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To: Shane M who wrote (1787)	6/28/2012 7:33:41 AM
From: bruwin	2 Recommendations Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 4720

WOW!!! What an excellent article, Shane M, especially as it’s been written by someone from the African continent who has experienced these things for himself. Many thanks for posting it. It’s the best I’ve read on the subject. I would say that he may have left out one consideration in the last paragraph … He said, ” With approximately 60 percent of Africa’s population under age 24, foreign investment and job creation are the only forces that can reduce poverty and stave off the sort of political upheaval that has swept the Arab world.” Personally I would add that an extremely important component that should be added to “foreign investment” and “job creation” for Africa is EDUCATION. One of the things that many folk, who are not of Africa, don’t understand, or are aware of about Africa, is the part that Tribalism still plays on this continent. When those in the West read that a ‘Democratic’ election has taken place in an African country they see it as a similar process that would have taken place in their part of the world. They think that a group of candidates are put in front of the population for election and that the electorate choose who they believe is the most suitable for the job. BUT that does not often reflect the reality, because black Africans belong to their own particular tribe and the candidate from Tribe ‘A’ is unlikely to get many votes from the members of Tribe ‘B’, and vice-versa. So what often happens is the candidate, who comes from the tribe that has the largest number of the voting population, will generally win. And when he/she is in power he/she will very likely choose the majority of the government ministers from his/her own tribe. Now that may, or may not, end up as a good thing, but it’s not strictly very Democratic. IMO, Education could play a very positive role in Africa because it should have several positive spin offs. It will increase the number of people who could contribute more meaningfully to their economies in terms of the increased level of skills it would provide. The greater the level of skill the higher should be the standard of living, as workers should be able to demand higher pay for their greater expertise. That, in turn, should be a positive benefit for the country’s economy in terms of the increased level of goods and services that that country can now produce and provide. In that situation, when elections are held, the general population should now be more inclined to consider who the candidates are because of their policies and agendas, as they could seriously affect their life styles and personal futures. It shouldn’t, IMO, necessarily be about tribal affiliations. It should rather be about what is best, OVERALL, for one’s country, and who is best able to lead a country in that direction, irrespective to which tribe that candidate belongs.