Last year I met an Ethiopian pilot in Addis Adaba who summed up the way people feel about Africa. He said that when passengers board an Ethiopian Airlines flight they often ask whether there will be ANY food on the flight.
That’s because of Bob Geldof’s lightbulb moment all those years ago and how we now perceive Ethiopia as a land of famine, when it is actually a land of plenty and beauty, and Addis Adaba is way cooler than Paris.
So with that in mind, last weekend I went to Accra to moderate and meet Ghanaian start-ups in the mobile space. The trip was in the balance until the last moment when the visa was eventually secured and off we went.
What to expect? Malaria? Carjacking? Poverty? Danger for whitey? Starving kids? Well, three days is a short time, but Accra is a rapidly expanding city and I could have been anywhere else in the world.
We rolled in at 5am, eventually found a hotel and… realised I would be sharing a bed with my host. Nothing like keeping costs down..
After strategically placing a bank of pillows between us in case of morning glory manifestations and thoughts of my wife, I had two hours sleep and went to the conference feeling like shit.
The rest of the morning was a revelation. Extraordinary stories of start-ups bootstrapping themselves, the usual grim reaper of operators taking too much fat from the mobile cow and a day of inspiration.
The over-riding theme was… where’s the money? Furthermore, it’s all very well that there are mobile health initiatives for pregnant Ghanaian music, but pregnant women also want entertainment. Stop helping us, start letting us have fun.
And so it should be. Rather like Ethiopian Airlines passengers, those who have the money for investment should stop be so high-minded. Less of the social impact and more music, video and good data. And let’s help African companies come to the West to show off what they can do.
I’m arranging a session in San Diego in two weeks showcasing eight companies from the ‘rest of the world’ against their American counterparts. I would love African companies to be part of this but they don’t have the money to fly there.
So, here’s a challenge to the likes of Vodafone and Nokia. You know that African is the Last Frontier, that its potential is infinite. Stop being so bloody pious. Put your money into a fund that gets these companies over to Mobile World Congress and CTIA. Africa will love you for it… and so would I.
Monty Munford has more than 15 years' experience in mobile, digital media, web and journalism. He is the founder of Mob76, a company that helps tech companies raise money and exit. He speaks regularly at global media events with a focus on Africa, writes a weekly column for The Telegraph, is a regular contributor to The Economist, Wired, Mashable and speaks regularly on the BBC World Service.
