. However, we must ensure that these technologies do not exacerbate but rectify existing disparities in access to justice.



AI is not a silver bullet that can solve all legal problems, nor is it the precursor that will end the legal profession as we know it. However, when utilized responsibly and ethically, AI is a tool that has the potential to enhance the agency of legal practitioners and facilitate improved access to justice.



The coexistence of AI and the law can produce a legal system that is more equitable, efficient, and accessible.

AI And The Law –Navigating The Future Together

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&#8220;The forum offers a delightful vacation on the expense account.” – Quote: unknown, 1981.
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Perhaps true but entertaining, nevertheless.



Let’s plod on.



Davos 2023: the word &#8216;polycrisis&#8217; was on everybody&#8217;s lips as leaders deliberated the cascading crises of the moment.



Attitudes have now hardened further. New and old conflicts have flared up, deepening the schisms between and inside countries and communities.



Flashpoints galore as anger levels reach a crescendo.



Will the year ahead therefore be a period of &#8216;permacrisis&#8217;?



Into this valley of hope,



Davos and it’s ski slope,



Rode the few of us resolute,



In quest for something absolute.



Will the leap year be a time for: ‘Rebuilding Trust’?



Whose trust and whose future though? A preponderance of received wisdom laced with dominant Anglo-Saxon paradigms interspersed with voices from the South can’t cut it.



Did I finally detect fear?



Not greed. Not guilt. Not anger.



A lurking suspicion permeating across I thought.



That the hubris and the presumptions that have dominated the world post World War 2 was not forever.



Alternative axes of powers throwing new arcs of hope to the impoverished and unrepresented.



I listened to President Emmanuel Macron talking of “de-risking, not decoupling”. A tacit admission that the East and the South cannot be ignored.



Heard European Commission President Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen speak on the need for solidarity and announcing how “Russia is militarily, diplomatically and technologically isolated and wholly dependent on China”; while news suggests it is perhaps not yet.



Even the mighty United States until today imports a fifth of its enriched uranium from Russia.



At the BRICS panel discussion, erudite ministers from India, the United Arab Emirates and South Africa extolled the virtues of choices in a fickle world of geopolitics. Unity in diversity to manage the common challenges of poverty, climate and health, among others. President Xi Jinping said: “China’s economy is like the Swiss Alps, undulating with peaks and troughs.”



To appreciate the Alps, you need to zoom out and admire from afar.



Same with China.



Broaden your vision and see what it exudes and promises. Profound!



What is then the true test of multilateralism? To smaller countries, it’s about protection. For the powerful, a litmus test to fulfil their obligations. For the international community, it’s how to monitor and create balanced priorities. Davos 2024 aimed to restore collective agency, and reinforce the fundamental principles of transparency, consistency, and accountability.



The goal ostensibly is to back a spirit of open and constructive dialogue to help connect the dots in an increasingly complex and fractured environment.



Déjà vu.



Why now this cry from the developed world?



An attempt to remain on the saddle and lure back the disenchanted who has flown?



My conclusion is simple.



A truly multipolar world based on trade, choices, efficiencies and fair negotiations is well underway.



And therein lies hope and salvation.



President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, together with UNDP, launched Timbuktoo, a startup fund with an initial $1 billion target to leverage Africa&#8217;s youth and dynamism.



An ingenious name.



Timbuktu has long been used to describe long, difficult journeys.



A boulevard of broken dreams for European explorers of the past who tried to reach it.



As masters of our own destiny, we in Africa will succeed through new partners and along with the old that still remains good.



Insanity is when you keep trying the same thing and expect different results.



We don’t have the time for that.



And indeed, as they say: You get what you negotiate. Not what you deserve.



Davos told me we have room to dream and space to maneuver.



Most of all, we have choices now to make.



As the world needs us as much as we need them.



A ‘win-win’ finally.



So, let’s seek that perfect world of collaboration focused on global extension and not its extinction.

Day Three Of The World Economic Forum (WEF) 2024

View From The Alps: Davos 2024 A Bugle Call For Multilateralism

In 1943, the Royal Air Force looked for quick fixes to improve the probability that their bombers could complete their missions and successfully return home. One option was to add armor-plating, but what was the optimal placement which would ensure maximum protection without compromising the aircraft’s performance?



The accepted thinking, based on the data collected from returning bombers, was that the wings, nose, and fuselage should be armored up. They, after all, had the most bullet holes.



It took a gifted mathematician, Abraham Wald, to highlight that the best solution would, in reality, be to armor the three areas that never seemed to get hit: the cockpit, the engines, and the tail.



He had correctly hypothesized that the bullet patterns would be evenly distributed and, therefore, the planes that did not return had been taken down due to weaknesses in these three key areas.



This is a wonderful story as it highlights how, if you want to be effective using data for strategic decision-making, you have to think deeply about both the data you have and the data you don’t.



Companies, surprisingly, despite their significant investment in technology, still seem to succumb to their own version of this data selection bias.



For while they do not have to worry about the negative consequences of suboptimal armoring, they do need to optimize the placement of resources, to ensure they provide maximum customer value without compromising their ability to scale profitably.



The data they consistently seem to ignore when making these types of resource decisions is that which exposes the real value they bring to their clients.



I’ll use the case of mid-size Asian bank, DBS Bank, as an example. For years they had managed their business using key performance indicators (KPIs). These KPIs helped them to focus on efficiently distributing their products to millions of retail customers.



Call centers, for example, would typically focus on reducing call abandonment, queuing times, handling times, and improving first call resolutions.



And I suspect that over time DBS were able to improve productivity and offer a more streamlined service to their clients.



But although these metrics no doubt helped the company reduce its costs, it reportedly added extra ones for their customers.



And the cost that seemingly annoyed their customers the most was the extra hours they had to waste, dealing with the bank.



So it was Paul Cobban and his team who realized they were managing using the data they had, not the data they needed. So they pivoted and reset the strategy to focus on improving just one metric: reducing the time customers spend dealing with them. Now, their teams had to think more deeply about how to ensure their customers didn’t have to call centers, write emails, travel to branches, or wait in long queues.



Cobban estimated that this process was able to “take out at least 250 million wasted customer hours per year”, as per a 2016 article in Forbes.



This helped DBS transform from being recognized as one of the worst banks in Singapore to becoming one of the best and most loved.



It must have taken courage for the team to stop worrying about internal metrics and start trying to develop customer-led ones.



Especially when business schools and consultants are still extolling the virtues of balanced scorecards based on the assumption you can’t manage what you can’t measure.



The truth is, these management systems tend to reinforce selection bias. This occurs as executives often shape strategies around what is straightforward to manage and quantify, rather than exploring the often ethereal data sets that help identify where the real client value lies.



Aligning compensation with easily quantifiable metrics such as revenue, profit margins, or operational efficiency is much simpler than assessing the value a client derives because you saved him time, or amplified his brand, or increased his profits, or made him happier, or reduced his stress levels.



Still, working out the bullet patterns on planes that are hundreds of meters below the sea wasn’t easy either.



Predicting how best to serve your customers, without understanding the actual value you bring them may have worked in a world where change is slow and the future is predictable.



That world, I’m afraid, has gone.

Business people working in a board room with a laptop and digital tablet

Why KPIs Can Kill Companies

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has been touted as the key to unlocking the continent’s economic fortunes. Yet, in a continent that grapples with extreme poverty and inequality, what does this tangibly mean?



