The Business Proposition of Africa’s Population Boom: Problem or Potential?

Business Fights Poverty: The Business Proposition of Africa's Population Boom: Problem or Potential?

Shashank Bengali of McClatchey Newspapers wrote “Africa is gripped by one of the greatest population explosions ever recorded” in a recent article entitled, “Africa’s Perilous Baby Boom.” In fact, while it is widely reported that India’s population (1.6 billion projected) will surpass China’s population (1.4 billion projected) by 2050, Africa will beat both with a population close to two billion according to the United Nations Population Division.

Bengali paints a picture of the horrible conditions under which and into which many children are born in Africa. However, the problem is the conditions not the population growth. Africa is a continent that has vast resources, which if managed effectively, can sustain a booming population. In addition, Africa as a region has one of the lowest consumption rates globally when compared to developed countries.

In fact, this population boom is a tremendous global business and economic growth opportunity. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, shares the world can no longer expect U.S. and Western households to drive global economic growth. Developing markets like China, India and Africa are the future economic growth engines. …

… Part of this shift requires a change in the way the African population is viewed. C.K. Prahalad, in “The Bottom of the Pyramid,” points out that businesses have traditionally treated the poor and disenfranchised as victims instead of consumers. Businesses tend to devalue these populations without taking into account the current and future value of these markets, if developed. Businesses have the opportunity to create their own consumer markets while solving endemic problems like poverty. …