My Beauty Best Teacher

Bernard Hours writes about the NGOs and the victim industry.
Webometrics releases a continent-wide rankings for universities. Nigeria's ramshackle tertiary sector lives up to its expectations-Terrible. via Mootbox
African Loft highlights an IMF survey, that showcases the emerging market status of a number of African countries.
Mark Mobius discusses emerging opportunities in frontier markets.-FT
Mimicking the private sector or not? A question for Development Agencies-via Mootbox
Untying red tape-Doing Business 2008 a video report.

Engineering News profiles a report(pdf) on Africa's "Emerging Financiers"-China,India SWF's etc.:

...the investment being made by emerging financiers are unprecedented in scale and focus on large infrastructure projects. In a changing world, with new actors and financing modalities coming into play, there is a learning process for investors and recipients. This will place new demands on national capacity to negotiate complex and innovative deals, and apply appropriate environmental and social standards needed for the long-term success of such partnerships...[continue reading]

Adam Habib thinks that Universities must earn their funding.
Emerging Markets Decoupled,Not Really-Mootbox
Knight Fellow Kimani Chege, seeks to blaze a path in developing world technology reporting.
Kwadwo Osseo-Asare launches AqueouSolutions a blog about materials, minerals and solutions; science, technology and sustainable development in Africa.
Kofi Annan interviewed on the failure of African Leadership.-via Chris Blattman

Nigeria Curosity questions the scrutiny of the Africa Finance Corporation:

The AFC aims to be the go-to institution for the funding of economic development on the African continent. But, despite the incredible future potential of this institution for the continent, it appears that the AFC is currently experiencing a serious attack in Nigeria. And this attack, if not halted, could prove to be the undoing of some seriously good work being done for the future of every African...[continue reading]

Koinonia founded Benjamin Ogunyo is getting Kenya’s street children back into their homes by empowering their families to become economically independent, socially responsible, and emotionally accessible for their estranged children. By alleviating the severe pressures impoverished families face, he is helping build healthier communities capable of taking responsibility for solving problems together and overcoming poverty, crime, disease and hopelessness-Ashoka
Watch interview with Benjamin:


via Mootbox

Mootbox writes "Emmanuel Jal is a Child soldier from Sudan turn rapper. I bet he has more inspiration to draw from than any other rapper alive. 50 cent has nothing on stories..."watch him here:

Andrew Mclaughlin of Google at BarcampAfrica discusses amongst other things "How 'free' destroys economic ecosystems":
via Mootbox

Will Connor at the NYTimes reports:

Just another Saturday night in Lagos, one of Africa’s money- and contrast-rich boomtowns. Already a city of superlatives on the continent (it has variously been deemed Africa’s most traffic-plagued, most populous and fastest-growing megacity), Lagos has a new title to add to its mantel: most expensive.
Lagos has always been one of the most powerful commercial hubs in West Africa, ever since slaves were first shipped from here to Europe and the Americas. But because of the rising price of oil, the declining United States dollar, the relocation of foreign workers from the oil-rich but kidnapping-prone Niger Delta, large privatization efforts and a mad dash for the city’s remaining plots of land, Lagos is more flush with cash and full of glitter than ever...[continue reading]

From the Council for Foreign Relations Stephanie Hanson writes:

A small group of economists now argue that brain drain might have a positive impact on Africa. Those skilled workers, their research shows, are often sending significant quantities of money back to their home countries. A March 2008 paper by economists William Easterly and Yaw Nyarko says remittances to Africa are likely undercounted, but on average they are equivalent to 81 percent of the foreign aid (PDF) received by an individual country. A 2005 World Bank study showed that remittances from skilled workers to their families in Guatemala, Mexico, and the Philippines helped reduce poverty in those countries.
In some cases, talented workers are even returning to their home countries to work or start businesses. Though research on this phenomenon in Africa is limited, economists have documented the effects of Chinese and Indian tech entrepreneurs returning to their home countries. This so-called brain circulation—in which entrepreneurs start new companies but maintain business links in the United States—has been extensively researched by Anna Lee Saxenian of the University of California, who calls these entrepreneurs "The New Argonauts." Some experts believe African skilled workers could have a similar positive effect on their native economies...[continue reading]

From Mootbox:

John Atta Mills won the run off of the presidential election in Ghana. Though the race was tight and close, the real winner in my books is Nana Akufo-Addo, a 64-year-old lawyer, the candidate of the New Patriotic Party who Atta Mills ran against. He promptly conceded the election just as the citizens of Ghana became increasingly apprehensive. If Africa had more leaders like this, much of the civil strife that occurs on the continent could be avoided...[continue reading]

Mootbox discusses the The Portfolio Data Management System (PDMS):

Enterprises that measure their bottom line by their impact on people, planet and profit and not just profit alone finally get an metric by which their performance can be measured. Keep in mind that some social enterprises are nonprofits, while others seek a return on investment one can begin to appreciate the challenges encountered when measuring performance...[continue reading]

More on the travelogue space. The mission of Chioma and Oluchi Ogwuegbu's Celebrate Africa is to:

Celebrate all that is beautiful on the continent from her peoples to her cultures, languages and religions. Contribute to changing the negative image of Africa and encourage Africans and the world to begin to see the beauty in the continent. Promote a sense of identity and unity for Africa’s people.

TED Fellow 2007 June Arunga recounts her experiences while raising money for the startup BSL:
June Arunga on Western Attitudes Towards Business in Africa from DRI on Vimeo.
via MootBox

"...Many African states have been addicted to Western aid for decades. Unfortunately, Africa as a whole has stagnated and some African countries are poorer today then they were in the 1960s. In recent years, advocates of foreign aid have called for making aid more efficient, but that may be easier said than done. The problem, some critics argue, is that aid supports predatory governments and perpetuates institutions that are alien to Africa...[continue reading]" -Cato Institute
Listen to the podcast

africa failed Cato Institute Event Podcast - Let Failing African Governments Collapse: A Radical Solution to Underdevelopment
Hatip Mootbox!

See Africa Differently via MootBox
2009 ION Film Festival Lagos, Nigeria.
Chike Nwoffiah Co-founder of Oriki Theatre
Building up media capacity-The Africa Elections Project
Gambian regime continues its reign of terror.
Marginalization may actually be good for Africa-G Pascal Zachary
Discussing the obvious about Africa's minimal influence.
A call for investment in road infrastructure,but the Africans must do it themselves!
Pursuit of Kleptocrats "Three Africa leaders to account for wealth" in France. I hope this becomes a trend.