Strikingly ridiculous

You couldn't have planned it better. As the man many people in SA would kill to see called "Mr President" took his seat at the opening press conference of the World Economic Forum (WEF), the sound of thousands of striking public service workers marching to Parliament filled the CTICC from outside.

While Anglo American's Cynthia Carroll made her opening remarks that "Africa is on an upward trajectory", some members of the press were discreetly pulling aside the blinds to see the marching workers toyi-toying in the street.

Carroll continued that the dividends of economic stability were the kind of cross-continent economic growth Africa is experiencing (we're on more than 5% for the third year in a row) and reaffirmed her organisation's "positive outlook" and commitment to spending 15% of its capital here. However, the South Africans present couldn't help but be reminded that growth and positive, proactive thinking might go hand in hand, but they'll only ever really join together if we get a reality check.

I agree with Tokyo Sexwale that we should "disabuse ourselves of making comparisons between Africa and India/China". We are, after all, 53 countries/governments/economies and not one nation - the proof of the pudding, he said in so many words, will be in the unity.

India and China both need African resources to continue their own growth; Africa has what the rest of the world needs, and makes no bones about that.

It is up to us to decide as a continent how we are going to address the challenges that come with leveraging this huge demand for our own benefit. According to Sexwale, we must "solidify co-ordinated markets into centres. Then we can talk about a true African agenda."

The comments of the Chinese panellist, Li Ruogu, chairman and president of the Export-Import Bank of China and co-chair of the WEF on Africa, underscored this need, but perhaps in ways he had not intended...

While I do not condone the behaviour of many of those on strike, I am thankful we live in a country where you're free to state your case.

Pamela Weaver, group senior writer, ITWeb

It was ironic to listen to a representative of a country with a seriously bad-rep for workers and human rights talking about social justice and the facilitation of wealth creation, food, education, healthcare and clothing for ordinary people.

While I admire Li Ruogu's talk of the need for real investment in African infrastructure - his bank is involved in around 300 projects on this continent, including the building of highways, hospitals and schools - it was the other things he said that got me thinking.

Responding to a question about corruption and how it can affect development, he answered: "Britain didn't have transparent government 200 years ago...even countries like Japan do not really have it today." Nice sidestep of conditions in your own country. And, if I'm not mistaken, 200 years ago, Britain was embarking on a globalisation project, the hangover of which we're still reeling from; your random cynic in the street will tell you what they think of Japan's relationship with America.

I suspect people living in Nigeria would take serious issue with Li Ruogu's statement that "transparency and good governance are good terminologies, but achieving them is not a pre-condition of development; it is rather a result of it. This has to be achieved through development."

Great. Throw your money at us, build a few roads and hospitals, and make a massive profit by accessing African resources. If you bribe a few ministers en route and flout a few regulations like human rights and labour law, what harm? We can sort it all out after the fact, come to an agreement.

As he says: "Globalisation without the participation of Africa is incomplete." There I was thinking we've been all too horribly wrapped up in the wrong side of it for decades.

Yes, trade partnerships with other like-minded countries will be the life-blood of growth in African economies. Yes, we stand to benefit and learn from the economic and social successes of other countries. Yes, we must open our hearts, minds and wallets to the world that is out there. As Sexwale says: "Africa has to take advantage of sharp demand for our resources from the Far East."

But demand for our resources has always been there - ask the British, Dutch, Belgians, French... Even as we in SA grapple with our problems surrounding pay and performance in the public sector, we have to ask ourselves if we're prepared to do the dirty with countries with the kind of track record we admonish our own past oppressors for on a regular basis.

Like Sexwale said, Africa is filled with more religions, cultures, languages and ideas than you can shake a rainbow at. We are the ones with the resources that other countries need; we are also the ones with some of the biggest social justice problems on the planet.

In SA, on the African continent as a whole, we can only include those on the fringes of economies if we unite to make use of our own resources while staying in the driving seat and remembering that we have what others want.

As Sexwale jokingly said to the crowd of foreign journalists before him: "Spend more here, use your credit cards; it will help us to answer these questions."

Even as we ask that foreign governments trade and spend their money on these shores, we must remain mindful of the pitfalls that come with trading off our need for development against the strong desires of those countries to access our resources at any cost.

If we have problems, we must be mindful of the fact that some of the countries we seek to do business with will not even acknowledge the social issues facing their own people. We should use events like the WEF to continue questioning the motives of those who seek to do business with us and ensure we do so in our own best interests. We don't need to be grateful for countries wanting what we have.

So while I do not condone the behaviour of many of those on strike, I am thankful we live in a country where you're free to state your case, where you can march to Parliament without first having to throw yourself in front of an oncoming tank.

Which is where Sexwale comes in again - because he's right: Africa will have to find its own way; it's not the Indian, the Chinese or anywhere else's way. Our agenda must be African-driven. Investment and infrastructure, trade and jobs are vital to our growth, but let's watch our backs and not hand over everything to the men with the shiny beads and the big talk.