There is so much economic opportunity in Africa, support for IT investment, and entrepreneurial energy. Africa is the least developed continent in the world. There are 1. But Africa is no longer about famine, poverty, and war. That was the Africa of the 20th century. The 21st century Africa is about opportunity, technology, and entrepreneurship. But these are only five of the 54 countries in Africa. Tremendous economic growth, investment, and rapidly rising living standards.
What happened in South East Asia from rapid growth and poverty reduction is now happening in Africa from Uganda was the first country I came to in Africa back in and so I decided to start investing here in East Africa and expand later. I hope someday to run a fund making investments in high-growth socially responsible companies all over the developing world. This is my third time in East Africa. When I came for the first time in , I held the view that the way to best make positive change was to give money away to NGOs and non-profits.
I come now with the perspective that it takes all three sectors of society government, non-profits, and for-profits working effectively to create sustainable economic growth and that the private sector has a huge power to make positive change in the world. The best way I believe I can contribute to positive change is to help high-growth companies that are creating jobs expand and create more jobs.
At the end of the day, the cause of poverty is a lack of jobs and productive capital. Low education, low health care, and low nutrition are the symptoms of poverty, not the causes. So now, I believe the best way I can use my experience and resources to make an impact in reducing extreme poverty is to invest in high-growth companies that are creating jobs in developing world.
Over the next two years I hope to invest in about ten more privately owned high growth African tech companies as part of dipping my feet into the water and beginning to create a model for eventually building a private equity fund some years down the road.
