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During a presentation at the Vodafone African Business Leaders Forum, several industry professionals spoke about the undiscovered potential of the agribusiness sector in Africa – and urged the youth to turn their attention toward developing it.

“Whether we like it or not, agriculture is still stigmatised in Africa, which is making it difficult to attract youth to the sector,” said Kojo Yankah, chief consultant, Yankah & Associates, Ghana. “The youth have a critical opportunity to play a role in its development, but young graduates are not thinking about it as an option.”

Indeed, the agribusiness sector in Africa has been pivotal in developing the economy of many countries, but the sector has not been given much prominence in its promotion and development. As the speakers highlighted, it is a viable tool in driving economic growth and creating employment.

“Agribusiness in Africa requires modernisation, and new mind sets,” added Yankah. “There’s great potential in agribusiness for the youth, but only if mindsets change now.”

“We need to build capacity through training, and through changing attitudes,” agreed Diana A. Kolek, East Africa Representative, YALDA International, Kenya. “It’s all about getting out there and doing something about solving the problems in the sector. All the research and information young people need is available to do it.”

According to the panel, 60% of land in Africa is uncultivated – but is actually suitable for farming. This land is being ignored to the detriment of the continent’s development.

Imara Group’s third annual Zimbabwe investor conference gets under way in Harare later this week (Thursday, May 19) before a bumper audience of asset managers from North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

The two-day conference will be opened by Zimbabwe vice-president Mrs Joyce Mujuru. Senior executives from local mining operations and the country’s major corporates will make in-depth presentations on growth prospects across a resurgent Zimbabwe economy.

The event is co-hosted by Imara Capital Zimbabwe, Imara Holdings and Auerbach Grayson, US partners of the Imara financial services group.

South African investors will have direct access to investment opportunities in companies across the African continent.  The Standard Bank Africa Equity Index offers investors access to listed companies active across Africa – excluding South Africa.  The Standard Bank Africa Equity Index Exchange Traded Note (ETN), listed on the JSE tracks the performance of the Standard Bank Africa Equity Index. This ZAR total return index ETN presents a tradable liquid vehicle for both retail and institutional investors who would like to take advantage of Africa’s growth story. Standard Bank commits to ensure ease of entry and exit into its ETN product range, providing comfort and security to investors.

The Standard Bank Africa Equity Index gives investors exposure to companies across Africa and as of the last rebalancing date in April covers 179 listed stocks, and activities in 29 African counties. Stocks currently selected under the Index constitution include 103 stocks with their primary listing in Africa, and 76 stocks with their primary listing on major international exchanges where the majority of the businesses exposure is in Africa through revenue, profits and asset streams.
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Speaking at Day 1 of the launch conference of the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA), executive director Joel Netshitenzhe revealed the strategic goals and aggressive research objectives of the new organisation. Many of MISTRA’s proposed research questions, given their controversial nature, have the potential to tweak the nerve ends and shake up the agendas of current political leaders.

“MISTRA characterises itself as progressive,” explains Netshitenzhe. “We will seek to advance South Africa’s paradigm of thinking and reservoir of knowledge within a wide range of disciplines.”

The institute will be “South African in focus, but international in outlook,” and blends academic and experiential expertise among its researchers and senior staff. MISTRA has identified eight research projects to be completed within the next 12 months, which are included in the 28 projects to be explored over four years. The future-focused organisation has already begun the process of forging partnerships with universities and other research institutes throughout South Africa.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe reinforced the importance of MISTRA’s mission at the opening dinner of the institute’s official launch, on Thursday evening.

“The creation of new knowledge systems is a key determinant of a country’s ability to compete regionally and globally,” says Motlanthe. “Prime capital for the survival of societies is largely dependent upon turning knowledge into serviceable data and products.”
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Speaking at Day 1 of the launch conference of the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA), Professor Dani Wadada Nabudere, a director of the Afrika Study Centre & Marcus Garvey Pan-African Institute, Uganda, highlighted the key challenges facing the global political economy and the future trajectory of the African continent. “We are heading for a new colonization. This is because the land grabs that are under way are aimed at offloading the effects of the global capitalist crisis on the backs of the African people.”

The academic and former Minister of Culture and Community Development (Uganda) explained that Africa is being faced with a new drive to marginalise its people through the hastened combination of the ‘Green and the ‘Gene Revolutions’.

According to Nabudere, what is characteristic of all countries are the growing inequality, poverty and galloping food prices. The crises in the Middle East and North Africa have been sparked off by the food crisis, which is only one aspect of the inequality. The crisis of the financial and service sectors now under way is an indication that there can be no return to heavy industrial production in the West because money capital has exhausted itself in this core sector of capitalism. As a consequence, agricultural production increasingly became a sector to which capitalism resorted in order to engage in some control over global markets.
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The African Competition Forum (ACF) was launched in Nairobi, Kenya on 3 March 2011. The launch conference was co-hosted by the Kenyan Monopolies and Prices Commission (MPC) and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) with support also given by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID).

