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Our investment in Africa is starting to pay dividends

Richard Marles

by Richard Marles

23 Jul 05:45am

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Filed under: Africa, Economic Growth, Economy, Foreign Investment

43 comments

Africa is rising. Six of the fastest ten growing economies are not in Asia. They are in Africa. Indeed the African economy has outgrown that of East Asia in eight of the last ten years.

It's the green bit… and our work there could help put our own economy in the black

In concert with this economic growth, there has also been a growth in democracy. In Sub-Saharan Africa, 30 nations held 45 elections last year, and 20 nations will hold 38 elections this year. The Arab Spring has ushered in a new era of democracy in Africa’s north. The result is that Africa has never been more democratic.

The battle against African poverty is also looking promising. Australian aid has helped almost 750,000 people access safe water and more than half a million people access basic sanitation. In Ethiopia, child mortality has been reduced by a third in the last five years.

This is revolution. And it is a revolution which will see some countries like The Gambia meet all the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015 and Africa as a whole make progress against the MDGs which could not have been imagined when the goals were set in 2000.

As Africa rises, Australia’s role in the African continent is blossoming. Led by the mining sector, Australian companies now have $50 billion in current and prospective investment in the continent. Two hundred companies are involved in more than 650 projects across Africa.

This commercial investment highlights the synergy between Australia and Africa which we are now well and truly exploring. Both the Australian and African continents are characterized by having large deserts and great mineral wealth, as well as dry-land and tropical agriculture. As a developed country with world class expertise in mining and farming, we are as well placed as any developed world nation in partnering with Africa in its development.

The scope of this opportunity has led Australia to dramatically increase its footprint in Africa. We have in recent years opened embassies in Ethiopia and Ghana. We are about to open another embassy in Senegal: the first Australia embassy in Francophone Africa. We have established diplomatic relations with every nation in Africa as well as the African Union.

Our aid has grown such that we now provide more than half a billion dollars in development assistance to Africa which represents a quadrupling in our aid contribution to Africa since 2007.

There remain very great challenges facing Africa.

Africa is still poor. Humanitarian crises still afflict the continent. In recent years we have seen another famine in the Horn of Africa and the drought in the Sahel is currently the world’s largest humanitarian emergency, with 18 million people exposed to potentially fatal food shortages.

The breakdown in governance in northern Mali is deeply concerning. Terrorist organizations are on the march in this part of the world and the prospect of such entities using the breakdown of order as an opportunity to establish bases there is very real. And a recent coup in Guinea-Bissau is a reminder of the use of this means of gaining power which sadly characterised much of Africa’s past.

But even on the question of peace and security, Africa can tell an optimistic story. Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire and Sierra Leone are all emerging from conflict. Despite the conflict between Sudan and South Sudan the parties are at least talking.

There are concerns in the Democratic Republic of Congo but at the same time many thousands of Africans serving under the banner of the UN are making a difference in the DRC. And the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) is an entirely African endeavour consisting of several thousand peacekeepers from African nations that is providing Somalia with more hope of a peaceful future than it has had in a quarter of a century.

Spending four days at the African Union Summit last week it was impossible not to be struck by the optimism of Africa. You had a sense that if Africa can meet its peace and security challenges the potential for the continent is almost limitless.

Thirty per cent of the world’s mineral resources are in Africa, yet only 5 per cent of mineral exploitation is occurring on the African continent. Sixty per cent of the world’s unused arable land is in Africa. There is much upside in the future of Africa and Australia is poised to play a big part in it. In the process of helping Africa meet its destiny Australia will also be a significant beneficiary.

In Australia’s world view, the place of Africa is growing larger by the day. Be it peace and security assistance, aid, commercial engagement or diplomatic relations, Australia is becoming deeply immersed in Africa. At every level we have bought into Africa’s future and we are there to stay.

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43 comments

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    • TimB says:

      06:19am | 23/07/12

      ‘As Africa rises, Australia’s role in the African continent is blossoming. Led by the mining sector, Australian companies now have $50 billion in current and prospective investment in the continent. Two hundred companies are involved in more than 650 projects across Africa.’