AfCFTA, an Africa-wide free trade area agreement aimed at establishing the African market as a single market, was formed by 54 of the 55 African Union (AU) nations in 2018. This year has been seen as the year of accelerated implementation of the agreement. As Ijeoma Uju, a Partner at Templars Nigeria, outlines: “Recent developments across the African continent show that the idea of ‘Africa Rising’ remains true and alive. With trade liberalization through AfCFTA, a fast-growing population and increased technology penetration, the opportunities in Africa’s key markets continue to expand. What many see as challenges in Africa, are in a manner of speaking, Africa’s greatest strength for investments and growth.”



The agreement represents not just an economic opportunity but a transformative force that can reshape Africa’s global standing. By fostering collaboration and integration among nations, it encourages shared knowledge and resources while strengthening regional ties. It is envisioned as a way to drive innovation, which could lead to the development of sustainable industries and solutions to pressing social challenges.



According to a 2022 World Bank report, this agreement could generate vast economic benefits, embracing 1.3 billion people and a combined GDP of $3.4 trillion. If fully implemented, it is expected to raise income by 9% by 2035 and lift 50 million people out of extreme poverty. It aims to boost intra-African trade, promote industrialization, foster economic diversification, and ultimately lead to increased economic growth and job creation. However, as the bank states, to realize these benefits, the agreement must harmonize policies across regions and interests.



Abrego et al. outline the potential for Africa’s welfare advancement, particularly through reducing Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) with an emphasis on manufacturing and agriculture for income gains. Their research indicates that addressing NTBs, including infrastructure gaps, improving business environments, and reducing transportation costs, is crucial for maximizing these gains. From a policy point of view, the authors call for a reduction of NTBs, an enabling business environment, full liberalization to maximize the welfare benefits, and structural transformation that promotes labor and capital reallocation. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), asserts: “Unless we can deal with these costs and bring them down, it will be very difficult for us to actualize a good implementation of the Continental Free Trade Area.”



There are, of course, some other glaring challenges to consider in implementing this agreement. Firstly, AfCFTA’s benefits might not be evenly distributed, potentially exacerbating income inequality. Those with skills and resources might benefit more, leaving vulnerable populations behind.



Secondly, many nations on the continent lack robust social safety nets. If increased trade leads to job displacements in certain sectors, there might be a lack of adequate social security measures to support affected individuals and families. Thirdly, rapid industrialization and increased trade could raise concerns about labor standards and workers’ rights. Ensuring fair wages, safe working conditions, and job security are crucial for social security, but these may be compromised in the pursuit of competitiveness.



Finally, a significant portion of Africa’s workforce operates in the informal sector without formal social security benefits. Integrating these workers into formal economic activities under AfCFTA poses challenges in ensuring their social security.



Indeed, while AfCFTA has the potential to drive economic growth and create jobs, its impact on social security in Africa will depend on how well governments address the challenges highlighted. Policymakers need to focus on inclusive economic policies, invest in education and skills development, and strengthen social safety nets



to ensure that the benefits of increased trade translate into improved social security for all segments of the population. As those in the ‘Africa Rising’ camp argue, this could be a watershed moment for the continent.



AfCFTA holds immense promise for Africa’s economic growth, but its true success will be measured by our ability to address these challenges and ensure inclusive development. We may well be able to resuscitate the ‘Africa Rising’ narrative, but we need to balance its impact with policy.

Container ship in export and import business and logistics. Shipping cargo to harbor by crane. Water transport International. Aerial view and top view

The Potential Impact Of AfCFTA On Social Security And Inclusive Development

September 2023 was a month of conferences.



It started off with the summit of the Norwegian-African Business Association in Oslo.



A Reuters event in London followed. Then the revered United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. And the month finished with the AIIB Annual Meeting at Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt. Fascinating as always. Thousands of clever people flying around, talking and promising. Everywhere, the Africa question is dominant but cautious. Risk, coups, exchange rates, crime… are oft-repeated words.



The fine balance of today’s geopolitics means Africa has to appease to the rhetoric and the threats of a rejuvenated West while still looking at the East for all things important.



Tough for our leaders, fraught as their countries are with inflation, currency issues, elections, and poverty.



The fundamental architecture where Africa provides the minerals, and the world produces goods they then sell back to the continent creates an imbalance that no amount of Bretton Woods fiddling can resolve.



The climate challenge exposes the hypocrisy too. Africa, home to labor, land, minerals and oodles of sun, wind and water (read renewables).



Why keep manufacturing then outside its shores? At least one eminent minister told me that the Washington Consensus on Trade in the 1980s, which was 40 years after the original Bretton Woods’ party and now another 40 years later, the climate agenda (and the ESG paraphernalia), has one thing in common.



A 40-year itch perhaps.



Extract not engage. Lecture but not lead. Promise but not provide.



Can happy endings come from this relentless pursuit of a status quo camouflaged as aid and grant?



The question is: what then?



Possibly the BRICS bank is the answer to getting an alter ego?



They seem serious albeit the principle of ‘my enemy’s enemy is my friend’-kind-of binding force. Well, my school had said ‘charity begins at home’.



My mother, like all mothers, had told me: “You don’t get what you want, you get what you deserve.” And my little daughter used to say: “United we stand, divided we fall.”



African unity cannot remain a myth. African collaboration cannot be an illusion. African solidarity cannot be confined to speeches. The global quest for minerals, gas and gold interlaced with ‘dead aid’, fits nicely into the greed, guilt, and fear syndrome. How do we collectively enhance that fear factor?



The fear of food shortage when Africa has so much arable land.



The fear of global warming when Africa can absorb it all through its forests.



The fear of energy sourcing when Africa has all the gas, oil and the coal the world needs.



The fear of growth when Africa has the youngest and largest unserved markets.



The fear of supply chain concentration when Africa has the obvious renewable energy- based manufacturing at source (critical minerals) solutions. The fear of mass immigration; fundamentalism when simply adding value to Africa’s resources will create jobs and keep them south of the Mediterranean.



Collective bargaining, anyone?



Into that valley of hope let Africa awake. To take charge and be masters of our own destiny. Maybe we should start with banning Africa’s soccer stars from playing in Europe? That should make them feel the pinch – or at the very least, let’s make a pledge to not export any raw materials without value addition at source. Therein lies the start to a world where jobs exist and prosperity reigns.

African woman plucking tea leaves on plantation, East Africa

The Conundrum Facing Africa. Question Is: What Then?

Many workplaces are experiencing a rise in “pleasanteeism” as the cost-of-living crisis takes its toll on the mental health of employees.



Pleasanteeism refers to the pressure an individual feels to put on a brave face in front of colleagues, regardless of their emotional state.



Not only does pleasanteeism compromise the overall mental wellbeing of employees but it can impact badly on workplace productivity.



All businesses are trying to be more open about emotional wellbeing and establish better support structures for employees, break stigmas and encourage conversations.



While the stiff upper lip mentality is slowly being broken down, many people still feel the pressure to put on a brave face when they feel less than optimal.



Pleasanteeism is on display when employees put up a front – and act as if everything is going well for them – even when they are stressed, anxious, under pressure or in need of support.



Those who have succumbed to this affliction wear a mask of pleasantries to hide their true feelings.



Their aim in concealing emotional turmoil and stress is to avoid coming across as disruptive and problematic to colleagues, especially those in charge.



While many bosses appreciate employees who are regarded as low maintenance, hiding one’s poor mental health represents a false economy.



When employees suffer in silence and are not working at their optimal level, it will impact on an organization in both the short and long term – quite apart from the damage this charade is doing to the individual.



It is not hard to understand why pleasanteeism – sometimes called faked cheerfulness – has taken hold of some workplaces.



Cost-of-living concerns following on so closely from the pandemic, combined with overwork and growing job insecurity, have combined to create not just a perfect storm of worry and anxiety but a category four cyclone.



