The Challenge for Africa: Blog Post 3

The Challenge for Africa: Blog Post 3

The final chapter of The Challenge for Africa sums up the entire book very well. I really like the opening sentence that "Africa is a paradox". As it's mentioned in the opening paragraph, Africa is indeed one of the richest continents on earth when it comes to raw materials/natural resource yet despite the abundance of assets, the people remain poor. This really stood out to me because it really took into account the greater picture; the history of the continent, the (missed) opportunities, and the lack of guidance all play a part into where it's at today.

Apart from the internal factors that played a role in determining Africa's current position, it is important to highlight the additional role that international parties have played on somewhat hindering Africa's growth. With "international debts not canceled, trade barriers raised, or foreign assistance given to governments who do not dispense it to their people responsibly", it's clear that a cumulation of the lack of international responsibility has definitely left its mark. As often emphasised throughout the book, the lack of understanding/empathy from external parties has continued to persist, leading to problems that continue to be left unresolved.

With all that said, I found it also important to acknowledge the aspects of life at the basic level that also have affected Africa. Being home to a coalition of so many different cultures, people suffer from several changes in culture that affect their wellbeing. Whether it's the fact that men are often separated from their families to work, or the fact that the talented people with the power to make a difference leave for better opportunities elsewhere, there has to be some blame on way society functions as well. As mentioned in the chapter, change must also occur at the root-levels as well, and society must change to keep the talent and make use of the many resources that Africa has. It'll be interesting to see how the strive to fight for Africa continues, both domestically and internationally, and Wangari Maathai's award of the Nobel Peace Prize is just the first step into this becoming a reality.

The Challenge for Africa: Blog Post 2

The Challenge for Africa: Blog Post 2

When reading about all the foreign aid and attention that goes into Africa, we're always given one side of the story only. However, when I think back to our Guest speaker Joan's words about how it can be 'wrong', I immediately began to think just how much of an impact international aid is having on Africa. Joan emphasised how it's important to empathise instead of sympathise with the people who are going through the struggle. This all ties back to chapters 4 and 5 in The Challenge of Africa because it describes the 'Aid and the Dependency Syndrome' as well as the 'Deficits, indebtedness and unfair trade' that constantly plague Africa.

Wee are told how the state and development of Africa has risen on the global agenda in recent years. However, despite all the efforts, the results are negligible. It's interesting to learn that a big part of this ties back to Joan's presentation because "The voices of Africans speaking to these challenges are muted in comparison to those of the industrialised world speaking about the needs of Africa". Joan mentioned how important it was to listen and learn from the people suffering themselves, as they know best what they need. However, the common problem in the modern world is that some people simply contribute to what they think is the problem, which is often not the real problem. It's interesting to see how problems often go round in circles because of one missing component, and it makes me wonder when the real change will take place.

The Challenge for Africa: Blog Post 1

The Challenge for Africa: Blog Post 1

When reading the beginning of The Challenge for Africa, chapter 2 in particular stood out to me. I liked Maathai's description of leadership as "an expression of a set of value; its presence, or the lack of it, determines the direction of a society, and affects not only the actions but the motivations and visions of the individuals and communities that make up that society". This description somewhat deviates, but in a more in-depth way, from the traditional definition that we've all come to know in which it is simply the ability of an individual or organisation to lead others, and was intriguing to me as it made me reflect on what set of values specifically our leaders encompass today.

Delving deeper into the chapter provided me with new insight on what events shaped Africa to what is has become today. Having spent little to no time studying Africa in-depth, I knew little of the politics/society surrounding Africa; I could only assume that much of the political/economic turmoil was due, like other developing countries, to an immense income inequality as a result of corruption and greed. However, after reading this I learnt that many of the factors that plague Africa today were actually brought about from external players. Firstly, the modern leadership dilemma in Africa was initially brought about from the Berlin Conference in 1884-1885, where the then-great European empires simply used Africa as a display of influence and power. Even after this era had passed, it seemed like Africa was never given a break as the Cold War proved another impediment to genuine autonomy. During the Cold War, the countries of Africa were once again broken up in their efforts to side with either the East or the West, the effects of which are still very obvious today.

Chapter 2 provided me with lots of new insight into how Africa has come to be. With so many foreign countries tapping into the African system (which some may argue as beneficial), it had significant negative effects in breaking countries apart and adding to both the economic and social tensions which are visible to all of us today. The last sentence of the chapter sums it up best, "The challenge continues for each new generation of Africans". It seems like, for now at least, current and future generations will have to battle the hardships that continue to plague from the past.

