Impending occasional rains in hunger-stricken northern Ethiopia provide a slim chance for farmer to get a yield in the ground and restart local food production, yet without funding this tight window of opportunity could be missed.

Following a visit to Ethiopia to assess the situation, FAO Director of Emergencies and Resilience, Rein Paulsen said: “Many farmers have been stripped of productive assets like seeds, animals, or tools due to looting, or saw their sources of credit disappear and seed markets disappear. As a result, local food production has been brought to a virtual standstill,” he said.

“The rural communities who play a critical role in keeping northern Ethiopia fed, urgently need support if they are going to manage to get seeds in the ground ahead of the impending short rains.

Each seed they plant represents a brick in a firewall against famine. But to get them those seeds, we need more financial support and improved access,” Paulsen added.

In addition to lost agricultural assets, the state of core basic services across northern Ethiopia is impeding relief efforts. Electricity and fuel are lacking, cash and credit are not to be found, and there is only one functional road in and out of the region, noted Paulsen.

FAO has urgently appealed for $30 million to reach nearly 1.2 million of the most food insecurity people in northern Ethiopia. To date, just $6.2 million have been pledged.

On top of cereal seeds, the Organization also aims to distribute fast-growing vegetable seeds and poultry starter kits so that families have a low cost and easy to maintain source of backyard produce and meat and eggs.

Alarming trends in food insecurity driving up needs

The conflict commenced at the peak of what would have been the main Maher season harvest, before many households had the opportunity to harvest their crops. An estimated 90 percent of the harvest was lost, while 15 percent of the region’s 17 million life-sustaining livestock were reported looted or slaughtered.

The most recent Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, determined that at least 353 000 people in the region were already experiencing famine-like (Catastrophe) levels of acute food insecurity in Tigray state alone. The IPC is a global, multipartner initiative, comprised of 15 UN agencies, regional organizations, and international non-governmental organizations, that facilitates improved decision-making through the provision of consensus-based food insecurity and malnutrition analysis. (Learn more about IPC indicators for acute food insecurity.)

All told, over 60 percent of the population in Tigray and the neighbouring zones of Amhara and Afar, more than 5.5 million people, are now coping with Crisis, Emergency, or Catastrophe levels of hunger (IPC 3, 4 and 5) and are at high risk of quickly sliding into starvation without support.

Agriculture reboot critical, but underfunded

Although the majority (80 percent) of people in northern Ethiopia depend on subsistence agriculture, so far very little financial support has been allocated to agricultural interventions that can help at-risk families resume productive activity and produce food for themselves and their communities.

The crises in Ethiopia is part of a disturbing wave of surging acute food insecurity around the globe, driven by  a toxic mix of pre-existing threats like conflict, climate shocks, and economic disruptions compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition to northern Ethiopia, some communities in southern Madagascar, South Sudan, and Yemen are in likelihood enduring famine-like or “famine-likely conditions.” Around 41 million people globally are now in emergency levels of food insecurity and at high risk of plummeting into famine if hit with another external shock.

Africa is a continent that is abundantly blessed with natural resources. But ever since imperialism showed its grim face to the continent through brutal colonial conquests, the control of such natural resources passed from the hands of Africans into those of gigantic European and American multinationals. The picture of natural resources in Africa is more of a curse as the huge profits end up in the pockets of a few, while environmental damage occurs at a dangerous, unprecedented scale.

The extent of environmental damage can be gleaned clearly through oil spills in Nigeria. Where oil was supposed to transform Nigeria into a more egalitarian society with equal access to social services and opportunities, there has been damage only. The people remain disempowered as the privatization of natural resources – which must benefit all citizens – continues unabated. Environmental degradation in Nigeria at the hands of oil multinationals is something that cannot be simply wished away. It is in all senses a matter of the utmost urgency.

In January 2021, a Dutch appeals court held that the Nigerian branch of the oil behemoth Shell was responsible for the damage caused by oil leaks in the Niger Delta. The subsidiary Shell Nigeria was ordered to pay compensation to farmers while the parent Anglo-Dutch company Royal Dutch Shell was told to install equipment (a leak detection system to one pipeline) to prevent further damage.

It was a landmark ruling by the Court of Appeal in the Hague following years of litigation and it frustrated the oil giant as Royal Dutch Shell expressed its “disappointment” with the ruling. It is a ruling which speaks volumes of the willful negligence occasioned by oil companies as they disregard every iota of morals and ethics for the attainment of super-profits.  The environment and its inhabitants have to bear the brunt of such negligence with their lives.

The argument that some of the leaks were due to the actions of saboteurs was considered by the court, but the matter still goes back to the responsibility of Shell – the latter must adequately protect the pipelines from sabotage. The court was not convinced that Shell’s saboteur argument had been proven “beyond a reasonable doubt.” The four farmers who instituted the proceedings argued that the leakages from underground oil pipelines had contaminated land and waterways, destroying their livelihoods and fundamental environmental rights in the process.