      Oh dear. What happens when the Africans start protesting at all those nasty foreign countries siphoning away the mineral wealth of their nations?

      Maybe they’ll come up with some sort of mining ‘super profits tax’. Won’t that be fun?

      Reply

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      07:15am | 23/07/12

      The article provides some good news. We need to be accurate on the statistics. $50 billion of Australian companies investments may not represent true Australian investments as a significant fraction may be actually foreign investments using our Australian companies as vehicles.

      Australian had shown the way with mineral resources rent tax. Good for Africa to follow so that the population can get better value. Indonesia now is more advanced than Australia to make sure local people get better returns on their resources.

    • M says:

      09:24am | 23/07/12

      I hope Africa does come up with some sort of mining tax. That wealth is theirs and should be used to help build their nations. Living in a first world country should be restricted to white anglo’s living in Western nations. They way to stability is to lift people out of poverty.

    • M says:

      10:35am | 23/07/12

      Meant to say “shouln’t be restricted.”

    • james says:

      11:15am | 23/07/12

      Oh dear. What happens when the Africans start protesting at all those nasty foreign countries siphoning away the mineral wealth of their nations?

      If they are smart they will get the most value out of *their* mineral wealth that they can.

    • TimB says:

      11:52am | 23/07/12

      ‘If they are smart they will get the most value out of *their* mineral wealth that they can. ‘

      But you don’t see the irony?

      We have Richard here crowing about our ‘investment in Africa’, but on the other side of things we have Gillard and Swan bitching about all these nasty foreign companies stealing profits from Australians.

      The investments that Richard thinks are so good will then of course become less attractive and less worthy of crowing about if/when the African nations decide to hit our companies with a pile of higher taxes.

      The entire double standard is amusing.

    • james says:

      12:37pm | 23/07/12

      TimB if they are clever they will use a profit based tax rather than the ridiculous royalties system we have here that punishes companies before profitability is reached.

    • Splinter says:

      12:40pm | 23/07/12

      Here is what is amusing TimB
      South America
      Brazil is planning to come up with a new mining code and an increase its the mining taxes in the near future.
      The government wants to double the royalty rate to four per cent from the existing two percent of revenues it earns from mining companies.
      The Brazilian Government is also planning a “Special Participation Tax” which will differ from the royalties scheme.
      As per the current indications, this new tax in Brazil will target only big projects and may come up to 25 per cent of the total project’s capital, while smaller projects are expected to be left out of the purview of the new tax.
      Peru - this country which opted for tax regime change in 2011. The country increased the royalty tax rates to between one and 12 per cent of operating profits, from it’s existing rates of between one and three per cent of the net sales.
      Those mining companies which have signed “concluded legal stability” agreements with the Chilean government, thereby making them immune to the new royalties will also have to pay a “special contribution” which will be between four and 13 per cent of their operating profits, slugging them once again.
      Chile - The Chilean government is making motions to raise the tax to between five and nine per cent from 2018 onwards, as the current contracts with the foreign mining companies will end by 2017.

      And here we have your African mining nations
      African countries such as Tanzania, Namibia, Uganda, Guinea, Ghana, Gabon, Mozambique etc. - which are dominated by foreign mining companies - are planning for imposition of higher taxes on their mining sectors.
      The competition between the mining companies will create a favorable ground for the African countries which are demanding an increased share from the profits of these mining companies in the form of increased taxes and a share in the actual operations.

      Some closer to home
      India - The Indian government is also mulling additional mining taxes.
      The proposed taxes could result in mining companies paying up to 26 per cent more tax on their profits garnered from resources such as coal and iron ore, in a similar vein to Australia.

      So you see TimB, just as with putting a price on carbon, Australia again demonstrates that through the effective leadership of a Labor minority government we are leading the world in realising value for national assets.

      I wonder if any of these countries have a Tony Abbott like dummy spit going on. I wonder if the ordinary citizens of these countries rally round the billionaire foreign owned miners like the right wing fringe do in Australia?

