THE AFRICAN ENTREPRENEURSHIP EXPERIENCE PART1

According to Smuts (1986: 10) the concept of entrepreneurship is alien in the traditional Bantu society and to the African culture in general. The introduction of business activities in Black society came about as a result of contact with Western culture. McMarthy (1998: 429) opines that because indigenous entrepreneurial classes and a dynamic private sector did not exist, and also since dependence (in the case of African states) on foreign investors was to be avoided, the state assumed the role of entrepreneur. However, there is no evidence to suggest that, once contact had been made, there has never been a shortage of Black South Africans who were not prepared to take business risks (Smuts, 1986: 12).

Smuts and McMarthy's assumptions are however refuted by Caputo (2001: 106 - 118) who states that “for more than 2000 years Africans traded with the Arabs, Indians and Chinese along the Indian Ocean, from Mogadishu to Mozambique. By 1000 AD Africans from the interior settled on the eastern coast to farm and fish; they later adopting Islam from Arab traders. The African converts to Islam became known as the Swahilis. These Swahilis later became leading traders, and consummate middlemen, who sold gold, ivory and slaves to Asian merchants whose ships arrived on monsoon winds.''

According to the World Bank (1989: 136) two important items of intra-African trade was salt and iron, which were not only relatively scarce but were also restricted in limited locations. Iron and iron working skills also formed the basis for intra-trade because they were in demand and rather scarce. Furthermore, the World Bank states that entrepreneurship has a long history in the Sub-Saharan Africa. In the tenth century, before the continent of Africa was discovered there were free markets at Timbuktu, Salaga, Kano and other routes of Trans-Saharan trade up to the present day Zimbabwe, where archeological evidence indicates that mining activities were linked to Arab export market on Africa's Southeastern coast.

In the latter years, slavery and colonization impeded the rate of growth of entrepreneurship amongst Blacks in South Africa and in the rest of the African Continent because of the usurpation of fertile agricultural land by the colonial masters (Moll, 1991: 152). Agriculture was the main engine of economic growth in the developed world during the last fifty-three years (Drucker 1978: 5). Peter Drucker's statement simply means that the coterie of black entrepreneurship and the basis of wealth were wiped out during the process of colonization. Therefore, it cannot be denied that the decline of African entrepreneurs was also impeded during the balkanization of Africa, and was further aggravated by African bureaucrats during post-independence by introducing and implementing ill-conceived development policies, which favored large-scale enterprises over indigenously owned and operated businesses (Vosloo, 1994a: 120).

According to the World Bank (1989: 136) two important items of intra-African trade was salt and iron, which were not only relatively scarce but were also restricted in limited locations. Iron and iron working skills also formed the basis for intra-trade because they were in demand and rather scarce. Furthermore, the World Bank states that entrepreneurship has a long history in the Sub-Saharan Africa. In the tenth century, before the continent of Africa was discovered there were free markets at Timbuktu, Salaga, Kano and other routes of Trans-Saharan trade up to the present day Zimbabwe, where archeological evidence indicates that mining activities were linked to Arab export market on Africa's Southeastern coast.

In the latter years, slavery and colonization impeded the rate of growth of entrepreneurship amongst Blacks in South Africa and in the rest of the African Continent because of the usurpation of fertile agricultural land by the colonial masters (Moll, 1991: 152). Agriculture was the main engine of economic growth in the developed world during the last fifty-three years (Drucker 1978: 5). Peter Drucker's statement simply means that the coterie of black entrepreneurship and the basis of wealth were wiped out during the process of colonization. Therefore, it cannot be denied that the decline of African entrepreneurs was also impeded during the balkanization of Africa, and was further aggravated by African bureaucrats during post-independence by introducing and implementing ill-conceived development policies, which favored large-scale enterprises over indigenously owned and operated businesses (Vosloo, 1994a: 120).