Anything Blog Post 2

What I learnt volunteering for Autism

When you think about Autism what's the first thing that comes to mind? Personally, I knew little about it and simply associated the term with a disability of some sort. Autism is commonly defined as a cognitive disorder that is characterised by difficulties in everyday interactions that are key to fitting into society, such as communicating and forming relationships. With this is mind, I did not know what to expect when I spent time taking care of a few Autistic children during a summer volunteer stint a few years ago. 

Prior to volunteering, there was some rudimentary training; I was told to treat the children with 'special care' as if they were different. This only contributed further to the image of a mentally disabled child. Little did I know how wrong I was. When I finally spent time with the children, I learnt that each had his/her own circle that required patience and time before being able to fully interact with them. It took time for them to accept me, but eventually I noticed a difference in their demeanour; it was as if they had accepted me into their circle of trust.

I developed a bond with many of the children and when one of the children signalled me over to play with him, I was astounded and humbled. It was playtime right after math class for the children when the boy named Ethan brought me to play with numbered blocks with him. I expected to pile the blocks up with him, but instead he ordered them in many different sequences ranging from multiples to ascending and descending orders. After showing him some number patterns of my own, I was awestruck as his became more and more sophisticated as well. Despite being uninterested in interacting with others, Ethan was able to replicate mathematical processes and this gave me new light on what these children were like.

From this experience I've learnt that Autistic children aren't incapable of interactions as many would think, they simple don't have an interest to pursue it. I realised that although Autism is classified as a disorder, it isn't necessarily a disability. Everyone is deficient in some ways and talented in others, just as these children are. When the likes of Einstein and Newton have been rumoured to have suffered from autism themselves, it makes me question how we have come to define Autism. Maybe it's just a relative term after all.

The Genius of Money: Part III - Interview Blog Post

An interview with Paul Mackay

In the interview with Paul Mackay, they discuss in detail about the perspectives on economics and money. This interview in particular stood out to me because it tied many economic theories together in real life situations. For example, Mackay describes how the approach to economic thinking in the past was producer oriented, but that it has transitioned to a more consumer oriented approach in the past century or so.

Apart from the analysis of economic theories, I found Mackay's description of investments interesting as well; He gave an interesting real-life example about how 'virtual value' is created and how it is detrimental to the economy. I enjoyed this part because it took another perspective of concepts we learn in Economics such as appreciation/depreciation and, in a very simplistic way, valuation. His description of "when value is not created out of human labour and human intelligence, then it is 'virtual value'... There is quite a lot of virtual value, for instance in the stock market. Prices go up and down, but the real value is not being expressed", presents a view that is often overlooked when analysing markets or goods but makes logical sense when given his examples.

The Genius of Money: Blog Post 2 - Chapter 10

Mercy in Mercantile Times

Gabriel Metsu: Usurer with a Tearful Woman

My key takeaway from this chapter is the portrayal of lending and money as necessary evils. At the time this painting was created, it was the beginning of major international trade between colonies which resulted in such a reliance on money; people gambled heavily on the growth of lending and borrowing to exploit the trading system and either amass great wealth, or total losses. Although doing so posed a great threat, it seemed to be one of the few ways for people to escape poverty during the day, hence explaining why people would take the risk. It's interesting to note how the painter portrays lenders to be evil and greedy, only caring about and profiting themselves at the expense of others; yet despite reasons for borrowing and lending being more diverse in todays society, people still take the gamble and the results can sometimes be the same as before, they can "make it or break it".

The Genius of Money: Blog Post 1 - Chapter 2

Coining a Myth

Titian: Danae and the Shower of Gold

My key takeaway from this chapter is how the two characters, namely Danae and the servant, react as polar opposites in response to a sudden abundance of wealth; Danae transforms it for the good, whilst the servant sweeps greedily to garner all that he can. Following this description, the author describes from personal experience how such reflections reside not only in him, but all of us as well. I agree with this because for the most part because I can see the conflict of such traits in most, if not all, of us. Knowing the struggle of finding a good-paying job to succeed in todays society, the greed and competitiveness in me to make the most money are stronger than ever before. On the other hand, there's also part of me that, given the luxury of an abundance of wealth, would like to give back to people more in need than I am. However, it's also important to note that with such a competitive market in todays economy we often hear the term "survival of the fittest"; as society becomes more and more demanding, we are sometimes forced to ignore the good and instead garner the greed to succeed.