Sub-Saharan Africa continues to lag behind the rest of the developing world. While there is often a large workforce available, job opportunities are few and not as well paid as in other parts of the developing world or the industrialized Western world. Socially conscious business owners like Tribert Rujugiro Ayabatwa have sought to make a difference in SSA countries where his companies operate.
Locally owned companies rather than concerns owned globally, can provide the backbone of a thriving economy. When locally owned companies take precedence over firms owned by foreign conglomerates, the workers in the company will benefit along with their entire community.
The Economy of Sub-Saharan Africa
Fewer than 20 percent of the population of the world lives in an industrialized nation. This small proportion of the global population creates 70 percent of the world’s economic output. These conditions lead to massive income inequality. This situation has not been beneficial for the developing world, especially for Sub-Saharan Africa that lags behind.
Socially responsible companies like Ayabatwa’s have made it one of their goals to foster greater employment opportunities in Sub-Saharan Africa. Through direct and indirect employment, Ayabatwa’s companies bring food to the table, stimulated secondary industries, and unleash trading activities across the region.
Home-Grown Jobs
Companies that come in from other nations frequently bring their own workforce along with them. This squeezes the locals out of job opportunities, especially at management levels. On the other hand, locally owned firms are able to employ area residents with few managers coming in from outside. This means that high-paying jobs are concentrated in the local area.
Income Inequality
One of the worst problems in Sub-Saharan African countries is income inequality. The rich and prosperous tend to own much more of the wealth than regular citizens. Homegrown companies such as Ayabatwa’s help to change the status quo by creating well-paying jobs to middle-level and lower-level earners.
Income inequality is also a problem in developed nations, but in developed nations, there is more opportunity for a lower-level wage earner to receive an education that allows them to move up in the workplace. In Sub-Saharan Africa, there are fewer educational opportunities and fewer opportunities for advancement.
Educational Issues
Another way in which socially responsible employers are making strides is by offering educational opportunities to their employees and their families. Everywhere in the world, education is the key to advancement. It is even more of an advantage in a developing country where the workforce is primarily unskilled.
Economic Cycles
In Sub-Saharan Africa, the local economy is often subject to boom and bust cycles. Without the stability that large economies provide, the developing countries are frequently pushed by economic forces out of their control. Strong employers are able to stabilize the local economy and provide a steady source of income. Agricultural communities are especially vulnerable to this kind of instability, so it is doubly important that these companies are steady and managed properly.
Exports and Imports
In developing nations, the export and import figures are often not favorable to the local economy. When foreign firms are in charge of imports and exports, most of the money made goes outside the country. Indigenous firms are able to keep more of their profits inside the country.
Strong Local Companies
A base of strong local companies is necessary to produce economic stability in Sub-Saharan Africa. Ayabatwa’s businesses employ thousands of people in ten Sub-Saharan African countries. His companies have undoubtedly brought a level of prosperity and stability in the region.
Global Economic Forces Affect Sub-Saharan Africa Third
The economic fortunes of Sub-Saharan African countries are dependent on major players in the world economy. With an increased level of outside investment, foreign-owned companies often export all of their wealth as well.
Local business owners like Tribert Rujugiro Ayabatwa change this status quo. Local investment means more opportunities for African employees and a greater return on investment to their communities.
Making sure that employees are taken care of means a great deal to Ayabatwa, and his goal is to make sure that his employees share in his prosperity. His consumer products companies will no doubt continue to provide economic opponents to the regions in which they operate. The more homegrown companies such as Ayabatwa’s emerge and consolidate, the sooner Sub-Saharan Africa will prosper.
