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    African in the 21st Century
    African in the 21st Century
    African in the 21st Century
    Ebook107 pages1 hour

    African in the 21st Century

    By Jerry Skhosana

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    African in the 21st Century: The search for the unknown (Wealth)
    What is the role of an African in the 21st century? The book seeks to ask Africans worldwide about their role in global issues as they relate to wealth and economic prosperity. Prior to the start of the 20th century the role of Africans was already largely defined, however in the 21st century Africans have not defined their roles as visibly as the West and Asia-Pacific have done. The fact that GDP growth in Africa has been fuelled by infrastructure development and construction is a cause for concern for the young people of Africa. The author of the book was 10 years old at the beginning of the 21st century and to this day his role in the world hasn’t been defined. The book speaks about the pitfalls of the current structures in African societies as it relates to wealth. The book is a must read as it speaks about the economic structures of the African economy in relation to young Africans.
    The book is separated into six unique chapters. The chapters address the many misconceptions we have as Africans on prosperity and wealth. The book speaks about creating wealth for future generations as it was the case with other wealthy civilizations worldwide. Africa’s biggest failure has been the transferability of that wealth for it to create substantial African wealth and thus creating a wealthy continent.
    Chapter 1Culture; Culture is undoubtedly the biggest contributor to wealth creation in any society on the planet. The chapter on culture speaks about how culture has for centuries prevented the African race from amassing wealth and how it is still a big hindrance into the 21st century.
    Chapter 2 Education; Education is certainly important to progress, however education has failed to bring progress to Africa and Africans in general in the equivalence of Asia-Pacific and the West. Education in Africa continues to produce academics, scholars and many professions which are not pro wealth creation. The Universities in Africa have produced people who are materialistic and individualistic in pursuit of wealth, the complete opposite of other successful racial groupings at similar junctures in their development.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJerry Skhosana
    Release dateFeb 18, 2015
    ISBN9780620649018
    African in the 21st Century
    Author

    Jerry Skhosana

    My name is Jerry Skhosana, was born and raised in South Africa and studied finance. I write about economic conditions of African societies, I analyse the behavior of Africans as they relate to wealth creation and many other societal issues.

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      Very interesting but I as a white south African would debate some of the points tabled.

    Book preview

    African in the 21st Century - Jerry Skhosana

    African in the 21st Century

    The search for the unknown: Wealth

    By Jerry Skhosana

    Copyright 2015 Jerry Skhosana

    Smashwords Edition

    Thank you for downloading this ebook. This book remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be redistributed to others for commercial and non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer. Thank you for your support

    For information, please contact Jeskho-Pty Ltd

    Email: jeskho@mail.com

    2778 017 2490

    ISBN 978-0-620-64901-8

    ISBN 978-0-620-64900-1

    Table of Contents

    Chapter 1: Culture

    How culture has direct linkages with wealth creation generations later.

    Chapter 2: Education

    The biggest misconception about education

    Chapter 3: Wealth

    Is wealth what we think it is?

    Chapter 4: Role Models

    How role models shape our perspective on wealth and abundance.

    Chapter 5: Self Reliance

    Why collective effort doesn’t work

    Chapter 6: Adaptation

    Are we moving fast enough to attain wealth?

    Chapter: 1 Culture

    How culture has direct linkages with wealth creation generations later

    "To know the story of the 47 RONIN is to know the story of all Japan"

    Narrator’s voice movie 47 RONIN 2013

    "A Samurai does not take credit for victories of others"

    47 RONIN 2013

    "When a crime goes unpunished the world is unbalanced, when a wrong is un-avenged the heavens look down upon us in shame, we too must die for this circle of vengeance to close. We will leave this record of our courage, so the world will know who we were and what we did. Tonight we will regain our honor and avenge our Lord. None of us knows how long he shall live or when his time shall come, but soon all that will be left of our brief lives, is the pride our children shall feel when they speak our names"

    Leader of the 47 RONIN addressing his men

    So how can words like this have a profound impact on wealth and poverty generations later?

