From what I was listening to on C-Span radio a few weeks ago, there is plenty to invest.
East Africa has a booming tech industry. Some countries in West Africa could corner the market in salt production. Of course the minerals.
China has invested in Ethiopian factories.
I was watching a vid about diamonds and how Ghana is ranked as one of countries that is hardest to do business in...if they got rid of the corruption and red tape, they might do well.
You also have a lot of Africans who have been educated elsewhere who are coming back and trying to set up businesses and help create better schools and infrastructure.
All is not lost. Just like with Latin America.
nope.
As someone who grew up in Barre's Somalia, the only ways to keep most African countries under control and develop them are not acceptable to the average American. Barre tried to replace tribalism with Socialism (which is in theory a much better fit for Africans than what we have) and the Saudis bankrolled their agricultural program.
And the terrible White Man had to manage those programs because otherwise everything would have been stolen.
Obviously strong-arm dictatorship + central planning + corruption is not a great system but even Oprah can't honestly believe a 21st century western democracy stands a chance in most African countries.
The US didn't exactly help things there.
And it ended with the rebels burning the factory to the ground and executing all the trained, educated Somalis who were trying to help their country. Nowadays in that part of Somalia they are worse off than they were 50 years ago.
there is no happy ending.