The ACF launch was attended by representatives of 23 national and regional competition agencies from across Africa, regional and international organisations such as UNCTAD, OECD, the World Bank, EU, SADC and CUTS as well as scholars and experts in the field of competition policy.

The principal objective of the ACF is to promote the adoption of competition principles in the implementation of national and regional economic policies of African countries, in order to alleviate poverty and enhance inclusive economic growth, development and  consumer welfare by fostering competition in markets, and thereby increasing investment, productivity, innovation and entrepreneurship.

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International investors have been given a positive appraisal of Zimbabwe’s economic prospects for the coming year, despite political challenges and concerns about politicking ahead of any election.

The upbeat briefing comes from Imara, the Pan-African investment banking group and source of in-depth investment research on the Zimbabwe market.

Imara has circulated its views to investors and fund managers in major international centres. The group points to numerous positives, including:

better economic performance from a larger base than officially recognised
much-improved tax receipts
prospects for privatisation and public/private partnerships (PPPs), and
a projected increase in stock exchange activity

John Legat, head of Imara’s asset management division, notes: “Zimbabwe’s 2011 budget predicts an economy of US$8 billion, a number that is more realistic (than previous estimates), although again too low in our view. An economy greater than US$10 billion is more likely…

“A stronger economy than expected has led to a larger tax take. Collections exceeded US$2 billion (in 2010), surpassing target.

“A higher revenue base for 2011 will imply higher wages for civil servants and greater capital expenditure. Higher wages will mean more spending.”

Indigenisation concerns are played down. Says Legat: “This seems to be less of an issue as a number of deals have taken place where foreign investors have secured a majority holding.”

Imara cites the November sale of government-owned Ziscosteel to India’s Essar Group, which will take a majority stake in return for paying the steel business’s foreign debt. Essar will also pay the government a token sum and inject capital into the business.

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With the South African construction industry having hit a wall following 2010 and government’s nationalisation debate steering new mining investment abroad, political risk experts report a rush of South African businesses into Africa, seen as offering greater returns on investment with comparatively manageable risk.

For example, “the current iron ore rush in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea is seeing South African companies pouring idle plant and machinery into the region” says Tracy de Kock, Manager – New Business, Credit and Political Risks, Alexander Forbes. Yet with elections underway in two of these countries and just having been cancelled for fear of violence in a third, the possibility of political instability or even war remains very real.

Since competition for resources in developing economies is intense and civil institutions and the rule of law weak, power contests provide opportunities for unrest and violence. In these conditions contract and property rights are easily violated, abrogated, confiscated or stolen.

Political risk cover makes business possible in unstable or unpredictable countries and is critical in helping investment reach parts of the world that it would normally avoid. As South African business’ appetite for African investment grows de Kock and her team are seeing a noticeable expansion in their African political risk book.

Yet it remains a hard story to tell as “businesses can’t really talk about political risk. It’s a bit like telling people you have kidnap and ransom cover” warns de Kock. If host government’s find out that an investor’s plant and machinery is covered for political risk the temptation to take back, nationalise or cancel the concession can become overwhelming.

While this is becoming less of a problem in Africa it is certainly the case in countries like Venezuela as well as a number of central Asian republics where political risk cover has become increasingly expensive.
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Tremendous breakthroughs have been made over the last few years in improving crop yields. However, as these innovative new technologies are often slow to be implemented by African farmers, agricultural productivity growth in sub-Saharan Africa lags behind many other regions in the world.

Speaking at the Economist Conference in Johannesburg last week, Carlman Moyo, Managing Director for DuPont Sub-Saharan Africa, said that studies show this is mostly as a result of lack of credit, limited access to information and insufficient incentives associated with farm tenure arrangements.

“Innovative technologies that help farmers adapt to changing environmental conditions remains a key factor in increasing agricultural productivity, conserving natural resources and addressing the potential impacts of climate change in the next few years. This is vital as agricultural productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa is currently well below that required to achieve food security and reach stated targets on poverty reduction.”

Moyo says this is particularly relevant for Zimbabwe, once known as the bread basket of Africa. “There are a number of issues that need to be addressed to improve food security in Zimbabwe and throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. However, providing farmers access to the latest agricultural technology is one way to help dramatically improve the agricultural output of the country.”

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Abu Dhabi financial services firm Invest AD and Japan’s SBI Holdings Inc. (SBI) are establishing a new fund management company to invest in Africa, starting with a fund of up to $100 million.

The new fund, seeded equally by Invest AD and SBI, will focus on Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco. It will invest in several sectors, including banking, mining, consumer products and manufacturing, through listed equities, initial public offerings (IPOs), as well as pre-IPO and unlisted equity.

The jointly-run fund management company plans to launch additional funds, which will be open to third-party investors, with strong interest expected in Asia.

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