The ruling is a victory for the farmers and their communities, but questions of enforcement remain. The exact quantum of damages has not yet been ascertained. The verdict can still be appealed to a higher court. Shell’s oil exploration in the Niger Delta has done nothing to improve the lives of farmers despite the huge profits. People have been robbed “environmentally and economically.” In previous settlements, like the 2005 one, the compensation for villagers by the oil giant was measly.

This goes to reveal the extent of “foreign investment” and leaving the exploitation of natural resources to foreign private capital. To them [private foreign capital], the sanctity of the environment is an obstacle in their quest for profits on the world market. The same oil is not even processed in Nigeria. The conservation of the environment is of secondary importance to huge private capital, and it is seen as expendable (as long as the profits have been processed and acquired).

Oil spills in Nigeria have over the years undermined the livelihoods of people. Soil fertility levels have drastically reduced, water sources have been seriously contaminated, plant life has been destroyed, aquatic life has been destroyed while social infrastructure crumbles. The levels of water, land, and air pollution in the Niger Delta are scandalous. As oil exploration continues, poverty is perpetuated. Take for instance Oloibiri, where crude was first discovered in Nigeria in 1956. Social services are a remote possibility – there are no jobs, roads, schools, and hospitals.

Shell insists it will clean up the environment and maintains its line of defence that oil leakages are caused by sabotages. After they clean sites, vandals return to cause further damage and pollution, their argument as postulated in the press goes. But as one community leader Morris Lamiengha said to AFP, “It’s not completely true all the incidents are caused by sabotage. Some of them are due to equipment failures.” Under Nigerian law, oil firms are obliged to clean up all oil spills regardless of the cause. For some citizens, stopping oil exploration in Nigeria is the only way to put a permanent halt to this never-ending malaise.

It is not only Shell that has raped the Niger Delta. Other oil behemoths such as Exxon Mobil, Eni, Total, and Chevron have extensively damaged the ecosystem of the Niger Delta. It is almost as if the greatest nemesis of these companies is accountability. They desire to extract the benefits of the Earth without paying up for their omissions and commissions, amassing maximum profits at the minimum costs. They privatize the profits while socializing the harmful effects of environmental degradation and pollution. And this contradiction cannot be allowed to sustain.

Fishing settlements have been affected economically by the oil spills as marine life is annihilated. People in the gas-rich Niger Delta bemoan health concerns caused by oil spillages such as breathing problems and skin lesions. The invasion of water hyacinth is another major concern. Water hyacinth thrives in polluted environments and it can completely clog waterways such that navigation by fishing boats is impossible. It deprives sunlight and oxygen to marine organisms. Gas flaring is a common phenomenon, and it releases toxic elements into the atmosphere, aggravating climate change.

Capitalism has reached alarming amoral levels, where the sanctity of the environment and human life is desecrated. Oil spills in Nigeria over these years bear testimony to this. There should be stringent penalties for these companies imposed on them by the Nigerian government. An impediment to this is that a few bourgeois elites within Nigeria’s ruling establishment are colluding with these oil giants to enjoy the private profits of oil while inequality in the country is the order of the day. And the environment collapses.

But perhaps the question of the privatization of natural resources across the whole of Africa is one of ideology. This is a capitalist contradiction that can be resolved by a return to the solid ideologies of Pan-Africanism, where Africa is for Africans, and not for the elite in the global north who rip the continent apart; and where natural resources should inspire attempts towards an egalitarian society. Nigeria’s case is just but a microcosm of the macrocosm.

GE announced that it has secured an order to supply gas power generation equipment for West Africa Energy’s 300 megawatt (MW) combined-cycle power project in Cap des Biches, Dakar, Senegal.

Upon completion, the Cap des Biches plant will be the biggest power plant in the country and is expected to generate nearly 25% of the power consumed, providing the equivalent electricity needed to power up to 500,000 Senegalese homes.

The plant is expected to begin operations in phases starting in 2022, enhancing universal access to electricity and supporting the Senegalese Government’s target to increase its generation capacity with a greater utilization of natural gas and renewables.

“We are pleased to collaborate with GE to deliver reliable and efficient gas turbines to Senegal, aligned with the country’s strategy on gas to power under the leadership of President Macky Sall to develop the energy sector that will be critical for the development of strategic sectors of the economy, while actively driving localization initiatives,” said Samuel Sarr, CEO of West African Energy. “Once completed, the project will also go a long way in reducing the cost of electricity in the country,” he added.

GE will supply two 9E.03 gas turbines, one STF-A200 steam turbine, three A39 generators, two Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSG) and additional balance of plant equipment as part of the project scope.

