Monday, January 2, 2012

The possibility of marriage between poor African and skilled jobless Americans and Europeans

The assumption, a minute please, no, actually, it is a known fact that Africa is blessed with vast untapped natural resouces of all sorts but has no capital or abled entrepreneurs to develop itself.

On the other hand, the armies of skilled and talented jobless Americans and Europeans are growing every day. I might be regarded as a fool,, but I cannot wonder if this is not a godsend opportunity for rightly minded Africans who are at least 20 per cent visionary as their founding fathers.

I am saying so, believing that a number of Spaniards, Irish, Kazakhs, gloomy Georgians, frustrated Russians Bulgarians, Czechs, boisterous Slovaks, Greeks and so on, with the right mixture of incentives and enablers from both their country and poor African countries can work to develop Africa while at the same time helping themselves and returning something to their motherland.

Let me use Tanzania as a case in point. What happens?

First we look at what Tanzania needs most for it to develop and become a middle income country in the world. The land has vast natural resources but lacks capital and presentable infrastructure, not to mentioned skilled labour force although this is less true with a growing number of jobless graduates from the mushrooming universities in the country.

Specifically, Tanzania needs urgently reliable electricity; modern agriculture ; modern railways; water distribution works; uptostandard roads; sea and lake ports; airports and a working domestic and international market.

From observation, the problem of garbage in Tanzania can be tied to the challenge of electricity production that can be solved by generating electricity from garbage. In turn, this will facilitate urban cleanliness. Given say about 30 major towns in the country, in their totaliy they can help generate a sizebale portion of electricity demands in the country while generating sizebale carbon countries for the cities and towns too. In addition, recyling projects are known to produce reusable plastic, paper, boxes as well as manure too. What a boone to the economy? Besides employment to local jobless educated youths too!

Environmental specialists, professors and practitioners in garbage recycling who are today jobless in Americas and Europe cannot come together and see how they can work with Tanzania's local governments to make this a reality? They will generate own employment and solve some critical Tanzanian problems too. A win-win situtation to all.

Tanzania has a number of railway lines all operating below capacity to the detriment of employees, passengers and the nation.

Is is possible for devolution or decentralization in Tanzania to be accelerated so that individuals need not take the whole of Tanzania as customer in this case.

For instance, someone can be granted a lease for rebuilding and operating the Dar es salaam -Tanga line; while another the Tanga-Moshi-Mombasa line and yet another the Moshi-Arusha-Namanga line.

In this instance, I am thinking in terms of railway engineering professors and students (jobless from Europe) working with their counterparts in Tanzania in a mode of an open and practical railway engineering and construction school. When building o f those lines is sone, am sure there shall be many othercontracts for such teams to build railways in other parts of Tanzania and East Africa.

Kn owing the nature and depth of closedness of systems in traditional East African partners, Rwanda can become a beehive of such ideas. What Rwanda can do is to use KIST's specially setup department to bring together local investors in East Africa with jobless professionals and experts from Americas and Europe to see the opportunities and challenges facing this kind of idea and then pave strategies for making such a people to people partnership possible for the benefit of both East Africa on one hand, and Europe and Americas on the other.

The same thinking can be used in case of building feasible and durable waterworks, sea and lake ports, airports, stadiums or name it.....

It is an idea worthwhile pursuing.... if we have leaders who are really interested in their poeple's development and not self glory while basking and enjoying in an island of affluence surrounded by seas of poverty.

***

No comments: