First time in my life the USA was not number one. The outlook is very bleak for the future as our debts to these other Countries. WASHINGTON -- As Africas economy rises, American businesses are at risk of being left behind. We are missing the boat was the sour warning former President Bill Clinton issued Tuesday at an otherwise upbeat U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit here. Sub-Saharan Africa has enjoyed nearly 6 per cent annual economic growth for the past decade. And the robust expansion is expected to endure through the decade. Ernst & Young calls Africa the worlds second-most attractive market for investment behind North America. Yet as Africa gains momentum, U.S. business activity there has all but stalled. U.S. direct investment in Africa essentially flat-lined between 2010 and 2012, according to United Nations numbers crunched by the Brookings Institution. Over the same period, China (with investment up 68 per cent) and the European Union (up 8 per cent) poured money into a region they see as rich with natural resources and economic potential. U.S. corporate profits in Africa fell in 2013 for a second straight year. We have some catching up to do, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Tuesday. We are letting Europe and China go faster than us. Africa specialists complain that many American individuals and companies hold an outdated view of the region as a war-ridden disaster zone. It perhaps collects more eyeballs and sells more newspapers to talk about conflicts and war and famine, said Paul Sullivan, director of international business development at Acrow Bridge, a New Jersey firm that builds bridges in Africa. Theres a real perception deficit on the part of Western thinkers, particularly in the United States. Jennifer Cooke, director of the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, argues: Generally, the U.S. private sector has been risk-averse. Theres easier territory than Africa. Chinese companies, by contrast, seem to be everywhere in Africa. The off-shore oil company CNOOC has invested $2 billion in a Ugandan oil field. Chinese operate supermarkets and mines. A Chinese construction company is building Ugandas first expressway with a loan from Chinese bank.
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 10:25:15 +0000
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