Cap des Biches combined-cycle gas turbine power plant is being developed by Senegal’s West African Energy and will be built by Turkish engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) company, Calik Enerji. 

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group has approved a new policy on water, prioritizing water security and the transformation of water assets to foster sustainable, green and inclusive economic growth in regional member countries.

The policy aims to promote Africa-wide attainment of a minimum platform of water security, with a special focus on areas of fragility, as well as assist African countries and sub-regional groups harness and sustain water resources productivity potential to support development.

The new Water Policy is anchored around four principles:

Principle 1: attaining water security at household, national and regional levels should be recognised as a key outcome fundamental for inclusive growth. The Bank seeks to promote the attainment of water security in all its regional member countries and sub-regions.

Principle 2: equitable social welfare and economic growth. The Bank will continue to advocate for an integrated approach to water development and management by striking a sustainable balance in the social, economic and environmental spheres.

Principle 3: promoting sustainable and equitable access to water services as an enabler for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Water is a key enabler for many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, The Bank considers water to be essential for life, health, dignity, empowerment, environmental sustainability, peace and prosperity. The new policy aims to vigorously promote water security to advance the SDGs agenda.

Principle 4: transboundary water resources management and development should be recognised as a significant requirement to achieve seamless regional economic integration. The Bank will actively seek to use the transboundary nature of water to enhance regional integration and promote conflict resolution.

In its assessment of the policy, the Bank’s Board commended the Bank’s water, policy and strategy departments for leading the policy-preparation process.

The Bank will establish an internal coordination mechanism for water-related interventions to be overseen by a committee with adequate capacity, resources and appropriate skills.

Since 2010, the African Development Bank has invested an estimated $6.2 billion in water supply and sanitation services delivery.

COVID-19 has exposed vulnerabilities caused by under-investment in water, sanitation and hygiene services, also known as WASH. Despite these challenges, the active water sector portfolio stood at $4.3 billion, comprised of nearly one hundred national projects implemented in 40 countries, and 6 multinational projects.

According to a new report by Oxfam, the world’s wealthiest 1 percent continues to control more wealth than most others.

The anti-poverty charity organization, Oxfam, reported that economic inequality is getting more comprehensive than ever, and women are at the receiving end.

Oxfam claims that the world’s 22 richest men, for instance, own more wealth than all 325 million women in Africa combined. This report further goes to emphasize the level of poverty in Africa today and the hardship women in particular face daily.

“When 22 men have more wealth than all the women in Africa combined, it’s clear that our economy is just plain sexist,” Danny Sriskandarajah, chief executive at Oxfam Great Britain said in conjunction with the report’s publication this week.

Published in advance of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where world leaders will meet this week, Oxfam’s report highlighted how women are “chronically undervalued” for unpaid care work, Sriskandarajah said.

“If world leaders meeting this week are serious about reducing poverty and inequality, they urgently need to invest in care and other public services that make life easier for those with care responsibilities, and tackle discrimination holding back women and girls,” he said.

Women risk been trapped in poverty with little time to get an education, earn a decent living or have a say in how society is run, Sriskandarajah added.

Men not only own more than 50 percent more wealth than women, but they also control government decision making. On average, women make up only 18 percent of cabinet ministers globally and 24 percent of parliamentarians.

Oxfam’s data showed that more women are left out of the workforce during their peak productive and reproductive ages, worsening the income gap between men and women.

The problem of inequality affects more than just women as more than half of the world is trying to survive on $5.50 a day or less, according to data from the World Bank.

“Many people are just one hospital bill or failed harvest away from destitution,” Oxfam said in its report.

The world’s total number of 2,153 billionaires had more wealth than the poorest 4.6 billion people, which is more than half the global population, Oxfam’s data showed.

The pressure on carers will grow in the coming decade as the world faces not only an ageing population but also the adverse effects of climate change, such as requiring women to travel further to get clean water for their households, said Oxfam.

Fairer tax systems that tighten and close loopholes should be prioritized by governments, which should invest in national care systems so that the burden of care does not fall on unpaid work by women, the charity urged.

“[Our] research has shown that providing access to an improved water source could save African women significant time, for example in parts of Zimbabwe up to four hours of work a day, or two months a year,” Oxfam said.

“Investments in water and sanitation, electricity, childcare and public healthcare could free up women’s time and improve their quality of life.”

Outsourcing is a fantastic strategy any business can employ to capitalize on the available resources, products, and services of other companies. Most businesses employ the help and knowledge of outsourced experienced professionals instead of hiring their own in-house experts. This helps maximize business performance, decrease company expenditures, and avoid recruiting and hiring cycles.

There are several services that are particularly useful to outsource, such as accounting, legal, and data entry. Information technology (IT) outsourcing is one of the most popular and useful for SME owners to consider. In sum, an IT support team helps your business get up and running or significantly improve current workflow by helping you implement and maintain your IT infrastructure. For example, an IT support company like EC-MSP assists clients in handling network setup and security, disaster recovery, third party support, relocation, and on-call help, just to name a few of the basic services offered.

