CAPE TOWN - Africa, like other emerging markets, has generally had a bad press in the global media.
Covering Africa is still dominated by a cornucopia of centuries-old stereotypes – some still based on colonial and racial metrics – relating to conflict, coups, terrorism, poor governance, corruption, poverty and natural disasters.
The international media often report on the continent from their perspectives and standards, as if these are the God-given metrics of societal progress and prosperity, oblivious of the historical, political and resource context.
Africa’s compelling stories and successes are often lost in translation because they do not fit the narrative.
Unless you have those iconic occasions such as the release and subsequent two terms of Nelson Mandela as the first democratically elected president of a free South Africa.
Can changing the news narrative on Africa, for instance, attract more foreign direct investment (FDI) into the continent as Dr Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank maintains?
The Business in Africa Narrative Report published in February underpinned on “research that there is a correlation between increased media visibility and higher investment flows”, concludes that “there is an overemphasis on the role of governments, foreign powers and larger African states alongside an underappreciation of the role of youth, women, creative businesses, entrepreneurs, smaller successful African states and Africa’s future potential”.
The report written by Richard Addy, and published jointly by Africa No Filter and AKAS, identifies seven metrics of reporting about business in Africa.
Both international and local media cover business in Africa negatively with the latter referencing corruption even more.
Some 70% of international coverage is dominated by references to foreign powers like China, the US, Russia, France and the UK.
There is an over-focus on South Africa and Nigeria “while business stars like Mauritius, Botswana, the Seychelles and Namibia get little coverage and research attention”.
Arts and music feature only in 1% of all articles despite Nollywood being the world’s second-largest film industry and the growing impact of musical influences like AfroBeats and AmaPiano.
Youth and women are grossly under-represented given that the continent has the youngest demography, and according to the Mastercard Index, the highest concentration of women business owners in the world.
More than half of business news relate to government action, policy and regulation.
Despite the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) being the largest free trade area in the world, with 54 countries with a combined GDP of $3.4 trillion (R52.5 trillion) , it makes up under 1% of news and analysis in global and African media.
The report’s publishers – audience research and media narrative specialists – have spent much resources researching their findings, many of which are valid.
Their approach, however, may be too parochial, seemingly bypassing investor sentiment and the role of capital markets – a crucial driver of FDI flows. The findings are hardly new!
The annual Absa Financial Markets Index (AFMI) report for instance has monitored countries’ openness to FDI for six years and is an objective indicator of the attractiveness of Africa’s capital markets.
It is the benchmark for the investment community and Africa generally to gauge 23 SSA countries’ performance across a host of indicators important for financial market development.
Economists such as Jeff Gable of Absa Group believe that “open transparent financial markets are the best way to ensure that the continent can attract foreign or domestic capital.
“This could translate into governments providing better opportunities for all Africans.”
The investor world does not owe Africa a favour. In today’s socio-economic uncertainty, the competition for scarce resources, including FDI, is fierce.
Requisite policies, structural reforms and quality data are essential in unlocking opportunities and constraints that impact local investments. Sustainability, green finance and ESG metrics add to this mix.
It is up to countries to earn a reputation for FDI and local investment by setting examples in political and financial governance, accountability, rule of law, compliance and disclosure.
This is not a colonial imposition or metric, but what millions of Africans demand but never seem to get.
There are those in the media who naively believe that a positive narrative will somehow open the floodgates to investment.
Investors know which side their bread is buttered, and some will get up to shenanigans to gain a first mover advantage.
The role of the media is to report objectively on the facts, and to scrutinise those in power in politics, business or elsewhere.
In Africa, this is often not the case as governments habitually target the media.
The Business in Africa Narrative Report also overestimates the power and influence of the media in investment decision-making: “Very few institutions are as powerful as the media. As storytellers to millions, they have the power to shape public perceptions and inform narratives – good and bad – about the investment landscape and opportunities in Africa.”
The global investment matrix has dramatically changed in recent years. Investment is driven by capital owners for manifold reasons.
Compliance relating to ESG, Zero Carbon, diversity, gender equality, climate action, UN SDG agenda, anti-child exploitation, anti-slavery and human rights are becoming the norm.
Capital ownership has shifted from the West. According to the SWF Institute data, Abu Dhabi, China and Saudi Arabia are the largest owners of assets under management in the world with the Government of Norway Pension Fund, the single largest one with over $1.2 trillion under management.
Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General, AfCFTA, last week lamented in a speech at Dubai Expo, that intra-Africa trade accounts for a mere 18% of total trade. “This is a major concern for a continent which has about 17% of the world population, but accounts for only 2.1% of world trade and 2.9% of world GDP,” he rued.
The danger is not to define our economic and investment prospects and prosperity by what others think of us.
We should define these by the values which we set ourselves based on international best practices in integrity, commitment, accountability and transparency that demonstrate that Africa is open for business and full of exciting business opportunities.
* Parker is a writer and economist based in London
Cape Times