BRICs: building more than houses

Although BRIC nations seem to have hit their economic stride, it is not preventing them from laying foundations in other regions; particularly India and their growing interest in Africa.

Though the $65bn of Indian investment pales in comparison to China’s $200bn, they are investing with purpose. While China focuses on shallow, short-term investment almost exclusively limited to resources, India sees itself in Africa’s ever-growing economy. Their investments in sectors such as telecommunications, agriculture, automotive, and education reveal a strategy more likely to pay off in coming years. China, however, continues to view Africa similar to how European nations did during colonization, rather than as potential market worth investing in.

Africa’s finite resources, eager population, and open areas of investment seem to mirror images of India twenty years ago.  Then, India took work too expensive to do in the West and outsourced it domestically, where the same amount of labour could be done at a significantly lower price. They have since adjusted to modernity; as such an advantage is only applicable for a short time. Now, India is increasingly looking to recruit professionals from the United States and Europe, which will allow them to make their international businesses more global, and thus more versatile.

Africa is fast realizing their place within the global economy. While China’s continued investment in African resources heightens demand, Africa can in turn raise price, which could eventually cost the Chinese more than they intended. However, India invests in growing sectors of the economy. Strengthening relations with Africa now means more openness for trade in the future, within the fields that they will have helped advance.

Though India’s surge in growth at the beginning of the 21^st century has declined, projected to be around 5%, nearly half what it was, signs indicate that we have not seen all India has to offer.