    • Kevin 27 says:

      06:09pm | 23/07/12

      Maybe they would be better off just killing the invaders and keeping THEIR wealth? Why not?

    • Gregg says:

      08:01am | 24/07/12

      Some classical comments if ever there were for supporters of the MRRT may want to think about the consequences of taxing an organisation out of being competitive and that could happen just as easily in Africa as it will in Australia if you have African nations listening to any Labor party advice.

      It’s a bit like the Carbon Tax, just great for a quick revenue raiser but could lead to longer term demise of organisations and so no organisations to tax and what then and just what do you achive unless you have global equity?
      Somehow, I doubt the Chinese developers will have taxation too much on their mind.

      And then James
      ” TimB if they are clever they will use a profit based tax rather than the ridiculous royalties system we have here that punishes companies before profitability is reached. “

      That’ll be real great if profitality is never so good and engineered with
      associated offshore customers to be that way!

      Generally, there is a complete lack of understanding by many on economics of mining and have a think about where the billions of $$$$ might have to come from in the first place to develop a mineral deposit and then what are the consequences of not having resources developed at all.
      You might also want to consider risks involved and the worth of forward contracts if proposed buyers are bankrupt or just decide to reneg on buying.

    • Fiddler says:

      06:40am | 23/07/12

      Lets hope it continues. Hopefully they will curb their population expansion. The main issue with Africa is that all this hard work is often only one coup away from going back to square one, or worse as it makes one tribe richer and able to buy more arms etc to suppress the rest.

      You lost credibility when you made out the Arab Spring to be a good thing, what was in place was bad, the direction things are heading is worse. These countires will turn into Pakistans

      Reply

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      07:31am | 23/07/12

      It is immoral for Australia to increase the growth rate of the populations in Africa. By doing so we will cause immense sufferings when the World suffers a critical global food shortage in the lifetimes of the majority of Australians alive today.

      Ninety percent of our foreign aid should be to promote birth control. We should champion the one child policy which China has demonstrated as a really practical way to manage population growth in a developing country.

      I am reminded how communists used to promote their ideology worldwide. Our focus on democracy in many overseas countries are misplaced. For most people in many countries food and a decent living are their top priorities and they cannot afford the chaos of democracy.

      Look at Iraq and Iran. I have taught many students from Iran under the Shah and under Saddam Hussein. In my view the populations in Iran and Iraq have suffered in the push for democracy. I blame France for assisting the Ayatollah in overthrowing the Shah in 1978. I was then teaching at the University of Arizona, USA which then had a few thousands students from Iran.

      Some students from Iraq told me recently that about a million people have died thanks to President Bush and his virtual WMD.

      Australia must avoid helping USA and Europe (NATO) interfere in the politics of other countries especially in Africa. We must focus on Asia.

    • marley says:

      08:52am | 23/07/12

      The best way to reduce birth rates in Africa is to eliminate tariffs on their goods.  As their economy grows and prosperity increases, the birth rates will drop.  The process is already well underway in North Africa;  sub-Saharan Africa will follow in time.

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      09:37am | 23/07/12

      @ marley. I agree with you that economic development generally reduces birth rates in the long run. But unfortunately this effect is too slow in most cases to be effective.

      I suggest you do some simulations and understand this in detail. Matlab is a very easy software to do simulations.

      But mathematical models in the management of biological populations you can read my book, “Management and Analysis of Biological Populations” Elsevier Press, New York, 1980.

    • marley says:

      10:00am | 23/07/12

      @Dr.Goh - well, I don’t know about that.  After all, the fertility rate in India has dropped 20% in 10 years, and has halved since the 1950s. A combination of economic improvements and family planning measures has it well on the road to replacement level birth rates. Most of Asia is on the same trajectory. I don’t see why Africa should not embark on the same road.

    • Zaf says:

      10:22am | 23/07/12

      Fiddler

      Representative Govt is always more stable, in the long run, than non-representative Govt, no matter how ‘benevolent’ or apparently successful the latter may appear to be.  If the Arab spring results in sustainable democracies, this will hold true - whether you like what the people of the region freely choose or not. 

