Africa: The Investment Destination for Double-digit Growth Rates on Vested Money

by Dr. Bienvenu-Magloire Quenum, Business Insight Featured Editorial

The title of this article sounds odd, as the black continent's reputation and future, as reported by media, is sombre.

Indeed, media coverage of African countries only highlight bad news and catastrophic events: Droughts, inundations, civil wars, genocide, famine, refugees plight, devastating diseases and corruption in ruling circles and high places.

A sober observer, however, who does not stop at clichés, would notice that there is another reality behind the sombre picture painted by the media.

First he or she would notice that African nations, in spite of recurrent droughts and persisting devastating diseases - for more than two decades - had not collapsed.

Second, he would notice that African countries have valuable assets: mineral resources, water, plenty of arable land and a resilient population.

Third, big corporations from Europe, America and China are actually investing billions of dollars in mining and oil fields in several sub-Saharan African countries.

Therefore, the bad image painted on Africa is not telling the true reality. In fact, considering innumerable dormant business opportunities existing in any single sub-Saharan African country, one can assert there is not a single African nation that is intrinsically poor.

Ten years ago, in 1997, the author of this text decided to publish a bulletin to inform the community of international investors about high profit making business opportunities existing in Africa. For that purpose, businessafrica.net LINK and africabiz.org LINK were established including a section about "Business Opportunities in Africa",

Since then, every 15th of the month, a business opportunity is briefly exposed in the bulletin dealing primarily with agribusiness, food industry and related other trades. These business opportunities have huge potential to triggering double-digit annual growth rates that could turn upward the economy in African countries.

There Is huge potential in agribusiness development.

A visit to africabiz.org and clicking around would give an idea about the huge profit making potential inherent to reported projects. They are so numerous that one cannot list them all in this paper. Let us just quickly highlight two examples:

1. Cassava floor/ Gari is a popular food staple in several Western and Central sub-Saharan African countries. The processing of cassava crops to cassava floor offers a tremendous opportunity to develop food industries in African nations. There is the possibility to establish in Africa around 8,000 operations to producing coarse gari flour and creating about 1,096,000 industrial jobs in rural areas. For an annual production level of 20 million metric tons of cassava floor, the market value would be around US$3.8 billion.

In addition, coarse gari flour could be ground to fine flour of gari (granulation: 150 micron) that could be used as partial substitute to wheat flour in bakery. Here one is talking about a market of minimum 45 million metric tons of fine gari flour to cater for bakery business all over Africa. That would represent a market value of $US 8 billion.

The setup of these cassava processing (medium-scale) industries would undeniably boost the production of fresh cassava root, give sustaining financial means to farmers and provide additional raw materials to producing alcohol/ ethanol.

Ethanol production, on its part, opening the way to new industries: food industries, pharmaceuticals, paints and glues. To name the few. These industries would represent a ready huge market of about $US 80 billion value that is currently supplied at 99% by imports.

To summarize, the promotion, development and marketing of cassava agribusiness would be generating a potential market value of about $US 90 billions a year all over 48 sub-Saharan African nations.

2. Nutriment/ food supplements and pharmaceuticals. Nutriceucals (Nutriments + pharmaceuticals) are a broad range of chemical / bio products, which composition is based on natural enzymes (bromelain and or papain). Nowadays, nutriceucals are used in the developed world to provide nutrition supplements to people: children growth supplement, elders' anti aging supplement, competition / sports' performance enhancement, cholesterol control medication, energy supplement, blended vitamins supplements, chronic conditions support, pigmentation control, skin protection treatments, weight loss support. etc.

Currently, nutriment and nutriceucals industries are nonexistent in the African development landscape. That is an aberration, when one knows that vitamins and supplements are essential to children harmonious development and growth and to the improvement of adults dietary and nutritional needs.

Tropical fruits and particularly pineapple's agribusiness can be used to establish pharmaceuticals industries throughout African countries to deliver supplements and nutriments to the populations. (Not to forget the huge world market available for exports).

The actual population level of Africa at the beginning of the new millennium stands at around 800,000,000 people. If each African consumes per year one bottle (50 caps of nutriments/ vitamins), the total consumption level would be in the range of 800 million bottles. Our studies show that the profit margin per bottle of 50 capsules (produced from pineapple) is about US$2. That means the estimate profit margin for the industry would be in the range of US$1.6 billion a year. That is a conservatory estimate. A consumption of one bottle of 50 caps per person and per month would boost the profit margin to around US$19 billion a year.

