Transcription
Black African countries can't build successful economies. Subsaharan Africa is often referred to as the poverty capital of the world, holding the distinction of being home to eight of the world's top 10 poorest countries. The continent produces or manufactures little of significance and faces significant challenges in education, weak and corrupt institutions, research and development, infrastructure and governance. The nearly 50 countries in subsaharan Africa exhibit similar deficiencies across these critical areas.
When Africa is mentioned globally, poverty typically comes to mind. Many Africans seek to immigrate to Europe, North America, and other regions rather than stay in Africa itself. This brings us to the crux of this video. Africans do not know the mathematics on how to build prosperous economies. I posit that black Africans can't build successful economies. When you lack an understanding of economic principles, this will likely hinder your ability to implement effective economic policies that could transform your country into a thriving economy. Africans lack the skills needed to transform it into a financial superpower.
What is an economy? An economy is a system composed of individuals, businesses, and governments within a region that produces and sells goods and services. It reflects how a nation create, distribute, and consume goods and services as well as its overall financial health and activity. For a country to have a thriving economy, it must have a government that ensures transparency and protects its citizens. An effective government does not own, produce, or sell goods. Instead, it must create a conducive environment for both businesses and individuals. This includes providing solid infrastructure and enacting enforcable policies that would enable these entities to flourish without fear.
For instance, Nigeria's primary food source is rice, which thrives in its tropical climate. Yet, it can't farm enough to feed its poverty people. Instead, it imports rice. Why is that? There is no incentive to become a rice farmer. Nigeria instead incentivize criminality than it does productivity. Establishing a business in Nigeria is notoriously difficult. Plagued by herders, bureaucratic red tape, rampant corruption and systemic bribery. The government has neglected infrastructure and security, crafting laws that primarily protect politicians and elites while ignoring the broader interest of the population. In Nigeria, almost every transaction involves kickbacks and under the table deals, creating a perilous economic environment. This situation directly contributes to the country's poverty.
The Nigerian government should prioritize infrastructure, security, education, and transparency in its policies. With over 150 million mobile phone users in Nigeria, every charging cable they need to charge those phone is imported from countries like China, India, Vietnam, and others. Why can't Nigeria produce these cables locally? The government should create incentives to encourage local production of essential goods while facilitating trade within the country and its neighbors. Another significant product in Nigeria is flour. Why can't Nigeria produce enough flour? When a country lacks the basic ability to produce essential goods like rice, flowers, cables, and toothpicks, such a country is bound to be sentenced to a life of poverty. Importing them weakens the currency because it creates a reliance on foreign currency to purchase essential goods. The government should promote local production and encourage international trade to bolster the local economy. That is not rocket science.
For context, Taiwan with a population of 23 million people had a total trade of $869 billion in 2024, while Nigeria's trade volume for the same year was just $89 billion. despite having over 10 times more people. Interestingly, Taiwan's trade volume surpassed that of West Africa's entire population of 466 million people. If you still believe that we are impoverished due to some covert Western agenda, you may not be grasping the actual issues at hand. The reality is that we are not manufacturing or producing many of the basic goods we require to develop our local economies. We must focus on internal trade and foster exchanges with neighboring countries. This will strengthen local currency, create jobs and enhance government revenues.
There is no magic solution to these challenges. The total inter trade among 16 West African countries which have a population of 466 million people was just $52 billion in 2024. In contrast, Switzerland with a population of just 8 million traded $127 billion with Germany in the same year. Singapore with just 5 million people engaged in interrade worth 54 billion with Malaysia while Hong Kong with 7 million people had an interrath with South Korea totaling $45 billion. No one would want to visit a country where over 85 million cases of bribery occur in the public sector each year.
The infrastructure in Nigeria and many other African countries are lacking. There are insufficient roads, trains, air traffic system, and reliable means for transporting goods. Institutions lack solidity and transparency resulting in significantly low productivity. Some might argue that their road and trains flight. However, try driving from Benin City to Akur in Nigeria, a distance of just 112 km, and you will see how many hours it takes you. You will also face around 50 police checkpoints, each one attempting to extort bribes, turning the journey into a nightmare. Additionally, you may encounter potential kidnappers, robbers and other hazards like potholes and damaged road. This situation is not unique to Nigeria. Countries like Ghana, Seneagal, Kivoir, Angola, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, Botswana and many others are similarly affected. Our economies are weak, unproductive, disconnected and isolated. Our currencies reflect this weakness as they are not tied to strong local productionbased economies that are interdependent on each other and their regional counterpart.
Another example of the challenges faced by black majority countries can be seen in nations outside Africa that are black majority such as Haiti, Jamaica, Grenada, and Dominica. They all struggle with weak economies. In contrast, predominantly white countries are those that were invaded and now occupied by white people outside of the traditional Europe such as New Zealand, Australia, the USA, Canada, Brazil, and part of Africa like South Africa and Namibia have developed economies by building infrastructure that facilitates trade and movement. They have established an environment where people, organizations, and businesses can thrive by implementing sound policies that secure their borders.
In 2025, many African countries still have less than 35% power coverage. In Nigeria, only 65% of the population have access to electricity. and those who do often have service only a few hours per day. Furthermore, 95% of Nigerians lack access to public running water. They must dig ball holes and treat the water themselves, if they treat it at all. Who knows? This could be a contributing factor to Nigeria having one of the lowest life expectances in the world. In South Africa and Namibia, the white population on average are the wealthiest people in Africa. They built infrastructure and policies that contributed to their economic development until the blacks reclaimed control. While this might be a brutal truth to accept, it is essential to acknowledge that South Africa under white leadership despite its racial dynamics was developed and more advanced than many countries deemed developed.
When a project is proposed to an African with a 10-year plan, it seems like a lifetime to them. We are more interested in what we can benefit from today and now, not in 10 years. An African takes charge of a project, organization, ministerial position, or even the presidency, they immediately switch on their tribal and myopic mindset, siphoning everything they can towards their fleeting interest. We are not ready for this. We simply can't build prosperous economies, which is why we remain poor. How else can Gabon, Cameroon, and both Congo be poor with some of the most endowed land and climate known to humanity if the people do not lack the skills to build prosperous economies? How else can Angola, Kenya, Ghana, and Kivvoir be poor? Or more accurately, why then are all subsaharan African countries poor except the non-black ones like Seichels and Mauritius which are majority non-black of mainland African countries.
Before I conclude actually there is one area where Africans excel beyond any other group. You can't even imagine what this area is after listening from the beginning. Yes, there is one area where we excel far better than anyone else. Dancing and partying. Yes, you heard me. Dancing and partying. Nobody does it better than us. Why?
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