Over the past few months there has been much tribulation for the global markets, especially in the Western countries. There were fears that the United States was heading for another recession and I couldn’t help but wonder what will happen to Africa? Is this the time for Africa to finally stand up for itself? 

The world made a mistake by overrating the US Dollar and thinking it was invincible. Many nations leaned on the US for support but with what has happened I wonder what will happen to these countries, will they take a deep plunge?

You know the saying when the elephants fight, the ants are crashed? I think this applies to what is happening, when the rich countries take a fall the poor nations suffer because they have become too dependent on the ‘West’. Look at Portugal and Spain, they are not necessarily poor but the economic crisis has gotten them pretty bad. Now imagine countries such as Sierra Leone or Ivory Coast who depend on large donations from the West to sustain its population.

In countries such as Mozambique, the price for merchandise has increased because they are mostly imported. The foreigners living there have complained about the increase; just imagine what the locals must be going through. Many receive less than US$100 a month. That is what one spends on one outing to the supermarket to buy the necessities to get by eg: rice, fruits, vegetables, milk, etc. 

Where do I want to go with this? I just want to show that if we invested in projects in Africa that would help them become self sufficient they would not suffer so much with the US and Euro Crisis. Invest in projects that will generate income, that will boost the local economy and help the community. Do not simply aid them with donations that make them more dependent and vulnerable but aid them with short courses and micro finance projects that would give them opportunities to grow. Micro finance projects are crucial to help develop less structured economies.