Last month the World Bank considered making a Nigerian its president and with Angolan companies eyeing up assets in their previous colonial masters' privatisation programmes, there can be little doubt that times have changed, that the discourse of the "African Crisis" is fading.
After decades of poor representation in the Western media thanks to poverty pornography and one-sided storytelling of 'barbaric, tribal conflicts', there is a distinct air of afro-optimism. But it would be careless to celebrate optimistic development indicators, and particularly positive economic growth rates in countries such as Tanzania, Ghana and Nigeria, without recognising the continuing deprivation experienced by many in both rural and urban settings.
There are some characteristics of sub-Saharan Africa's recent development that are indeed unique. It has been difficult to miss reports and documentaries about Chinese investment with its trail of roads, railways and hospitals as well as new copper mines and dams. There is talk of the explosion of mobile phone use and communications technology (ICT) making people's lives easier particularly for banking and in allowing farmers to check market prices easily.
But there is little said about who it is that is actually investing in the new markets of Africa: who is it that is making Accra a global city or Nigeria an economic powerhouse? What is the impact of large-scale exporting of agricultural produce on the local and global environment? How does profit from new burgeoning sectors lead to a better life for people living in Africa today? And, ultimately, is this economic growth sustainable?
These are broad questions, with undoubtedly different and complex answers depending on which societies and countries we are talking about. And by no means is the answer uniformly positive for each of the 54 states. But the flourishing interest in Africa from a range of international actors definitely requires some big questions to be asked. Meanwhile recognising the achievements of certain sectors and societies that appear to be doing better than previously is an important step to maintaining a positive view of a changing Africa.
At the end of May, some of these ideas and questions will be discussed at the inaugural African Development Forum (ADF) at School of Oriental and African Studies in London (SOAS), entitled 'Africa: Driving its Own Growth'.
The Forum aims to provoke discussion around the recent growth rates seen in some African countries and the implications of this for broader development. It is held with the support of the Royal African Society, Centre for African Studies and will be chaired by Professor Stephen Chan. The ADF invites people from the African business community, development professionals, academics and students to come and listen to an array of specialists from different sectors talk about opportunities and challenges facing the diverse continent.
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The Forum is entirely organised and run by SOAS postgraduate students and will examine the distinctive ways in which information and ICT, financial services, agro-production, mining and oil/gas are driving growth in Africa. It will also challenge the notion that economic growth is inherently beneficial to all by exploring some of the wider social and environmental implications.
The aim is to relate issues of doing business in Africa with those of sustainable development and to shed a positive light on the diversity of African investments. By bringing together business and policymakers instead of discussing issues in two separate spheres, the forum aims to offer participants access to different approaches of thinking about Africa.
Given the ADF's focus on 'Africa: driving its own growth', all speakers are chosen with the aim of showing how these industries involve African people and not just their resources. Panelists include experts who have extensive experience working with issues of development in Africa including worker's rights, government institutions, youth employment, gender inequalities and climate change.
Registration is now open at www.adf.soasunion.org or at the eventbrite page here. If you are not able to attend in person, you can send your questions for the panellists to 291046 [at] soas.ac.uk.
