Author Archives: admin

African hospitality. No room at the inn – Africa needs decent hotels, but building them is not easy Apr 23rd 2016 Economist Those who have spent years travelling in Africa have learned to do so with good humour. A decade … Continue reading →

Not making it – A successful manufacturing sector requires many things that Africa lacks Apr 16th 2016 Economist Bashir Danyaro stands in dismay in his shoe factory in Kano, northern Nigeria’s biggest city. In its heyday, around 15 years ago, … Continue reading →

Jobs in Africa -In praise of small miners. A boom in artisanal mining offers lessons in development May 7th 2016 Economist On the outskirts of the western Ivorian town of Angovia, Joseph Bado hunches over a pile of gold-laced stone, … Continue reading →

More a marathon than a sprint – There is a long road ahead for Africa to emulate East Asia Nov 7th 2015 Economist Viewed from above, the great steel roofs of Nigeria’s textile mills are an impressive sight, occupying block … Continue reading →

Vegetables, not samosas – Even poor Kenyans are starting to get developed-world diseases Nov 7th 2015 Economist Teresa Magesa, who lives in Mukuru, a slum in the south of Nairobi, did not realise for years that she had type 2 … Continue reading →

The farms of Africa are prospering at last thanks to persistence, technology and decent government Mar 12th 2016 Economist Not so long ago Jean Pierre Nzabahimana planted his fields on a hillside in western Rwanda by scattering seed held back … Continue reading →

Miracle grow – After many wasted years, African agriculture is improving quickly. Here is how to keep that trend going Sometimes it seems as though Adam’s curse, which promises mankind a harvest of thorns and thistles, applies only to African … Continue reading →

Wake up and sell more coffee – Small farmers in Africa need to produce more. Happily that is easier than it sounds Sep 19th 2015 Economist On a hillside about an hour’s drive north of Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, is a … Continue reading →

Africa’s fragile democracies – Since the end of the cold war, multi-party democracy has flourished. In many countries it is now at risk Aug 20th 2016 Economist Some call it Africa’s second liberation. After freedom from European colonisers came freedom … Continue reading →

Africa’s leaders protect each other – As a former president faces trial, his incumbent colleagues vilify the court Feb 6th 2016 Economist On January 28th the Ivory Coast’s Laurent Gbagbo became the first former head of state to go on … Continue reading →