So strong are the gusts of economic headwinds that they have the potential to rattle – and upend – those individuals with deeply rooted positive dispositions to life and work.



At the same time, there have been even stronger calls for people to become more resilient and ride out tough times.



This has meant many have felt themselves torn between sharing their worries and concerns with others or just putting on a brave face.



Many are choosing the pleasanteeism pathway because we still tend to value positivity over negativity.



From a young age, we are taught to banish so-called bad feelings and pick ourselves up when we fail or fall. We are told to stop whingeing, soldier on, stop being negative and look on the bright side.



As we age, we become part of fix-it-fast cultures that embrace FONO, or the fear of a negative outlook.



FONO makes us drown out negative vibes with buckets of contrived positivity and false reassurances when we tell our colleagues that we are “perfectly okay”.



And when we encounter employees who are brave enough to tell us they are experiencing challenging situations, instead of empathizing with them we are increasingly opting for a toxic quick fix that dismisses the slightest sniff of negativity.



We have become accustomed to pouring overly positive vibes on emotions such as fear, sadness, loneliness or anger to push those who are struggling towards a state of false cheerfulness.



We tell them “everything happens for a reason”, “others have it worse” or “just think positive thoughts” instead of reassuring them that it is actually okay to not be okay.



When a workplace embraces and supports pleasanteeism rather than the expression of raw feelings, employees are denied the chance to feel and express what is going on inside them.



Suppression of those feelings further amplifies the internal feeling of negativity.



Many of the worries and concerns of our colleagues are triggered by factors outside the workplace – and often linked to financial concerns. But just because they are created externally does not mean they will not come flooding into our workplaces.



We should open the door to what is on our colleagues’ minds. Simply being there to listen can make a world of difference.



Although mental wellbeing is more front of mind in workplaces than ever before, many colleagues remain unprepared to talk openly about their problems. The truth is we still have a long way to go to remove the fear of being judged or even punished for being honest about expressing that our health is not as rosy as our pretence suggests.

A young boy dressed as a businessman wears a paper bag with a happy face on it.

The Unpleasant Truth About The Pleasanteeism Crisis

<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“What is a greater opportunity to remedy impropriety than through elections..?”
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Human beings are an optimistic species as, despite all that we do contrary to better judgment, we believe that the future will always be better than the past. As the New Year starts, we are all hopeful that 2024 will definitely bring better sense to people, particularly to those in power to make sincere amends to the lapses of the past. What is a greater opportunity to remedy impropriety than through elections and bringing about change; particularly in countries where it is needed the most?



2024 will be one of the most defining years as billions of voters in over 50 countries around the world go to the electoral ballot to choose who will lead them for the next statutory period. These countries include the United States (US), India, Russia, Pakistan, Indonesia, Taiwan, Iran and many more. The European Union (EU) parliamentary elections are due in 2024 along with Austria, Belgium, Portugal and likely the United Kingdom (no later than January 2025). However, 16 or almost a third of the countries going to the ballot are from Africa, to include but not limited to South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Mauritius, Rwanda, Ghana, Tunisia, Togo, Chad and Senegal. While we remain wary of change, in most cases, change brings eventual growth and increases the accountability of leaders.



<div class="wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile"><figure class="wp-block-media-text__media"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1829288006.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60869 size-full" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1829288006.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1829288006-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1829288006-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure><div class="wp-block-media-text__content">
Republican presidential candidates Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, left, and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, right, talk over each other during the NewsNation Republican Primary Debate inside the Moody Music building at the University of Alabama on Wednesday, December 6, 2023 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Also pictured are former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, center left, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. (Photo by Joshua Lott/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
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<figure class="aligncenter size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1244672832.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60868" style="width:730px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1244672832.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1244672832-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1244672832-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Vice President Kamala Harris and President Joe Biden (Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


Having lived in South Africa for almost two decades, it’s the country that I remain most concerned about mainly because I love this beautiful country that has been our third home (India and UAE being the first two). Over the last 28 years, there has undoubtedly been a systemic erosion of the popularity and electoral base of the African National Congress (ANC). Ironically, facing marginalization, this is the very party, along with its leaders, that fought to bring about change from apartheid and secured freedom for its majority black, colored and Indian population.



The reasons for its decline remain consistent as for any ruling party: self-serving leadership, blatant abuse of power, total disregard to the needs of the poor and needy, and, finally, the discontentment of the electorate.



The reason I worry is that because in the absence of a clear alternative to the ANC, South Africa is headed towards an era of volatile coalitions. The ANC has been slowly fragmenting, akin to the proverbial binary fission of an Amoeba, as more cells are formed from the same nucleus. The likely course is either a very narrow victory for the ANC or a path where each of the nine provinces will form governments through the coalitions of parties coming from the same constitution, similar values and ideologies but with no track record of governance or selfless service to the people. Coalitions don’t survive even with the best intent as there are far too many conflicts of interest between coalition partners. This will lead to a period of stagnation, political instability and economic uncertainty for the next decade.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“Coalitions don’t survive even with the best intent as there are far too many conflicts of interest between coalition partners. This will lead to a period of stagnation, political instability and economic uncertainty for the next decade.”
</blockquote>



What will serve South Africa well is its God-given gift and wealth of being a resource-rich country. However, it remains to be seen if this will be adequate, in the absence of a functional bureaucracy, prevailing monopolies and lack of consistency in policies. The economic and political stability, or lack thereof, in South Africa will have an impact on the overall development of the African continent but more so on the 16 members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. This will be an interesting space to watch in the coming years.



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Supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan celebrate as Erdogan leads Turkiye&#8217;s presidential runoff election in Brussels, Belgium on May 28, 2023. (Photo by Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
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However, Africa is not the only contributor to growing global economic uncertainty. The real impact will be felt after if there is a change of guard in the US and whether there will be the outside chance that Donald Trump or the Republican Party prevail in the coming election. The jury is still out on whether the US and consequently the EU will continue to push the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and other agendas that will force continued hostility with Russia. This would require billions of dollars to be pumped into Ukraine in a senseless war that will only see more bloodshed. Since Russian President Vladimir Putin is likely to remain unopposed in his bid to win another presidential term, it’s unlikely that there will be any change in Russia’s objective to ensure that NATO does not spread to its borders. If the Western powers continue to support the war, it’s likely that at some stage the war may expand from a limited campaign in Eastern Ukraine, into the complete destruction of the country. As more time passes, the goal posts will continue to change and positions will get further cemented, which is the opposite of finding a negotiated settlement. No qualified General from any army can say with any conviction that Ukraine has any chance of winning a war against Russia without this escalating into a war against NATO. Nobody will benefit from this and we will continue on a path of self-destruction.


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<figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="684" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-521724652-1024x684.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60866" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-521724652-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-521724652-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-521724652-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-521724652-1536x1026.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-521724652-2048x1368.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Voters in queue to cast their votes at polling stations for elections in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. (Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


Under these circumstances, Ukraine needs a change in political ideology and possibly leadership that needs to realign with its former cold war ally and bring back peace into the Black Sea region. The war of ego will seldom be won by the weak. The path to peace is to ensure that neither party sees future threats in each other’s alignments and are not swayed by the agendas of third parties. Peace with Russia and a restoration of energy supply to Europe will reduce the economic pain and pressure in the lives of all European citizens. Continued war and escalation of hostilities as we are seeing currently, is not a solution to the problems in the Black Sea area.



We are likely to see continued problems arising from the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. This problem is likely to spill into different parts of the world as the anti-Israel sentiment is reportedly growing everywhere. No one can condone what happened on October 7 but the killing of over 20,000 Palestinian citizens is not the answer. Hamas is an ideology and will foster itself in some other way to reinforce this ideology. This is a problem that cannot be solved without the consent and direct involvement (through cutting financial and military support) of both the US as one of the key allies of Israel, and Qatar and Iran as the key allies of Hamas. A spread of this war to Lebanon (Hezbollah) or the involvement of Jordan, Syria, Egypt and/or any of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries can destabilize the global economy and most certainly disrupt peace in the region.



<div class="wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile" style="grid-template-columns:62% auto"><figure class="wp-block-media-text__media"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1774577620.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60864 size-full" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1774577620.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1774577620-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1774577620-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure><div class="wp-block-media-text__content">
An election official opens a ballot box for votes counting at the headquarters of the New Patriotic Party during the 2023 presidential primaries on November 4, 2023 in Accra, Ghana. This election will determine who becomes the flagbearer of the party in the upcoming presidential elections in December 2024. (Photo by Ernest Ankomah/Getty Images)
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<figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1796329343.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60863" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1796329343.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1796329343-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/GettyImages-1796329343-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">President Cyril Ramaphosa during voters registration weekend on November 18, 2023 in Johannesburg. (Photo by Sharon Seretlo/Gallo Images via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


These two major flash points will determine the global geopolitics in the coming year. The third is the China factor, both in its economic revival and its global geopolitical ambitions, more specifically in the South China Sea, Taiwan and in the Pacific which will remain a cause for concern, but other than periodic posturing, there is no imminent threat seen from China. The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries have so far been working closely on economic development and continue to control the largest portion of the global computer and components market. The growth of this bloc will provide stability in the region particularly if trade barriers are removed in the coming period.



Other blocs like BRICS and its planned expansion are unlikely to move the needle in 2024. There is far too much happening elsewhere for the member countries to make any real attempt to do anything earth-shattering that would have a material impact on geopolitics. China and India remain adversaries with absolutely nothing in common except a contentious border and a deep level of growing mistrust. Other than payment solutions and enhancing trade, there is very little that will come from this bloc. India will continue to grow as an economic powerhouse and if the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party wins the elections, as is expected, the country will continue on its path to greater growth and stability. It will, hopefully, play a unifying role in global geopolitics through its own mantra of non-alignment.



The United Nations (UN) has lost its standing and I believe that we will continue to see this become a less relevant organization with the only significance coming from its developmental agencies. In my opinion, the UN headquarters should be moved to Switzerland or to any other relatively neutral country so that the current influence is ended and they can be closer to where good needs to be done. The UN Security Council (UNSC) statement on the Gaza atrocities was a passive call for &#8220;urgent steps to immediately allow safe and unhindered humanitarian access, and also for creating the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities.” Even after this was drafted, the US abstained from voting just to allow some statement to pass. So, 2.5 million people can be completely uprooted and the world watches as we provide unhindered humanitarian access and create conditions to stop hostilities. Well done! We, the citizens of the world, need to be ashamed of ourselves.



The last major event of 2023 was the United Nations Climate Change Conference or the Conference of Parties (COP28) that was held in Dubai. COP28 was no doubt a spectacular gathering of over 70,000 influential people and delegates from around the world and was a year-end tourism and hospitality sector bonanza for the UAE and particularly for the emirate of Dubai. Other than delegates, about 400,000 people registered to attend the event during this period.



Conservatively, even if each person spent an estimated average of $5,000 in airline tickets, hotels, hospitality etc, the income generated would have been close to $1.5 billion to $2 billion in contrast to the hundreds of millions possibly spent on COP28. There were several strategic conversations, and many countries used the opportunity for meaningful bilateral meetings, hosted in one of the finest and safest places on earth. Everything was perfect except that the needle did not move on the urgent need to stop the reliance on fossil fuels.



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A general view during a media briefing on voters registration weekend on November 18, 2023 in Johannesburg, South Africa. The Electoral Commission of SA confirmed that it is ready to register South Africans to vote in the 2024 elections. (Photo by Sharon Seretlo/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
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The conference’s final statement could not pass with any mention of the slowing down or stopping of the production of fossil fuels; the core of the problem. So, was there a real return on the investment of about $2 billion that was spent by governments and large corporates to attend this event? There have been decisions on tripling renewable energy resources, doubling energy efficiency and the large contributions to the Loss and Damage Fund; however, no action points were set on the reduction or elimination of fossil fuels. When Covid-19 started, the world went on a mission to stop the spread and find a vaccine to eradicate the disease. No one focused on setting up a fund for funerals. Ironically, this is what COP28 resolved to do.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“The war of ego will seldom be won by the weak.”
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Sadly, a large percentage of the global population does not still understand the impact of climate change and what 1.5 degrees above pre-industrialization temperature means. This increased temperature is catalyzing the age of Anthropocene; an age that will lead to the eventual extinction of all human life created solely by mankind’s impact on the global geology and ecosystem. The irreversible 1.5 degree benchmark is close to being breached and the next threshold we will set ourselves will be 3 degrees, by which time the planet will become a less habitable place, particularly for the poor. As stated in various reports, the world needs between $175 trillion to $275 trillion for energy transition; this is 2.6 times global GDP. The commitment of $85 billion at COP28, though noteworthy, falls really short of what is needed and any significant impact is, therefore, a pipe dream. There is a lot for us all to think about and start playing a meaningful role in bringing change. Saving the planet is a collective responsibility.

Haryana Panchayat Elections 2022

A Record Year For Elections, 2024 Will Determine Global Geopolitics

Since the 1980s, the term ‘just transition’ has been touted as the answer to our climate challenges. Against the industrial revolution(s) backdrop, this transition referred to the deliberate shift towards more sustainable and green practices. The ‘just transition’ is the responsible move from a high- to a low-carbon economy. 



Yet, an often forgotten aspect of this transition is the very descriptor ‘just’. The reality is that much climate change action happens in silos. A distinct gap between the Global North and the Global South seems to persist. As Irina Velicu and Stefania Barca asserted in 2019: “Since both ecological and social crises are produced via inequalities, a just transition can be a transition out of the logic of unequal relations — rather than just out of fossil fuels.” In other words, our responsibility extends beyond borders and encompasses more than just shifting to a low- carbon economy. In this regard, there are some glaring challenges.



Firstly, there are financial constraints. Here, the gap between the Global North and the Global South is painfully apparent. Much of the Global South is already explicitly confronted by the impact of climate change, and there is a clarion call for the Global North to help fund interventions. The reality is that the Global South lacks the funding and resources to take on this fight alone. According to UNCTAD, the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of just half of the developing world is projected at $5.8 trillion by 2030. Yet, only $83.3 billion was provided and mobilized by developed countries for climate initiatives in developing countries in 2020, $16.7 billion short of the annual goal. 



This has been compounded by the constrained fiscal context in much of the developing world, which the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated. Moreover, many countries in the Global South are still in the initial stages of industrialization and economic development and implementing strict environmental regulations can hinder this progress if they do not have access to critical green technologies such as solar power.



Secondly, the technological gap creates a disparity in implementing sustainable practices. The concentration of intellectual property (IP) ownership in advanced economies has led to difficulties for developing countries to access green technology innovation. This concentration hampers their progress in Global Value Chains and forces them to rely on costly methods to establish domestic capacities. Additionally, there are barriers to transferring green technology. This unwillingness to share IP might similarly hinder global efforts in climate technologies, causing divisions and tensions despite the urgent need for global cooperation. 



Countries with clear policies supporting research, innovation, and technology development tend to have more robust technological capacity, yet there is minimal alignment across developing countries. The Global North is the locus of primary innovation – armed with resources, knowledge, technology and ability. To combat this challenge, a diffusion practice is imperative to assist the Global South in mirroring these practices. Diffusion allows for the sharing of IP, so that innovative practices are easily adopted.