This article focuses on the wide variety of IT outsourcing services offered, and how companies are now turning to Africa to outsource these IT needs.

Outsourcing to Africa

Africa is being recognized as an excellent outsourcing destination. With huge populations and many educated people ready for work, it’s becoming an increasingly viable option. There are also many young people in Africa compared to other continents; this means a large influx of younger folks will become of working age within the next decade.

Another asset for companies and clients outsourcing to Africa is the general population’s language skills. Many countries in Africa have a first language of either English or French, two of the most universally understood languages across the globe. In addition, Egyptians can speak Arabic and cater to clients based in the Mediterranean. Other commonly spoken languages in certain African countries are German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Dutch. Some African countries are also geographically close to potential clients in Europe, and that makes them even more attractive as prospective outsourcing partners.

Additionally, companies based in Africa can more readily offer outsourced remote services due to the rise in continental infrastructure. Recently, many African countries have been multiplying their average internet speeds, telecom providers are growing, and there’s greater access to technology across the continent.

When it comes to IT outsourcing, the countries most recognized for this service are South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Egypt, and Morocco. It’s predicted that Africa could replace India, China, and Southeast Asian countries for outsourced IT labor.

Specific Country Advantages for Outsourcing

Because employees in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia speak French, these countries are popular with France as outsourcing destinations. These countries are also close to France with similar time zones.

Kenya is home to many programmers, and infrastructure is growing to support technological advances. So much so, in fact, that Nairobi is now called “Silicon Savannah.”

Ghana and Mauritius are becoming popular for IT delivery and call centers.

South Africa is most recognized as a very competitive country for outsourcing. With extensive government support for business growth, an increasingly expansive telecommunications network, impeccable employee work ethic, and relatively low cost of labor, it’s quite hard to beat.

However, the most notable are Egypt and South Africa. In 2021, both countries are now considered among the world’s top outsourcing destination countries. Many big-name companies like Microsoft, IBM, and Dell have centers in Egypt. Additionally, both countries’ ‘cybersecurity game’ is top-notch according to global standards.

Top African IT Services: Software Development, Engineering, and Data Labeling

What Egypt and South Africa also have in common is their specialty in software development. Egypt is very successful in this arena – with impressive clients like Vodafone – and often partners with North American clients. However, South Africa truly dominates when it comes to software development; they’ve been ‘in the game’ the longest, and have very well-versed talented professionals available. Johannesburg is recognized as a hub for software development outsourcing companies.

Software engineering has become a major source of economic gain in Africa, as well. In addition, many African countries supply outsourced website and app development, SEO, and data analytics.

Another popular way companies are outsourcing to Africans is with data labeling, an important component of AI technology. It requires human judgment to identify information that may be associated with photos, written text, or videos. The label helps machines learn how to make these identifications for themselves – for example, knowing a photo has a dog in it. Recently, Silicon Valley giants like Microsoft, Google, and Salesforce use “AI training data” provided by Samasource. Samasource outsources to Kenya for data labeling, finding cost-effective labor there due to a low cost of living. For these larger companies, it’s especially beneficial to outsource these data prep tasks that can take up to 80% of labor time at the company itself.

Outsourcing IT Within Africa

Some believe that for Africa to continue gaining a foothold as an offshore outsourcing destination, it should outsource within, i.e. outsourcing IT services to other African businesses. There are several industries that are better prepared and motivated to utilize outsourced IT services within Africa. One is the finance industry, which is currently looking to improve database management without breaking the bank (pun intended!) Another example is the healthcare industry, which is adopting more advanced patient information systems to monitor record-keeping more efficiently and effectively. As health records become digitalized, these clinics and hospitals need aid from IT support firms across the continent.

The Future of African Outsourcing

Outsourcing specialized services simply allows businesses a greater opportunity for growth.

Outsourcing to foreign countries offers the great advantage of higher pay rates which result in more profit for Africans. While this insight has spurred offshore outsourcing for other countries like India or South Asia, it is only beginning to take hold in Africa. European businesses are realizing they can save 40-50% by outsourcing to Africa in comparison to other common outsourcing populations. Because labor is more cost-effective and its economy is growing, Africa is seeing a massive boost in its outsourcing appeal.

African governments also seem to be supporting this shift, recognizing the economic opportunity here. IT outsourcing has become particularly more prominent as infrastructure grows to support it, and African businesses and individuals alike adopt modern technology like cloud computing.

There are still improvements to be made in this area, but we can only imagine increasing growth. To aid this initiative, African governments can put policies in place to support, like important data protection laws. If this happens, we will likely see even more IT outsourcing opportunities arising for Africans on the horizon.