Bringing talented minds home

from the African Executive:

It's often assumed assumed that the only assets Africa has, lie beneath the soil or on land. Not much attention is drawn to Africa’s other asset - the people. For several decades talented people with great minds have come out of Africa. These highly-skilled people include scientists, surgeons, nurses, entrepreneurs, bankers, attorneys, academics, writers as well as world renowned economists. The pool of African talent is immense. Retaining this talent has, however, been one of the biggest challenges African countries continue to face. ...

Devising strategies for managing human resources continues to be a challenge for a number of countries. The numerous hurdles that Africa has to face which include political and social instability, hamper essential investment in human capital and infrastructure that are important for sustained growth. With public services and schools in a poor state, it is difficult for citizens to find a springboard for success. In South Africa, only 18% of teachers in schools are graduates. The few professionals employed in health and educational institutions across the continent, work under extremely difficult conditions. It is easy to see why some have left the continent because of frustration and an awareness of the competitive remuneration provided to their counterparts in other parts of the world. Africa loses an average of 70,000 skilled professionals a year to developed countries were their skills are nurtured. There is an even more disturbing state of affairs in Zambia with a population of 12 million people, which has lost most of it’s doctors except for 400 serving in the country in recent years. This loss of skilled citizens has a range of deleterious effects on a country’s economy.

Africa has every potential to advance so long as substantial investments are made in nurturing talent and retaining it. Most leading economies are investing in higher education in order to help economic growth and improve social mobility. A well-educated citizenry adds value to the economic and political well being of a country. No one will bet on continued growth in Africa if the trend of underinvestment in human resources continues. The countries that take action to master their human capital challenges will out do those that do not.