Thirdly, capacity disparities exist between the Global South and the Global North and within the Global South. Alongside financial and technological gaps, there are also infrastructure challenges. Countries in the Global South range from highly industrialized economies to those struggling with basic infrastructure – this is often apparent through service delivery challenges. There are also disparities in education and research capacities. Additionally, it is important to consider the severity of the challenges in the Global South and where they are realistically able to place climate change in our contextual coat hangers. Research demonstrates that the Global South is disproportionately impacted by the setback in the sustainable development goals (SDGs).



A grim reality is that this is a difficult balancing act in many of these regions. The just transition, however, does also have a ripple impact on other SDGs, particularly concerning clean energy, decent employment, economic metrics, inequality and sustainable production and consumption.



Velicu and Barca argue that we need to rethink the just transition through the lens of equality through an approach that focuses on equity rather than equality. In other words, if the Global South received equal diffusion of resources, it would not be as beneficial as if they received an equitable or proportionate resource. As Damian White concluded in 2020: “Decarbonizing, decolonizing, democratizing and de-commodifying our carbon-intensive material world is going to require… the unleashing of enormous amounts of creative labour and inventive praxis to build public institutions, a public ecology and a public culture to allow us to survive and flourish on a warming planet.” What is abundantly apparent is that without bridging these gaps and ensuring the inclusion of the Global South, the just transition will remain a dream deferre

Reports Indicate 2016 Was Hottest Year On Record

Rethinking ‘Just Transition’ In Africa

Over our lifetime, we all come to believe that evolution creates the need for adaptation. Our planet has been through a series of major docu- mented evolutions over billions of years. Since this time-space journey sounds infinite, I will try and peg something relevant as a milestone, which was the extinction of dinosaurs about 66 million years ago; relevant to the extent that my children and now grandchildren seem to still remember the names of several of these species and many businesses have made significant profits thematically illustrating a primitive past that could one day return. 



Other than that, for most people, the history of the world throughout the Stone Age (2.6 million years ago), the Bronze Age (3100 BC) or the Iron Age (1200 BC) through to the start of the ‘Plastic Age’, has little or no meaning. We are so caught up in the ‘now’ that neither the past nor the future, to most, seems to matter. Sub- tle nudges from nature, including but not limited to heat and cold waves, earthquakes, typhoons and even Covid-19, have largely been ignored and subordinated in the pursuit of dominance, greed and materialism. 



As if the crisis in Ukraine and loss of human life were not enough, the ugly head of terrorism once again raised its head with the attack by Hamas on the state of Israel. I will not dwell on the complicated history (going back thousands of years) of the dispute as it opens raw wounds of a debate that remains intensely shrouded in the demise of faith through a trust deficit and growing hatred. For many decades, it appeared that the region was stabilizing as was evident with the announcement of diplomatic and trade initiatives between Israel and the Arab States particularly the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). It’s no secret that lasting peace is not everyone’s salvation, and it was not entirely surprising when the pot was vigorously stirred.



As I wrote in my Publisher’s Note in the October/ November 2023 issue of FORBES AFRICA, many developed countries (specifically the Permanent Members or the Big Five of the United Nations Se- curity Council) benefit from wars through the sale of weapons and will continue to want regional conflicts. Global weapon sales crossed a whopping $2.4 trillion in 2022 and will continue to grow faster than most business sectors. While the sales of armaments will al- ways continue to fuel conflicts, there are several other state and stateless actors that benefit from chaos and uncertainty and are the perpetrators of hate and vio- lence. For them (rogue states and stateless actors), the threat of war and aggression is far more systemic and corrosive than war itself as it provides annuity income, of billions of dollars, in aid. As expected, once there is any indication of lasting peace, the threat of income loss immediately induces bloody skirmishes and acts of violence, to return to an uncertain status quo.



October 7 is one such day that, like many others in different parts of the world, will be remembered as one when a few soulless people sacrificed the region’s peace with senseless slaughter in favor of decades of animosity and continued volatility.



The response, by the Israel Defense Forces, to the October 7 attack was, expectedly, swift and lethal.



However, for the Israeli government, it was also a matter of shame that the most respected national intelligence agency, Mossad was caught napping and the loss of face for the Benjamin Netanyahu government resulted in a dual agenda of retaliation as well as diverting attention away from a political fallout for the government in Israel. Sadly, thousands of innocent civilians including women, children, and infants were killed and/or injured on both sides. With no immediate end in sight, more death and destruction is inevitable as missiles and munitions continue to shower deadly ruin on both sides. Billions of dollars are being spent on this destruction and billions will be required to rebuild things that should not have been damaged in the first place.



The United States mobilized its naval fleets in a show of support to Israel and to induce deterrence from other sympathizers for the Palestinian cause. Not to be left behind and to show its own muscle, the Chinese did the same but with no immediate stated agenda. The Western powers have all aligned behind the state of Israel, many have spoken against the acts of terror by Hamas, other nations have called Hamas a freedom movement, many have recommended reverting to the two-state solution, an increas- ing number of countries are planning to disassociate from Israel by shutting their embassies and severing diplomatic ties, but without exception, everyone has called for an end to the bloodshed, to prevent further loss of innocent lives, and expedite aid to the helpless in Gaza.



It is a land of a few million people, where it will take generations to recover from the dastardly acts and ensuing retaliatory violence that most did not wish for and are innocent bystanders of. Sadly, neither the people of Israel nor the people of Gaza will ever, or for a long time, be the same again.



As the attention was diverted from the Ukraine conflict, even the Russian government ironically decided to give lessons to Israel on restraint. Although vehemently denied, Iran’s hand has allegedly been seen as the indirect architect of this massacre. But they are most certainly not alone in this. A sanctioned coun- try with limited access to global supply chains cannot be acting in isolation. While Russia, China and Iran have been overtly called, by frenzied media networks, the new axis of evil, there are many more shades of deceit blended into this painful mosaic, painted with the blood of innocent victims. There are those that fund these campaigns, many that provide safe corridors, others that harbor the nerve centers and finally, the worst, those that arm the non-state actors with training and weapons. The top five global intelligence agencies know exactly what is happening around the world. However, this repository of collective intelligence is revealed selectively and in drips to afford self-serving outcomes. It’s a grand chess board where sacrifices are made for a very specific outcome in a ‘dog-eat-dog’ world where sadly, human life, particularly in the emerging and developing world, has little value.



The world is polarized to such an extent that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) could not get the wording right for a statement on the conflict as various drafts were vetoed and/or rejected by one or the other member of the Big Five. The trust deficit is so wide that Israel picked a part of a statement made by the Secretary-General of the UN António Guterres and demanded his resignation. His fervent calls for restraint have been misunderstood as indifference to terrorism. No one in their right mind can condone an attack on innocent civilians but it’s equally deplorable to see a lack of any restraint from Israel after the immediate response.



Destroying tunnels in Gaza is not going to end the recurrence of terrorism, as technology and human intent will find alternatives. The obvious solution to end this carnage is, as in any conflict, for the conflicting parties to rationally agree on a formula for peaceful co-existence.



It is imminently needed to contain other stake- holders of this conflict by following and stopping the flow of money and weapon sales to stateless actors. Equally important, the Israeli government, as the dominant player, must take responsibility for, firstly, its failure to act on intelligence of impending danger and secondly, held accountable for escalating this campaign, for fear of a political fallout, into a bloody war that could have been avoided. Who will bring accountability to the attack by Hamas or reactions from Israel? Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states that “everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person”. The UN has once again proven to be a toothless and dysfunc- tional organization and we, regrettably, live in a world where there is no recourse for the developing world.