      Pakistan is a mess precisely because its democracy has been repeatedly overturned by the Army, which now allows an attenuated version to serve as a powerless fig leaf to Army control.  This situation is not unrelated to the increase in disaffection with the State, and the rise of support for extremist groups.  It’s the Army, btw, which is keeping the NATO supply route to Afghanistan open in return for US aid - a democratic Govt in Pakistan would not do that.  Draw your own conclusions about cui bono there.

      Dr BS

      [In my view the populations in Iran and Iraq have suffered in the push for democracy. I blame France for assisting the Ayatollah in overthrowing the Shah in 1978. I was then teaching at the University of Arizona, USA which then had a few thousands students from Iran.]

      I just hope that you weren’t teaching history.

    • Zaf says:

      10:29am | 23/07/12

      Re population and one of the possible outcomes of the ‘Arab Spring’ - assuming it turns Egypt into Iran

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_planning_in_Iran

      The Republic of Iran has a comprehensive and effective program of family planning. While Iran’s population grew at a rate of more than 3%/year between 1956 and 1986, the growth rate began to decline in the late 1980s and early 1990s after the government initiated a major population control program. By 2007 the growth rate had declined to 0.7 percent per year, with a birth rate of 17 per 1,000 persons and a death rate of 6 per 1,000.[1] Reports by the UN show birth control policies in Iran to be effective with the country topping the list of greatest fertility decreases. UN’s Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs says that between 1975 and 1980, the total fertility number was 6.5. The projected level for Iran’s 2005 to 2010 birth rate is fewer than two.

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      10:47am | 23/07/12

      @ Marley

      Recently I had diner with a Hindu Indian engineer trained in Australia. He is pretty worried about the Muslims growth rates in India, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim_population_growth

      The article above says that growth rates of Muslims around the World and India in particular is double that of non-muslims.

    • marley says:

      11:22am | 23/07/12

      In my experience, Indian Hindus are always paranoid about Indian Muslims.  I haven’t bothered to look up the birth rates by religion in India, but your friend is wrong on his general point.  Birth rates in Muslim Indonesia , Turkey, and Morocco are all well below Indian birth rates. Birth rates in Muslim Tunisia are below replacement rates. 

      Muslim societies are no different from any others - as their economies develop, their birth rates drop.

    • Rose says:

      11:56am | 23/07/12

      Birthrates automatically drop when families become wealthier and better educated, it happened in Australia and all other first world nations and will happen in Africa. Refugees and migrants from poorer countries who come to Australia reduce birthrates if not in the first generation definitely the second nd subsequent generations. There will always be large families, I myself have 6 children, but the overall trend is to smaller families as they become more established in Australia.
      “Ninety percent of our foreign aid should be to promote birth control. We should champion the one child policy which China has demonstrated as a really practical way to manage population growth in a developing country.” I can see how you would think that murdering babies, forcing abortions and other such methods which have become almost commonplace in China would be a great option, you seem more concerned with the end result than the process.
      It is never OK to be cruel to some people to benefit others, that makes you sound like you have some sort of ‘God” delusion, that you can personally pick and choose who gets taken care of and who gets put on the scrap heap. It is possible to improve the lives of people without destroying others, it just takes a little longer and requires more thought and integrity. Being cruel to be kind is only likely to cause people to embrace civil unrest and terrorism.
      Being cruel to be kind is the lazy, selfish person’s solution!!

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      12:39pm | 23/07/12

      @ Rose. As I replied to Marley I agree that increased wealth would decrease population growth. But unfortunately this well accepted effect which I agree to is not effective enough.

      Each FOUR months the population of the World increases more than the TOTAL population of Australia. This is fact and harsh reality.

      Human beings like you and also me tend to think short term and by nature we cannot think long term. What if people like Paul Ehrlich of Stanford University, myself and many scientists who study biological populations are right that there will be a critical global food crisis in Asia, Africa etc. Hundreds of millions will die then. Do you feel any responsibility for those who die then?