    Before we continue we need to understand a few things about Japan. Japan is the 3rd largest economy in the world, and prior to it being surpassed by the People’s Republic of China recently, it held the second position for decades. It is arguably the most technologically advanced nation on the planet, although patriotic Americans might disagree with that, but it’s a fact.

    The warriors that constituted the 47 RONIN lived centuries ago, way before the industrial revolution of previous centuries. The warriors that constituted the 47 RONIN were following a cultural belief system that has served the Japanese people incredibly well over many generations, and I strongly believe it will do so for many years.

    Japan has brought to the world numerous systems which to this day are considered the most efficient on the planet. The 47 RONIN represent a cultural belief system worth emulating, and that which is extremely progressive in its design. Especially regarding the quote that says

    "…None of us knows how long he shall live or when his time shall come, but soon all that will be left of our brief lives, is the pride our children shall feel when they speak our names."

    I am not a religious person whatsoever and yet if the creator, as said by many religious books does exist, he would probably be proud of his creation. This little sentence has a profound impact on the people in that society.

    The mere fact that those men saw their lives as but a small part in the greater scheme of things is extremely commendable. The fact that all the men present agreed with that notion, is even more impressive. But how can something seemingly as small as this have a profound impact on wealth and poverty centuries later.

    The belief system that places strong emphasis on future generations is generally stronger than that which focuses on the present. The Japanese people have within their social psyche the incredible spirit of creating a better future, for future generations. Their belief system is profound because it is not something that will be taught to them in the formal education system, but is taught to them as they become aware of the world around them. The most important aspect regarding these men is regarding the views they have about their lives, they view their lives as a passing cloud with the knowledge that their pride is not with the people they are currently encountering. The 47 RONIN are true examples of how wealth should be created. The liberated society is not that which has attained liberation, but that which is continually liberating mankind.

    As Charles Darwin explained it centuries ago, the species that will fail to evolve and meet the challenges in their environments, will not survive as the climate changes and the world as we know it evolves. Charles Darwin was referring to animals when he spoke about natural selection, but with time that question will soon be extended to human beings.

    The Japanese people would say:

    "A samurai does not take credit for victories of others".

    Taking credit for the work of others is rather a complicated way of looking at things especially in the highly complex world that we live in.

    In today’s world, what would constitute victories of others? The most successful companies in Africa are generally non-African companies. The companies that are investing massive amounts of money into Africa were once infants in their home markets; the people that lived in those environments created those companies through hardship, these companies are now big multinationals we see on the daily basis. Numerous countries on the African continent have not subscribed to the principle of winning your own small victories before asking for help.

    The largest companies in Africa are largely South African companies. The companies in question were largely established in the years prior to majority rule in South Africa, even those companies established after majority rule were largely establish by South Africans of European ancestry. The easiest thing to say regarding the ownership of those companies would be colonial beneficiation, but that story does not hold water as almost all African countries that gained independence prior to South Africa, have developed less infrastructure than South Africa prior to 1994.

    Currently in South Africa there is an increasing notion of inclusive growth, inclusive growth in this case means redistributing the wealth held by less than 10 percent of the population. Throughout the world the top portion of that country’s population generally has the greatest amount of wealth than the bottom portion. The fact that the top portion of that population has fought and won its own battles is somehow discarded in the debate.

    Independence should have brought more than what it brought to Africans all over the world. Freedom has brought more consumption than liberation. Liberty is something which has proved to be foreign to Africans all over the world, the failure to create our own multi-nationals, create our own wealth creation mechanisms has forced us to self-pity ourselves for decades on end. Self-pity is soon followed by envy and once those things are connected you create the kind of Africa we have today.

    "It is not the consciousness of men that determines their existence, but their social existence that determines consciousness"

    Karl Marx

    This quote by Karl Marx is the essence of why Africans in general have not attained wealth.

    But can you groom someone into a more efficient cultural system?

    We as Africans are extremely socialistic in our ways; there is nothing wrong with it, but it is a proven fact that wealth has no correlation with socialist environments.

    As Africans we are extremely communal. And our obligation to the society often overshadows individual brilliance as it is in the West.

    A boy growing up in a rural

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