The second Secretary-General of the UN, Dag Hammarskjold’s quote is framed at the UN building in New York: “The UN was not created to take mankind to heaven, but to save humanity from hell.”



How true is this in a world where the mighty prevail and, once again, the suffering of people will be left to be forgotten and the scars to heal with the passing of time?



People and countries continue to fight each other over matters that are inconsequential, particularly when extrapolating these over a period of a million years. Philosophically speaking, this is nothing but self-inflicted suffering almost as if humanity, in the form of a metaphorical moth, is speeding towards a raging fire, ending in self-immolation. Sadly, even if some trigger-happy cowboy brings the current life on the planet to an end in the form of a nuclear fallout, Planet Earth will self-heal as it has done for billions of years and re-emerge with a form of life that will once again be given a chance, to move away from barbarism, and make the world a better place. The reality is that 99% of every form of life that existed from the time of the dinosaurs is now extinct. We live in the age of Anthropocene – “significant human impact on earth’s geology and ecosystems, including but not limited to, human-caused climate change”. Regrettably, humans are mindlessly burning the candle at both ends and destroying both their own kind as well as ruthlessly destroying all other life.



As we get into the last phase of this year, I sincerely hope and pray that good sense prevails and leaders who can influence the course of current conflicts introspect and use their high offices to bring people to- gether to settle differences through negotiations and diplomacy. I pray that people move away from finding differences through race, religion and color and focus on morality and spirituality; this is our only salvation. With this prayer, I wish all our readers a very happy, peaceful, and prosperous 2024.

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‘A World Where The Mighty Prevail And Suffering Will Be Forgotten’

Finance is a crucial change agent in society, government, and technology.



The introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) is fundamentally altering the financial world. AI is a form of technology that confers intelligence on machines. In my 2013 book, Economic Modeling Using Artificial Intelligence Methods, I demonstrated how



AI could forecast economic indicators, predict stock prices in stock exchanges, perform credit scoring in banks, and model complex financial instruments such as options, futures, and derivatives. In our 2017 book, Artificial Intelligence and Economic Theory, Evan Hurwitz and I demonstrate how AI affects how economists think about demand and supply, pricing, and behavioral economics. Utilizing AI’s capabilities, the financial sector is on the verge of massive disruptive changes that present new opportunities and risks. This article examines how AI affects economic systems, specifically the financial sector, markets, and the government.



Using machine learning, predictive analytics, and natural language processing, AI has the potential to revolutionize the way institutions operate. Additionally, AI opens up new avenues for customer service, risk management, and business advice.



For example, AI-powered chatbots and virtual helpers help with customer service around the clock, simplifying user interfaces and making it easier to answer questions quickly.



Consequently, they enhance consumer experience and reduce expenses. For instance, in risk management and credit scoring, AI algorithms can examine enormous amounts of data to identify patterns and assess risk levels. This makes financial services available to a larger population.



In the investment world, robo-advisors have become popular. They use AI’s analytical capabilities to offer cheap, personalized financial advice. Through these changes, AI is making it easier for more people to use financial services and driving the global financial system to be more open to more people.



AI is also changing the way financial markets work. For example, AI has changed how stocks are bought and sold with high-frequency algorithmic trading. AI can analyze vast financial data in milliseconds to identify trends and make trades. This is a substantial improvement over traditional methods making markets move faster, more open and work better. However, increased market speed ushers market stability and systemic risks, requiring protection and strong oversight to avoid these problems.



Regulators worldwide seek to deal with AI’s problems, such as data protection and algorithmic transparency. Accordingly, there should be a balance between encouraging innovation and protecting the financial security and consumer interests in regulations. AI can simplify compliance procedures, monitor



financial transactions in real-time for illicit activities, and predict market glitches, making regulators more proactive.



In the African market, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a trade deal that aims to increase trade significantly within Africa, offers unique opportunities for AI.



The agreement covers a broad range of aspects of Africa’s economy, such as digital trade and the protection of investments. Moreover, the number of countries in the AfCFTA will make it the largest free trade area globally, linking 1.3 billion people in 54 countries with a combined GDP of $3.4 trillion. AI can make the AfCFTA work better and reach its goals.



For example, AI can help improve trade logistics by making delivery systems, customs processes, and tracking and tracing more efficient. It can find the best ways to move goods, predict delays, and give traders real-time information. In addition, AI can analyze trade data to identify patterns, trends, and connections. This can help policymakers make better choices and predict and respond to future trends better.



AI-powered systems can make cross-border e-commerce more efficient, a sector expected to grow under the AfCFTA. AI can create personalized product recommendations and automate customer service. In education and training, AI can help people acquire the skills they need for an African economy that works better together.



However, for AI to achieve the goals of the AfCFTA, it is essential to have good AI governance and regulation. Furthermore, we need to invest in digital infrastructure and education.



In conclusion, AI is vital to changing how the world’s economic system works. It affects financial services, markets, and regulation. AI is ushering in a new age of innovation and efficiency.



However, as AI continues to change how the financial world works, a cautious and thorough approach is needed to make the most of its prospects and manage its risks well. There needs to be strong regulatory frameworks, investments in AI literacy and skills, and a commitment to ethical AI values. These objectives are essential if we want an AI-driven financial future that is both prosperous and sustainable in Africa.

Manager engineer control Innovation of robotics  automation robot ai Business data analytics process management

How Artificial Intelligence Affects The Financial Sector In Africa

For many, the reality of raising a family is an arduous journey – and often a silent one. In recent years, there has been remarkable progress in the field of reproductive technologies. These technologies include medical procedures used primarily to address infertility. In fact, the global assisted reproductive technology market size was valued at $28.2 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach $42.5 billion by 2030, according to a research report published by Spherical Insights &amp; Consulting.



In the African context, research suggests that our constantly and rapidly changing lifestyle is fundamentally impacting fertility. Fertility has emerged as a medico- sociocultural problem. The continent also has a higher prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STI), and postpartum and postabortion infections, which contribute to both male and female infertility.



In fact, a 2019 study conducted by Ombelet and Onofre found that infertility had a higher prevalence in low-resource countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. At the time, it was estimated that more than 180 million couples were impacted by infertility in the region. As the authors concluded: “The magnitude of childlessness in African countries has dimensions beyond its prevalence.” At its core, infertility is a human rights issue that demands attention.



In the 21st century, what are the ethical implications of reframing our creation of humans? As we venture into our own ‘brave new world’, we must do so with a framework in place. We find ourselves in the midst of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR), defined by great disruption to technology, industries, and society, which calls for changes to policy and our approaches.



There are two broad factors to consider in this shift: how do we safeguard core legal values – such as equal treatment under the law, procedural fairness, and due process and adequate access to justice for all, for instance – and how do we adapt to these broad societal changes? There are also key concerns in our own context. Infertility in Africa is impacted by epidemiological barriers as there is a lack of data informing the burden of infertility, the need for reproductive technologies and even access. Moreover, inequalities are starkly presented in conversations around access both from a geographical standpoint and a financial perspective.



Ombelet and Onofre’s study found that “more than 98% of the continent cannot afford In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) because it is either too expensive or because of a lack of IVF centers”.



In 2018, Botha et al. found that ‘inaccess’ was driven by the confluence of widespread poverty, inadequate government or insurance support, insufficient resource allocation for capacity building, and the absence of facilities. There are also challenges in the cultural, religious, and societal perception of both infertility and its treatment, which are pervasive in many parts of Africa. In some cases, this is largely the impact of limited knowledge of the public, patients, and even healthcare providers. This is coupled with restrictive health policies, which have to be challenged.