Considering these two agribusiness opportunities, one sees the global market value would be far above $US 120 a year for the whole continent. And far more beyond that figure if production for exports is taken into account. To-date, there are more than 20 agribusiness opportunities listed in Africabiz Online bulletins: in cereals crops development (sorghum, corn, rice, millet and fonio -- millet like cereal crop in Western African region,) livestock development and fish farming and animal feeding production. Opportunities that show there is a huge "dormant" agribusiness potential in African countries.

Further, in addition to agribusiness, there are other plenty investment areas such as infrastructure and Healthcare development and building. For instance, there is not a single clinic that matched developed countries standards in the whole West African region (180,000,000 inhabitants.). A healthcare facility equipped to top notch international standards established in the West African region would attract a clientele of businesspeople and expatriates (about 3% of the area’s population above outlined) who currently use to go to Europe, America and Asia for treatment.

Above briefly outlined "dormant" business opportunities in African countries demonstrate that mining industries and oils fields’ exploitation are not the sole and unique investment areas available in Africa that could garner double-digit profit margins on vested money.

Lucrative Markets for Foreign Investors, Equipment Suppliers, Know-How Providers and Technical Assistance

The implementation of above briefly described business opportunities need the implication of several actors and performers: local investors and international investors, financiers, marketers, distributors and technical partners.

For instance, the cassava floor business opportunity as above reported (possibility to setup around 8,000 medium-scale processing units around the continent) would necessitate (1) Know How acquisition; (2) Equipment purchase and setup; (3) Blank Start-up Assistance (for three months); (4) Spare Parts procurement -- etc. These supply-markets would have a global value of US$3.6 billion. [$US 450,000 x 8,000 units].

Foreign investors would also gain profit earning from equity shares participation.

The more opportunities would be implemented, the more there would be equipments for sale, know-how and technical assistance to be signed and financing provided for implementation. Etc. Remember, to date, in Africabiz Online monthly bulletins, more than 20 business opportunities have been exposed that could be developed like cassava and pineapple agribusinesses that have similar profit-making potential in double-digit growth rate range.

Dr. Quenum and Associates have the Right Business Model

To enter the promising African market (ready to take off) as above briefly described, Dr. Quenum & Associates are the right partners in business development as they have designed a fluent and efficient business model, to make joint-ventures between local African investors and foreign companies / partners a successful undertaking.

First, the right business opportunity for a particular sub-Saharan African country is spotted. Second, local investors (private and institutional) are contacted to form the local pool of investors. Third, a complete business plan is drafted followed by investment schedule. And foreign partner (equity share partners and technical partners) are contacted and linked to the local African investor pool. Finally, financing partners are solicited, etc.

Further, several advertisement platforms africabiz.org, businessafrica.net, freelanceworldwide.net and businessafrica.net/bizafrica/ are available at very competitive pricing (compared to classical media - paper, television and radio) for equipment suppliers, investors and technical partners to post offers and propose services.

You may watch the video available at following LINK: and listen to Euwin Naidoo, an experience investment banker, spelling out another aspect of the evidence: Africa Is the Investment Destination for Double-digit Growth Rates on Vested Money

Trust our experience to manage your business in 48 sub-Saharan African nations.

About the writer:

Dr. Bienvenu-Magloire Quenum is the principal and managing director of Dr. Quenum & Associates, IBC. He is an experienced Investment & Business Planner with 25 years consulting practice in African countries. He is the editor in chief of Africabiz online http://africabiz.org.

Become a Member:

Would you like to see other similar articles and critical commentaries in The Canadian National Newspaper? Then, show your support. Make a member-pledge donation, in support of the Membership Drive of the Pro-Democracy Media Foundation.

The Canadian can only continue to publish investigative articles in such areas, with the donations from members of the public in Canada, the U.S., and abroad. Consider making a donation of $50.00, $75.00, $100.00, $200.00 or more. Donors are eligible to receive our first collector's print edition in mail. Alternatively, you can send us a note to be placed on our special email list of members. Member-donors can also suggest articles or commentaries to be published in The Canadian.

The Canadian is a socially progressive and not-for-profit national newspaper, with an international readership. We provide an alternative to the for-profit commercial focused media, which often censors vital information and perspective of potential interest to the diverse Canadian public, and other peoples internationally.

Become a member of The Canadian, with your donation-pledge. Help support independent, progressive, and not-for-profit journalism.