The African Renaissance: Challenges and Opportunities on the African Continent

October 24, 2013, United Nations, NYBC 

By Madeline Tanamal, Malko Ebers

An exciting event on the perspectives on transformative governance and the African Agenda 2063 was held at the United Nations today. Our team attended this dialogue of the challenges and opportunities of ‘Africa’s Renaissance and Pan-Africanism’. As a company with partners in Africa we are excited to see these positive trends. Hosted by the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), this regular dialogue is held in conjunction with the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), which collides with the 50^th anniversary of the African Union.

The purpose of the dialogue is to discuss the future outlook of Africa in 2063. According to Mr. Maged A. Abdelaziz, under secretary general of the UN and special advisor on Africa, the issues Africa faces now are governance, human rights, corruption, youth unemployment and infrastructure limitations. Mr. Abdelaziz hopes that through African Transformative Agenda, African commerce and prosperity will continue to grow and that the continent will become more self-reliant. Some African countries are still significantly dependent on foreign aid and true transformative change has to come from the African people themselves, from an empowered youth ‘Education has to be the bedrock of youth empowerment’. Besides all these structural constraints Africa has entered an area of true transformation and an African Renaissance. Better governance, growth, peace and security for Africa will continue to improve the livelihoods of its people.

The ambassador from the APRM, Ms. Fatuma Ndangiza Nyirakobwa gave an outline of what APRM has done over the years since its establishment, such as raising the bar of ethical standards to achieve transformative justice, leadership and governance. She highlighted that the key issue APRM faces is the limited public awareness for its agenda.

Despite the challenges Africa faces, Mr Chernor Bah, the co-cordinator for youth engagement in A World At School said that Africa’s youth population has a lot of potential. Africa has the highest number of youth worldwide, 70% of the population is below 30 years old. Thus young people deserve and have to demand better education, health care and empowerment. Mr. Bah also demanded better leadership and more action by African governments on these matters.

Mr. Assefa Shifa identified African diaspora as another potential since their contribution to Africa transformation is great. This is consistent with the idea of Pan-Africanism, at which African migrants are encouraged to contribute to African’s growth. It can’t be that educated engineers are driving taxis in other countries while their talent and contribution is needed in Africa.

The panelists concluded that the key for a sustainable solution of Africa’s problems and to achieve prosperity is the inclusion of young people, women and minorities in the change process. On top of that, branding Africa, showing the beauty and potential of its people, culture, entrepreneurs and other opportunities will give many growth and business opportunities as it attracts partners and investors.

We advise the reader to spread the word about the African Renaissance, about what is happening on the continent, to visit Africa and to consider partnerships for growth. If we can help build a bridge to Africa then our team and partners in NY and Africa are glad to be of assistance.

Six degrees of separation and and the small world we live in 

and do business with

by Malko Ebers, CEO New York Business Consultants LLC

Have you heard of Stanley Milgram? He is my very favorite researcher and I would like to share his insight on the six degrees of separation and the small world hypothesis. I studied at Yale SOM, at the ETH Zurich, at University of Constance and wherever I went I came across this name Stanley Milgram. Stanley's hypothesis is that we are all connected and he means all, all of us mankind through six social connections.
This hypothesis has been studied, tested, proven and repeated many times...pick someone on the planet, let's say a rice growing peasant in China and pick someone else...anywhere, in any city, any country, any occupation, done. Then the task is to connect the two through a chain of social contacts friends of friends of friends of...you are getting the point.

How does the magic work? Not all of the social chains can be completed but some do and the stories are quite amazing. First location, then occupation meaning 'yes, I also know someone in that country, in that city', then that person might know also a doctor who then might know a doctor with the same specialization who quite likely has attended an event with that person. The amazing psychologist Stanley Milgram found this out at Yale university and he opened our eyes for what we now call 'network society' (Manuell Castells), the small world phenomenon, information society or just globalization. We are connected in so many ways to an ever increasing number of countries, economies, people, information flows. Take a moment to just realize how many different people were necessary from how many countries to produce the products you consume in a given month.

The world has become a smaller place not since LinkedIn and Facebook or modern travel and container shipments, nor through the internet but since the beginning of Vergesellschaftung 'societization' (Max Weber), trade and tribes developing into cities (Uruk and others) and then modern trading societies.

For business this means to look beyond the horizon, to realize and take advantage of a more diverse, more global workforce than ever before as well as global market opportunities. Look for contacts, friends, B2B partners in other countries, develop a global mindset and be aware that we are really living in a global village. More information and a critical discussion of the small world phenomenon at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_degrees_of_separation

The Art of Networking - how to make connections

New York City as a center for business and commerce offers something for anybody any time. So if you are a business owner and entrepreneur or a student looking to start a career, how do you spend your time wisely, which event should you attend, which conference to go to and which workshop to join? Let us help you to network more effectively! You can't start early enough to establish and develop your network and we want to share how we do it.

Networking is a group effort.

Join a LinkedIn group and one of the many NY meetup groups that fit your business and personal interests is always a good idea. Come to one of our monthly NYBC Academy events and develop a business skill such as leadership, branding or marketing and get to know other business owners and interesting people. 

Organizations that matter, stay focused.

The ivy league clubs and universities such as Columbia and NYU Stern School of Business serve as an example for great investor pitch, marketing and other business events and conferences - join their newsletters! Also the various chambers of commerce and several UN organizations post incredible events regularly on their websites and usually offer free newsletters to stay informed. 

Share with your friends.

Clients and contacts ask us how we got to know so many people and what our secret of effective networking is. The answer is simple. Network with your colleagues, invite friends, follow up timely and make it a habit to go to business seminars, conferences and other relevant events. You need to give in order to receive - think who in your network, who on your Facebook or LinkedIn is for example interested in marketing, real estate, social media or another Industry. So the next time you see a relevant event, invite your friends and contacts - you can create specific email lists for example on mailchimp or constant contact. Also let others know in which topics you are interested in, just ask and they will share and keep you in mind.

At the event of your choice, walk the room, share business cards and ask what people care about, what is important to them not just what they do - that will be remembered. Write that on the back of the business cards when you are on your way home and follow up specifically, provide a specific benefit, share an event, an article or a story that relates to what that person cares about, to what you have heard when you first met.

Discover new topics, events and people - we hope we could inspire you.

See you soon at the next event

The NYBC team

NYBC Academy

New York Business Consultants (NYBC) Academy is our monthly speaker series in Manhattan. As management consultants we need to continuously develop our skills and we want to learn and train together with our clients and anybody interested in personal development. Our group training is offered by 2-4 trainers plus the team of NYBC.

Together with the business audience we share and learn about topics such as branding & marketing, leadership, social media or entrepreneurship. Especially for entrepreneurs and business owners it is important to be aware about recent trends and developments, to train specific skills and to develop personally as well as their teams and companies.

Find out more at: http://newyorkbusinessconsultants.com/nybc-academy.html

We would like to get to know you

The New York Business Consultants team