What is required is a comprehensive and culturally sensitive approach that takes into account the socioeconomic context.



Some solutions include raising awareness and education about available treatments and the benefits and risks; addressing cultural and religious beliefs around the technology and encouraging open dialogue; making artificial reproductive technologies more affordable on the continent through reducing 



costs; comprehensive healthcare coverage and public-private partnerships; and increasing research capabilities and data collection in this field to allow for infrastructure development.



Additionally, as other technologies of the 4IR have demonstrated, we need sound ethical frameworks. This will be the basis for our approach to regulation. This will require the legal fraternity to keep up with developments in the space and respond accordingly. While there are broad ethical frameworks in place, it is imperative that we get more specific as these technologies shift from theory to practice. Researchers Pepper and Slabbert state: “Legislation in its broadest sense should be seen as a permanent work- in-progress requiring ongoing review.” 



This is how we continue to break barriers and explore the unknown ethically. Legislation is largely reactive. In the 4IR, however, there is an increasing argument for a proactive approach.



What is apparent is that as these technologies increasingly emerge, society needs to respond accordingly. If we have any hope of ensuring greater access and acceptance, then we must ensure that we are adapting to this shifting context. As the biologist and author of Daedalus, JBS Haldane, once poignantly wrote, “We can foretell little of the future save that the thing that has not been is the thing that shall be.”

doctor analysing cell samples in a clinical fertility laboratory

The Ethics And Legality Of Artificial Reproductive Technology In An African Context

I attended the US-Africa Business Summit in July in Botswana, a country I have lived in in my youth, as a bachelor and then as a parent to boot.



The kids were born in the country’s new and first private hospital, GPH, efficient and chic, way back in the 1990s.



The conference center is equally so today – sparkling, purpose-driven, punctuated by smart cops along the brand-new roads leading there. A hallmark of Botswana. No wastage. Elegantly done at just the right time.



I left Botswana 25 years ago and have traveled the globe a bit. A journey that made me understand geopolitics and see its hypocrisies. Yet, this Kalahari country of my youth quietly got so many things right: control over its primary resources, universal free health, education, buffering cattle farmers from market volatilities, infrastructure, institution building, respect for the law, clean elections, conservatism, and a policy-driven government staying true to its manifesto.



A case study on getting things done.



Yet, many of my old friends, prosperous and welcomed as they have been in their adopted country, remain critical.



I dare say I left them unmoved. Familiarity breeds contempt?



But if the country still had many flaws, diamonds too need imperfections to shine.



The weather that week was the quintessential Kalahari winter I had long forgotten. Cold and crisp in the shade and warm in the sun, dry in its core but embracing in its reach; epitomizing the Motswana spirit.



‘What you see is what you get.’ A GDP (Purchasing Power Parity) per capita of about $20,000, Africa’s best credit rating, and a literacy rate of about 90%. The country has shown what planning and execution can achieve in only five decades.



I have a special bond with it.



1966 is my birth year and the year of Botswana’s independence.



At that time, one of the poorest – with a GDP per capita of about $70 per year – landlocked and two-thirds desert, it has transformed itself from being hopeless to a developed country today.



The country’s tale of self-rule is intertwined with that of white supremacy to prevent a marriage between an African chieftain destined to be the first President and his white British fiancée. They overcame it against all odds while maintaining peace with an unapologetic British government and an apartheid neighbor, South Africa.



It is a story of love and self-belief.



And above all, supreme diplomacy from a rustic but wise nation to forge a modern nation. Indeed, a testament to the rural fabric of fortitude and patience.



If indeed a country’s future lies in its history, this country’s common sense is its foundation.



While there, my evenings were laced with nostalgic dinners. Soaked in old stories, revealed, regaled, and rekindled.



Touchingly, those lovely people of Gaborone, the country’s capital, served up my favorite cravings and my special indulgences. Bonded with love and tied with memories.



Humane but often elusive. Serene indeed to see people from yesteryears making time for you. The President is an imposing figure with conviction; he’s articulate and clearly visualizes a thriving, peaceful Botswana.



And indeed, he is so comfortable as an African thought leader.



I recalled the days of a ‘quiet’ Botswana.



Now, their charismatic leader espouses African collaboration, instilling hope, and embracing the wisdom that deliverance for Africa must come from ‘us, the people’.



He reiterates the enormous possibilities, the need to share knowledge within Africa and the necessity of collective bargaining.



The miracle that the continent survives despite the incessant barrage of exogenous influences should embolden us for greater things, not derail us.



I bow to Botswana, the cradle to my young impressionable days where the seeds of inspiration were sown in me.



I learned the joys of networking, collaborating, and understanding different cultures in this little unheralded town.



I learned humility was a tool, humanity a constant and hubris a disease. For prosperity, peace, and progress. In a continent of discontent, Botswana is that beacon of hope and tranquility. May it drive the destiny of Africa. A harbinger of greatness and a poster boy of solidity in the maligned and exploited continent of Africa. Thank you, Botswana, as you seek your rightful place among the great nations of this world.

Gaborone, South East, Botswana 27 April 2017 aerial panorama of  Main Mall

A Homecoming: To The Beacon Of Hope And Tranquility

Traveling for work these days is not as simple as booking a flight, packing a suitcase and heading for the nearest airport lounge.



With the price of airline tickets sky-rocketing and the cost of hotel rooms in the stratosphere, companies are encouraging employees to get better bang for their travel buck.



To cut costs, bosses suggest cramming more meetings into the time away, driving to destinations instead of flying and – yes, you guessed it – sharing a hotel room with a colleague.



Many bosses have tried to dress up shared accommodation arrangements by telling employees that cohabitating is the perfect opportunity to build camaraderie and team work.



Some have been more direct and told staff that room shares might prevent a reduction in head count if they are forced to tighten their belts down the line.



Others have told staff it is not unlawful to ask colleagues to share rooms and recommended that they go with the flow and “buddy up” to save their company dollars.



But just because employees can share a hotel room does not mean they should.



Sharing with a colleague can be bad under any circumstance let alone if you are feeling unwell, experiencing “gassy” conditions, are prone to allergies or experience congestion during the evening.



And it can be uncomfortable to share a room with an early riser when you are a night owl or when you are forced to endure your colleague’s snoring or realize your roommate is a sleep walker.



Besides, being forced to witness your colleague in a towel or their sleepwear, share their soap when you shower and navigate their toiletries in the bathroom all go way beyond the call of duty.



It is important in the modern workplace that we get to know our colleagues though we only want to learn about work- appropriate aspects, not their more intimate or private sides.



Sharing rooms erodes the professional boundaries that we spend considerable time establishing.



You will not view your colleague Anna the same way if you become aware that she downs three shots of vodka each evening to help her to sleep. You will probably have a different view of Alan if you have been forced to listen to his raunchy sleep talking. And you will most likely have an alternative view of Alice after witnessing her 10-step bedtime regime, which includes two hours of reading before retiring but leaving a light on throughout the night.



If that is not enough to seal the case against sharing a hotel room with a workmate, there is more to consider.



Some people have medical conditions they would prefer not to disclose or be forced to manage in front of colleagues.



And of course the risk of sexual harassment is very real when unwanted advances take place behind closed doors in a shared hotel room.



Some employees will get around the problem of shared hotel rooms by paying for their own single room. Yet paying out of their own pockets is neither a reasonable nor fair solution to this escalating dilemma.



What is needed is for more workers to push back and make the point work travel is draining and that it is important to be well-rested to be effective in their line of work.



The more workers oppose shared accommodation arrangements then the greater the chance that employers will listen.