      China’s one child policy grew out of desperation. Maybe up to 80,000,000 Chinese die from famines due to politics and Japanese aggressions in the last century. They then saw the need to impose the one child policy, see an interesting article on this at: http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=314403.

      Paul Ehrlich of Stanford University and the Club of Rome then had an impact on China one child policy..

      I truly wish Africa well and hope they wake up to the need to manage their populations.

    • JT says:

      01:26pm | 23/07/12

      @Dr B S Goh

      You are hardly doing yourself any favours by quoting Paul Ehrlich. Economic growth will naturally lower birth rates, and there is no food shortage. It is a myth. The problem that exists with food worldwide is one of distribution not production.

    • fml says:

      02:42pm | 23/07/12

      goh,

      Paul Erhlich has been discredited, you still havnt put up how you want to fix the problem, I do not think you are going to get enough support on here to support your sterilisation agenda.

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      03:08pm | 23/07/12

      @ JT and fml. If you use the scientific method you can understand why Paul Ehrlich’s predictions were proved wrong on a temporary basis by the Green Revolution in food production see Clark’s videos at: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/video/2011-06/29/content_12798567.htm

      Sadly the Green Revolution in food production cannot be repeated and again Clark’s videos explain why not.

      You look at the facts and draw your own conclusions.

      @fml. It is not for me to prescribe sterilization. That is your words not mine.

    • Mahhrat says:

      07:57am | 23/07/12

      Refreshing to hear some good news out of those places; I hope it continues for them.

      Reply

    • Nyani says:

      08:55am | 23/07/12

      Now watch the procreation multiply.
      Whilst there get a copy of Ross Kemps trip to Nigeria & observe the state of their waterways.
      Then pass your GOOD NEWS remarks.
      In fact we should export our own ‘greens’ to fix the Nigerian problem of human contamination of the planet.

    • fml says:

      08:46am | 23/07/12

      It’s great for someone to finally tell the other side of the story, it’s not all famine and warlords and it’s good to give people an opportunity to realise that there is progress, it takes time and it is still ongoing, but it’s good.

      Reply

    • Chris says:

      09:03am | 23/07/12

      ‘The Arab Spring has ushered in a new era of democracy in Africa’s north. The result is that Africa has never been more democratic.’

      I’m guessing that the brand of democracy that will take root in Libya, Tunisia and Egypt may be different than the brand of democracy you are expecting.

      Reply

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      09:27am | 23/07/12

      Chris well said!

      Among my many Iranian students there was so much hope, dreams and excitement when the Shah was being overthrown in 1978. See where is Iran today.

      Egypt has reached its carrying capacity for population. No matter which political party takes over it will be hell for the people.

      US the greatest exporter of food is having a terrible weather which will affect the prices of food in the next 12 months on a worldwide scale.

    • iansand says:

      09:29am | 23/07/12

      China was a couple of decades ahead of us into Africa.

      I hope the proceeds filter down to the people rather than being diverted into the Swiss bank accounts of the kleptocrats.

      Reply

    • Dr B S Goh, Australian in Asia says:

      09:48am | 23/07/12

      Years ago when China felt isolated it did great things in Africa like building a railway line in Tanzania.

      But current China investments on resources in Africa, based on Western Economics Theories on maximizing profits for companies, are pretty lousy for the local people.

    • ByStealth says:

      12:45pm | 23/07/12

      I agree Dr B. The stories I’ve heard coming out of Africa regarding Chinese investment aren’t good.

    • Gregg says:

      09:46am | 23/07/12

      ” As a developed country with world class expertise in mining and farming, we are as well placed as any developed world nation in partnering with Africa in its development. “
      We have through development also created many of our own problems yet to be fixed and further development is also causing new problems to arise, CSG one area, the MDB another and yet in our own so called developed and democratic country there seems little resolution.

      I’d reckon we ought to be spending more time and money fixing our own backyard rather than putting taxpayers money elsewhere.
      Sure, put some effort into provision of water and sanitisation and if privately funded organisations want to go spending up on commercial developments, they ought to be in accordance with the specific regulations of individual countries.

