Africa Poor Governance and the "Curse of resources"

You not alone, we share that sentiment of frustration even worse powerlessness of bringing about change in peoples’ lives. This echoes the iceberg of secrecy, corruption and mismanagement of extractive industry across the black continent. Despite the richness of natural oil resources, most of sub-Saharan oil and mineral rich countries (Nigeria, Angola, DRC, South Africa, Gabon, Equatorial Gunea, etc.), and some of them, even being economically classified middle income countries are ranked among the poorest country in the world.

Much of these countries poverty and underdevelopment can be contributed to the misguidance in governance, mismanagement of resources, various political issues and oil money benefiting the few chosen one ruling elites. These new ruling elites are greedy crueler than colonialism because of their wolf disguise in Sheep's Clothing.

What frustrate more is the fact that international initiatives that were supposed to promote accountability and transparency, such as the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, the Publish What You Pay seems to be in a total sex orgy with these government elites and multinational corporations, the only difference being they know them, therefore they don’t use condom (their transparency and accountability tool) when they “sleeping” with them.

These failures in extractives industry transparency to address the culture of corruption and secrecy it’s not helping countries like Mozambique and Uganda avoid the “resource curse.” When extractives industry transparency giving “thumbs up” to the secretive processes these emerging extractive industry countries, they are helping them to head and replicate the “Nigerian way” of managing their wealth, while we, the people, wanted the industry that extracts our underground wealth to be managed Norway way.

In my case, because fragility of our social and political institutions, long civil war, AIDS pandemic, 54% of the population living below poverty lines, I really fear the “curse of resource” and unfortunately I stopped rejoicing every time I hear that Mozambique is emerging as global power on natural gas.