Africa Sending Massive Wealth to the Developed World
An innovative campaign from HelpSweden.org aims to turn our notions of wealth and poverty on their heads.
HelpSweden.org has drafted a petition to Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt. It urges greater action on the Millennium Development Goals when Sweden holds the European Union presidency in the second half of 2009. The message also holds a reminder of the first world’s forgotten debt to the rest of the world for resources and labor.
Think Africa’s poor?
Not in terms of natural resources. Most diamonds and gold in the world come from Africa. With all the conflict that’s erupted over mining the abundant precious materials in the Congo, there’s a saying, “We’d be so much better off if we weren’t so rich.”
Much of the African continent is also blessed a climate far more lush than, say, Sweden. Yet with a fraction of the natural resources and more snow than you could shake a kräftskivor at, Sweden’s economy is among the top twenty largest in the world, dwarfing any African nation.
So what gives?
Development aid
If these words make you think of “money flowing from the countries with the highest standards of living to those with the lowest,” you’re probably not alone.
But what about the even more massive development aid flowing the other way? Since the pre-colonial era, wealth in the form of natural resources and labor has been passing steadily into the hands of today’s first world countries. For example:
- According to De Beers, 60% of the world’s $10 billion annual diamond trade comes from Africa. They’ve been extracting Africa’s diamonds since 1883.
- Logging in Haiti enriched Europe, but left Haiti treeless and prone to soil erosion.
- Many cheap, year-round foods enjoyed in America come from so-called “banana republics” in central and south America and the Pacific Islands.
- Minerals such as cobalt, coltan, cassiterite, copper, and especially gold are all mined in Africa by non-African companies, often in coordination with corrupt government officials.
To learn more about the HelpSweden campaign or its aspirations for the Millennium Development Goals, visit the HelpSweden.org website. The organization’s video offers a playful reminder of the first world’s debt to the rest of the world.
>>Read: 10 Easy, Free, Online Steps You Can Take To End Poverty
Then watch this terrific video:
Image credit: azrainman via Flickr, under a Creative Commons license.