There is also the prospects of employers reducing costs by using cheaper hotel chains, making greater use of day trips without overnight stays and organizing virtual meetings as an alternative to travel.



But if the boss does require room-sharing, secure your employer’s assurance they will cover the expense of booking a separate room if your roommate’s behavior affects your ability to get a good night’s sleep.



Employees who travel for business to benefit their employer should be treated with the respect and regard they deserve.



This includes privacy and safety, a place for downtime away from colleagues and the opportunity to relax without having to worry about the views, emotions, routines and rituals of their colleagues.



Forcing employees to get to know each other in such an intimate way is not appropriate and can end up diminishing or destroying otherwise good working relationships between individuals.



To put this matter to bed once and for all, companies must refrain from asking employees to share rooms when traveling for work.



The risks will always outweigh the savings.

Interior of hotel room with twin beds

Sharing Rooms On Work Travels: The Good, Bad And Ugly

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming companies and economies worldwide, including in Africa. Data is an essential component in the training of AI systems. Unfortunately, the lack of accurate, high-quality data is a significant impediment in Africa. Synthetic data, or data generated by a computer, may be used to train AI models. While synthetic data offers tremendous opportunities for African innovation and development, it poses significant risks that must be carefully assessed.



Gathering real-world data in many African regions is difficult, expensive, and time-consuming.



These obstacles are brought about by various factors, including social, cultural, technological, and infrastructural deficiencies. Understanding and managing varied cultural traditions and languages may be challenging, especially when gathering data from multiple locations and people. As a result, synthetic data provides a solution by enabling researchers and businesses to create massive databases tailored to their specific needs. 



Data poverty is a lack of access to high-quality data and the ability to use such data appropriately. It’s a significant issue that hinders economic progress, decision-making, and innovation and worsens poverty. The data availability and consumption discrepancy between Africa and the rest of the world reflects more profound disparities and has significant repercussions. 



As a result, critical innovations in health, education, and transportation operate better for the rest of the globe than for Africa. For example, due to Africa’s relative data scarcity, AI systems in Africa have fewer data sets to learn from than the rest of the globe.



Synthetic data is presented as a strategy to supplement this data scarcity. The generative adversarial networks (GANs) AI method is often used to create synthetic data. GANs consist of two neural networks (akin to an artificial brain), the generator and the discriminator. The generator produces new data, while the discriminator discriminates between real and fake data. 



After they are trained adversarially (i.e. generator producing synthetic data while the discriminator differentiating fake from real data), the generator and discriminator become as good as possible at their respective tasks. One benefit of using synthetic data is that personal or sensitive information is frequently eliminated, minimizing the risk of privacy violations. This is particularly important in businesses where data privacy is vital, such as healthcare. Furthermore, by making data more available, synthetic data may lower the barriers to entry for firms and inventors.



However, synthetic data has significant drawbacks. One of them is that the models used to generate synthetic data significantly influence its quality. It reflects limitations in data (such as bias and small size), resulting in compromised and less accurate AI models and potentially perpetuating inequality, injustice and poverty. This is not the intended consequence, so there is a need to develop ethical guidelines for using synthetic data. These should first guarantee that synthetic data is anonymized for privacy protection and does not include identifiable information that may be connected back to persons.



Second, synthetic data must adhere to data protection norms and regulations governing personal information use. Third, synthetic data should accurately replicate the underlying real-world data without inserting biases or distortions. One way to achieve this is to increase data size used to generate synthetic data. Fourth, synthetic data and the processes used to create it should be disclosed. 



Fifth, explicit procedures for generating, managing, and using synthetic data should be developed and publicized. Sixth, detect and prevent misuse, as well as monitor and audit the use of synthetic data regularly. Seventh, acquire informed consent from individuals whose data were utilized to produce synthetic data, if applicable. Eighth, clarify how synthetic data will be utilized and what privacy controls will be in place. Ninth, prevent biases in synthetic data from reinforcing stereotypes or discrimination.



Tenth, keep cultural norms and values in mind while developing and exploiting synthetic data, especially when it represents different populations. Eleventh, since GANs are used to generate synthetic data and are computationally costly, consider the environmental effect of data collection, storage, and production and seek to offset any negative impacts. Twelfth, establish specific processes for exchanging synthetic data with other institutions or researchers while meeting ethical standards. 



Thirteenth, collaborate with relevant stakeholders, such as ethics committees or review boards, to ensure that synthetic data activities are handled ethically. Synthetic data has the potential to be a game-changer in Africa’s AI journey, managing data scarcity, increasing privacy, and encouraging innovation. As Africa embraces AI and synthetic data, a balanced approach is essential. Policymakers, companies, and academics must work together to guarantee that synthetic data is used correctly and ethically.

Synthetic Data As A Double-Edged Sword In Africa’s AI Revolution

If you wanted to be a great footballer, would it make sense to avoid kicking the ball for the first two minutes of every game?



The intuitive answer is obviously no.



There is no reason to believe that doing nothing could ever be a good strategy.



But surprisingly, we know that Lionel Messi does exactly that.



He quite literally just walks around and watches, which explains why he rarely scores in the first five minutes and in the first two minutes of a game.



There is, however, method to this madness because not only does Messi use this time to quieten his nerves, but he also uses it to develop his game plan.



Pep Guardiola, who coached him from 2008 to 2012, explained that he’s not being lazy. He is actually incredibly engaged, as he is watching the opposition in order to understand where the defensive weak points are.



Messi provides a unique example of how, by analyzing and then acting on data, we can give ourselves a competitive edge.



And data analysis, when done well, can also help companies unlock huge opportunities by allowing them to make decisions that, like Messi’s, seem intuitively wrong.



Take Yongqianbao, a Chinese financial services provider.



By analyzing consumer behavior, they know that people who type faster are less likely to default, which in turn allows them to provide credit at better rates than their competitors.



Another example comes from the video streaming industry. Conventional wisdom has always been that you should give your customers an interface that provides them with plenty of choices about what to watch. Choice was seen as a key feature if you wanted your app to be successful.



But thanks to TikTok, we have learned that giving consumers a choice isn’t a feature; it’s actually more of a bug.



Think for a minute about how you interact with TikTok on your device.



You just open the app and start watching, right? If you like what you see, you keep watching. If you don’t, you scroll on.



TikTok has ignored the conventional wisdom and removed choice to ensure they collect better data for their algorithms. This, in turn, allows them to deliver incredibly- accurate content based on what we actually want, not what we think we want.



Our taps and swipes have enabled them to create a platform that reportedly has over 1 billion users and average viewing times that are estimated to surpass YouTube by 12 or more minutes a day.



Anecdotes like this showcase why leaders should think less about using their “experience” or “intuition” when making decisions and instead invest more of their time and money into data-led decision-making.



Indeed, when we zoom out, it should not be surprising to learn that nine of the most valuable companies in the world are successful either because of their clever use of data or because they help their clients better use data at scale.



But if data is indeed the new oil, why do the majority of companies seem unwilling or at least unable to monetize it in the same way the top tech firms have?



Historically, cost would have been the obvious answer, but this is less relevant today, as cloud and other related technologies are making it easier and cheaper for everyone to analyze data at scale.



This leads me to conclude that the real barrier to tech- enablement comes down to the organization’s cultural maturity.



If you want to truly embrace the power of data across an organization, you can only do this if you grant more people the authority to investigate and use algorithms to make business decisions in real-time. This means delegating decision-making. Encouraging continual learning. Allowing experimentation. Accepting that mistakes will be made. Not many organizations have leadership teams that are bold enough to truly trust their people with these levels of autonomy.



But those that do have will have a significant advantage because true digitization only comes when you are both tech-enabled and human- empowered.

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