In order to meet sustainable development goals (SDGs) by
2030, Africa has many challenges. The continent, however, still has a window of
chance to solve these obstacles by leapfrogging. Because of Africa's late-comer
status with other areas, Sub-Saharan African countries will make significant
progress in growth by introducing new ways of thinking and deploying various
applications. No single approach is a panacea for the growth of the continent,
but the essence of this book is a multi-pronged, holistic view of these
challenges.
This book is a catalyst for African scholars, students, researchers from the
African continent, politicians, civil society, and practitioners working to
achieve Sustainable Development Goals and eventually improve the livelihood of
Africans.
In line with SDG 9, which drives infrastructure growth, industrialization, and
innovation, Chapter One discusses the importance of the adoption of space
research and its applications, mainly remote sensing and geospatial information
systems. A main enabler for African countries to collect reliable data that can
reliably inform policymakers in their decision-making is the use of Remote
Sensing and Geospatial Information Systems. The chapter addresses the key
players who have carried out space research on the African continent and its
applications to efficiently handle the abundance of natural resources in Africa
and to bridge the technological gap with other regions. For African countries
that have nascent or non-existent space programmes, these techniques are
instructive.
Chapter Two considers the financing of micro, small and medium enterprises in
Tanzania and the value of community lending because of its high outreach, i.e.
reaching the indigent who are often denied loans by conventional banking
institutions. The availability of microfinance is vital to achieving SDGs 1 and
10, which provide for an end to poverty and a decrease in inequality. In addition,
substantial financial resilience has been demonstrated by microfinance
institutions that offer loans to small business owners. To attract more funding
in this region, policymakers need to build a friendly atmosphere so that young
people are encouraged to set up and develop businesses that create much-needed
jobs.
In the sense of SDG 7, the promotion of sustainable and renewable energy,
Chapter Three addresses the fundamental problems of the Energy and Climate
Change Nexus in Sub-Saharan Africa. Access to affordable, effective, safe and
modern energy for all is provided for in SDG 7. In addition, SSA governments
must concentrate on producing renewable sources of energy to triple the
availability of electricity because of the disproportionate access to electricity
for people in SSA relative to other regions, thus minimising the carbon
footprint pursuant to SDG 13, which highlights climate action. The author posed
many important questions and answers relating to the generation, transmission,
and distribution of electricity. In addition, the primary carbon emissions in
SSA and methods of emission minimisation were addressed in this chapter.
The key characteristics of strong agricultural value chains were explored in
Chapter Four, highlighting Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, and how these
best-in-class value chains can be replicated and extended to other African
countries in the context of SDG 2.
Chapter Five recognises registered quality education and gender equity in
education in African countries and is on track to achieve SDGs 4 and 5,
respectively. The approaches and techniques employed as potential best
practises by effective countries. The importance of gender equality is not only
a human rights issue, but it is also a major development issue to tap into the
full potential of around 50% of women in the African population.
The Epilogue ends by discussing briefly how the global supply chain disruption
caused by the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in local development of Personal
Protective Equipment (PPE), test kits, sanitizers, and even ventilators for
SMEs in African countries. African SMEs have the means to add value and
manufacture high-quality products that are accessible to the local population,
thereby creating local jobs. Governments should bridge the financing gap in
line with SDG 1 in collaboration with MFIs to allow financing for SMEs.
In addition, the author suggested the early operationalization of the Africa
Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which has the potential to increase
intra-African trade from the current 18 percent of total exports, while the
remaining percentage of trade is with the rest of the world. SDG 1 calls for
actions that allow the poor and the weak to have fair rights to economic
opportunities. By enabling free movement of people, goods and services across
African borders, boosting trade, adopting AfCFTA would push SDG 10 to reduce
poverty and reduce inequality among people.
Author(s) Details
Obed Hugh Ligate
Adjunct Faculty, School of Business, George Mason University, United States.
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Book :- https://bp.bookpi.org/index.php/bpi/catalog/book/369
