Forbes Africa August - September 2023

It’s Nelson Mandela’s 105th birth anniversary as I write this. Would the late President have been happy with present-day South Africa, with its record-high unemployment, power crisis, government disruptions, burning trucks, seething inequalities and an exhausted electorate? Surely, there are still mountains to climb to achieve the social cohesion and democracy he dreamed of. For this edition, we spoke to the man who walked Madiba’s walk and climbed those mountains – on celluloid. Our cover star, Idris Elba, who essayed the icon in the 2013 biographical film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, told us recently: “If you can be a fraction of [Mandela’s] force, and of what he stood for and fought for…that man really sacrificed his life for the continent.” Away from reel life, the celebrity is also pushing…

The June/July 2023 issue of FORBES AFRICA was my favorite reading for the month as it touched on a subject close to my heart – agriculture. In a conversation with Dr Akinwumi Adesina (President, African Development Bank) a few years ago, he talked about the importance of agriculture (one of his ‘High 5’ pillars is ‘Feed Africa’) and the need for the youth in Africa to engage in the sector. His famous words to me at the time were “we need to make agriculture sexy again so that the younger generation is motivated to enter this sector that can transform lives”. His words were inspired not only by the historic importance but also by the opportunities being created by innovations in the sector. It was therefore heartening to read stories…

WHAT'S NEW FRONTRUNNER WHO’S NEXT A week before the 2023 French Open, South African tennis ace and paralympian Kgothatso Montjane said on radio that she wanted to top her achievements with a Grand Slam win “to validate everything”. “And then I went out to win the Grand Slam, it was just unbelievable!” she says now, back in South Africa at the end of June as a Roland Garros women’s wheelchair doubles champion with Yui Kamiji from Japan as the two clinched an impressive 6-2, 6-3 victory over Diede de Groot and Maria Moreno. Speaking to FORBES AFRICA soon after her win, she reminisces that this was not the career she had originally envisioned for herself. “I picked up a racket at the age of 19 for the first time,” says…

According to The Wealth Report 2023 by Knight Frank, the global population of ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) declined by 3.8% in 2022, after a record climb of 9.3% in 2021. Despite the fall however, several growth hubs remained both at a regional and country level as well as across wealth bands – billionaires, UHNWIs and high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs). The Middle East was the regional standout with the number of UHNWIs growing by 16.9%. Africa also proved resilient with 6.3% growth in UHNWIs. Nick Gaertner, Director and COO of Knight Frank South Africa, added in a news release: “Despite the ongoing challenges that Africa and South Africa face, it is still a place that is clearly presenting great opportunities for the UHNWI.”…

For centuries, the understanding of systematic sexism has been built on the objective that men are the hunters (so a man must provide) and women are the gatherers (nurturers). This indoctrination has been embedded in cultures, traditions, policies and even pop culture. However a new study published by the Public Library of Science called into question one of the oldest stereotypes about the roles of men and women. It found that female members of many of the world’s remaining foraging societies are just as involved in hunting as men, despite long-held perceptions that men hunted and women gathered. According to Forbes, the authors of the study looked into data from previous researchers on 63 living societies across the world that still practice hunting and gathering, then investigated how women participated…

In June, five Nigerians were selected to become members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences: actor Richard Mofe-Damijo, director CJ Obasi, producer Jade Osiberu, and writers Kunle Afolayan and Shola Dada. “The Academy is proud to welcome these artists and professionals into our membership. They represent extraordinary global talent across cinematic disciplines and have made a vital impact on the arts and sciences of motion pictures and on movie fans worldwide,” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang. They have all been selected based on their contributions to cinema, per BBC Africa. As members, they will receive voting rights for Oscar nominations and winners.…