Country By Country… Branding Africa…

December 14, 2011     africa / African minerals / Angola / artistic work / Bono / Botswana / California / capacity building / coltan / country branding / emerging markets / foreign direct investment / Gabon / Ghana / Isaiah Washington / Jeffrey Wright / Namibia / nation branding / Niger / Oil diamond / Oprah / perception of Africa / product promotion / spices / Sudan / Tanzania / textile / UGabon Niger / Uganda / Wesley Snipes

With Afrolehar’s permission, we have decided to republish this blog on Abrabrand as the topic remains relevant. This blog was written and published by Afrolehar LLC.

Afrolehar’s focus is to change the perception of Africa through nation branding, product promotion, capacity building projects, human development initiatives, and artistic work exhibitions. By providing consulting services in business development, communications and marketing, and organizational management, AL aims to be the bridge for African Affairs.

Every country that has crafted their own country brand has succeeded in increasing the country’s economy, social structure and political stability. The global approach of countries like Ghana, Uganda and Tanzania that have adopted business-friendly policies, which opened new markets to foreign investors and encouraged start-ups, still had to overcome the misuse and distorted images. As it has been propagated, it affected the identity of African nations worldwide and facilitated its territorial exploitation.

Through this process, Africa’s culture, which is its soul, has been mismanaged, thus making, Africa’s need to redefine its path. The only resort is to have active participation and engagement of its own people to represent countries attributes. Africa’s branding requires each country to conduct proper management of its image, and facilitating access to readily available historical and cultural information to enrich the experience of knowing Africa. Each country has the duty to endorse entities, which contribute in the promotion of the country’s image.

The last 10-15 years, Africa got some global ambassadors such as Oprah, Wesley Snipes, Isaiah Washington, Jeffrey Wright, Bono, Madona, Angelina Jolie, and many more…. However, in order to cease the misrepresentation of Africa’s integration in the global economy, today recognized as the emerging markets, Africans risk missing the opportunity to craft there stories and project their images.

Vast, rich, and fertile continent

Africa has 54 countries whereas the United-States of America has 50 states, and has an underestimated territorial size with a total area of 11.7 million sqt. mi as opposed to the US with 3,794,083 sqt mile. For example, referencing Transafrica’s, Mwiza Munthali’s comparative analysis of area between Africa and the US, African countries like Angola has 3 times the size of California and Delaware approximately 481,131 sq.miles, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has 905,568 sqt. miles, and Sudan 967,500 sqt. miles. www.transafrica.com

Population of Africa is over 1 billion and Sub-Saharan Africa is over 800 million. With an over-exploited resources as well as minerals that suffocated each country for centuries, Africa contains 40% of the world’s diamond reserves, which occur in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Angola, and Zaire. Uranium deposit found in Niger, Gabon, Zaire, and Namibia. Africa’s minerals range from Bauxite to Coltan and Oil. In the manufacturing industries, Africa ranges from textile to spices and assembly lines.

In many African countries, the gradual economic growth since the end of 1990’s is directly linked to the rise of the middle class. The Economist, reports that the “Average economic growth has been around 5 per cent a year, while average inflation rates declined to 8 per cent from an earlier high of 22 per cent. From 2000 to 2010, six of the world’s 10 fastest-growing economies were in Sub-Saharan Africa”.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Africa has grown at an average of 146% annually over the last 22 years to reach US$36 billion in 2007, while trade between Africa and the rest of the world (particularly Asia) has been steadily increasing. Bilateral trade between China and Africa jumped 45% in 2008 to reach US$107 billion, the bulk of which went to Sub-Saharan Africa.

21^st century Africa, with its Diaspora active participation and remittances, FDI, Country of Origin branding effects and many other integrated approaches will lead Africa to reach its full economic, social and political stability and potential.