      Reply

    • Ron Vincent says:

      09:53am | 23/07/12

      Generally most commentators above are saying “Africa is blossoming”. Haven’t you people been aware that in excess of 770,000, at last count, Chinese have been sent to Africa to develop their resources. That will help their economies enormously. You can bet your bottom $ that China will soon be relying on them for coal, iron ore and other commodities, and not Australia. Good luck to them for their new found friends, but I suspect that it will be to our detriment in the long run. If Labor, God forbid, have that to contend with Wayne Swann’s surplus will look pretty sick.

      Reply

    • stephen says:

      10:02am | 23/07/12

      The Saudis have sent a thousand Missionaries to Africa.

      Maybe, then, this Nation will be a test case as to whether the Banks get there first - according to your scenario -  or the terrorists.

      Reply

    • Cars says:

      10:09am | 23/07/12

      This article has made my week! Horray for Africa! They’re finally getting somewhere.

      Reply

    • John L says:

      11:17am | 23/07/12

      I agree Cars. Thanks for an interesting article Richard

    • Fabbz says:

      01:58pm | 23/07/12

      its a pity our investment in africa hasnt stopped the gangs of ungrateful, racist sudanese refugees from running amok in our major cities, plundering as they go, referring to australians as “aussie maggots” and “white maggots”. charming.

      Reply

    • cynic says:

      06:40pm | 23/07/12

      Odd? “Our investment” is paying off in africa. This item says $50billion & 200 OZ companies doing business there. That’s not the federal labor government so how does “our investment ” suddelnly become julia gillard’s play thing and something to boast about??? Talk about clutching at straws and riding on the coat tails of companies that are doing something good. Of course, the greens will want them stopped as they present a threat to the environment.

      Reply

    • cynic says:

      06:40pm | 23/07/12

      Odd? “Our investment” is paying off in africa. This item says $50billion & 200 OZ companies doing business there. That’s not the federal labor government so how does “our investment ” suddelnly become julia gillard’s play thing and something to boast about??? Talk about clutching at straws and riding on the coat tails of companies that are doing something good. Of course, the greens will want them stopped as they present a threat to the environment.

      Reply

    • Tess says:

      03:53pm | 24/07/12

      Dr. Goh, after reading an online Canadian news today about the huge increase in Australian government handovers to the population controllers I now see your comments above. I did not know you had taken over from God Almighty to lay out a plan to cut world population. Sorry Sir, you sound so superior in your opinion that I find it frightening. But then you show how off kilter you are when you name Paul Ehrlich and yourself and other scientists in one sentence. Enough said !  Just connect yourself to Margaret Sanger and the man who took up her eugenics promotion, Hitler, and you complete your circle. Life of all human beings is to be respected. Greed for power and wealth - by the few who manipulate society, UN, IMF, UNICEF, Bildebergers,  Agenda 21, Club of Rome, WHO - is not.  The problem is that the majority of governments in power today are simply lackeys of the latter groups. And Sir, that is the reason there is turmoil and poverty and hunger.  How much do you donate to the volunteering charities who work on the ground to feed and care for the poor and the weak ?

      Reply

    • Sustainable choice says:

      10:25am | 25/07/12

      “If development is a contraceptive, it has a high failure rate”:
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB7G9T-Q63w&feature=youtu.be

      Development itself will not stabilise population and help the world transition to a sustainable future.

      We need to provide reproductive health services to the 220m+ women worldwide that currently lack full control over their own fertility.

      Here is the policy of the STABLE POPULATION PARTY:
      Tie foreign aid wherever possible to the improvement of economic and environmental sustainability, with a particular focus on female rights and education, and on opportunities for women and couples to access reproductive health and voluntary family planning services to help prevent unwanted pregnancies. Some 222 million women who would like to avoid or delay pregnancy lack access to effective family planning. Our aim is to help stabilise global population at the United Nations’ ‘low variant’ peak estimate of around 8 billion by mid century.

      Reply
 
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