Emeagwali and Hesse Called Bill Gates of Africa

By Ike Mgbatogu

<Onumba.com: Posted June 17, 2003>

Pardon me for indulging in this crude analogy, but if the technological and scientific development prowess of the world's continents becomes a contest of six men in a hundred meter race, the man Africa will do poorly.

Make it very poorly, please.

The continent of Africa is forbiddingly behind other continents in the realm of technological and scientific development, which is monumentally fundamental in the crucial process of nation building.

Such a disappointing pittance highlights a profoundly depressing condition of a large continent lavishly blessed with a vast and enviable reservoir of natural and human resources, yet nearly all its constitutive societies ravage in social squalor, economic hopelessness, political turmoil, technological stagnation and innovative malnutrition.

How can we begin to fix these deepening and suffocating troubles in a discouraging milieu of collapsed educational infrastructure pervasive in a significant number of African countries, the very last institution we must count on to sustain our last gallant effort for redemption, reconstruction and speedy resurgence?

Where did we as a people go terribly wrong?

Relatively, complex tools and credible hints of sophisticated craftsmanship dating as far back as 2.5 million years ago were unearthed in Kenya's ancient tools factory, a breakthrough discovery that prompted the world's leading researchers and archeologists to come to a credible agreement that the first humans to make technological tools originated and lived in Africa.

The blatant racial insult, cultural devaluation and unethical trampling of the black humanity and intelligence by Psychologist Richard Herrnstein and political scientist Charles Murray sparked a firestorm of debate over the colossal library of the scientific rubbish they painstakingly elaborated in the "Bell Curve".

Herrnstein and Murray's cultic attempts to link intelligence to socioeconomic status stood no chance of any appeal for credibility and authenticity when you consider a vast gallery of black inventions in America that played a critical role in sustaining and shaping the direction and substance of the American technological revolution as well as in advancing mankind.

But how do we account for the disappointing creative detainment and inventive stagnation that torments us in fundamental terms of technological and scientific interest and innovation? This stall perplexingly and vexingly persists in the face of the radical technogical innovation that is sweeping nations in other continents, South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore to name just a few.

Africa's political, social and economic wretchedness cannot be understood apart from its deep pool of pathetic and worthless leaders. These so-called leaders must be tightly held accountable for creating and sustaining a breeding ground of social despair and economic melancholy ruthlessly tormenting millions of African men, women and children.

It is a depressing tale of leadership pittance cannily structured in theory and practice around entrenched indulgencies in profound idiocy, unspeakable height of corruption and bold thievery, buffoonish dispositions and clownish tendencies, all perfected and embedded in an enduring culture of governance guide post used by each succeeding leadership to sustain the foolishness.

We have scrupulously perfected the art and science of recycling reckless, greedy, selfish, idiotic and empty-headed crooks in a spiraling practice of transferring political power and relocating thieving access to wealth from one devious fool to another.

As we wrangle over who is going to become the Bill Gates of Africa, it would be quite a welcomed scene to strive to produce an Ataturk of Africa as well.

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, one of the few great leaders of our time boldly and determinedly created the new nation of Turkey out of the depressing rubbles of the Ottoman Empire, thus inspiring generations of leaders who marvel at his unparalleled leadership qualities that overhauled Turkey, satisfactorily elevating it into the family of modern nation states in just 15 years.

I strongly urge that all African leaders read about Ataturk's inspiring life and leadership qualities.

"An understanding of Africa's woes requires a distinction between "underdevelopment" and "crises" writes the prolific Ghanaian author George B.N. Ayittey in "Africa in Chaos".

Ayittey's insightful analysis underscores the deeper cyclical conundrum visible in the historical and contemporary role that "underdevelopment" plays in cultivating "crises" as well as the role that "crises" plays in planting seeds of "underdevelopment".

Yet as we ritually explore the profundity of the dense fog of leadership woes that thwarts Africa's ability to revamp its social, economic and political infrastructure, and as we continue to look into the perplexing questions of what must be done to accelerate Africa's technological hopes and aspirations, it is very crucial to highlight and credit the work of many Africans who are making a difference.

The inspiring work of two of these Africans has earned them the right to vie for the title of "Bill Gates of Africa."

Though a highly misleading comparison, yet it highlights a burning desire on the part of some Africans to initiate and institute long neglected fundamental changes needed in the rubrics of technology and information industry.

Will the real Bill Gates of Africa stand up?

Nigerian-born Philip Emeagwali, a.k.a. calculus crawled out of the ashes and rubbles of the ghastly Nigerian civil war to rise to the epitome of the scientific and technological innovations.

A frontline leader in the rubric of scientific and technological innovation, Emeagwali programmed a Cray Connection Machine in 1989, successfully spinning out a computer formula capable of 3.1 billion calculations per second, an awe-inspiring feat recognized in the scientific community as the world's fastest computation.

In 1996, Emeagwali invented the "Hyperball Computer", a breakthrough device he says would facilitate efficient forecast in shifts in the world's weather patterns hundreds of years away, another incredible feat unrivalled in the history of modern science.

Emeagwali holds degrees in four areas of study, including a Bachelor's degree, three Masters degree and a PhD in Scientific Computing.

In addition, Emeagwali is the recipient of six world records in scientific computing and works for the United States government in various capacities, most recently as a consultant for the United States Army.

Former President Clinton praised Emeagwali as "One of the great minds of the information age" and alluded to the fact that some people refer to him as the "Bill Gates of Africa".

CNN lauded him as "One of the fathers of the Internet and a trail blazer in petroleum extraction."

While Emeagwali's monumental breakthrough marvels are credible contributions to the global field of scientific and technological innovations, U.K. based-Ghanaian-born Hermann Chinnery-Hesse finds himself on the ground in Africa grappling and tackling the serious matter of Africa's woes visible in the lack of computerized operations and accounting systems in both the government and private sector entities.

Chinnery-Hesse founded Soft, a software company with a truncated derivative name slickly coined out of the software giant Microsoft founded by Bill Gates.

But the similarity between Hesse and Gates goes far beyond the subtle commonalities lodging in superficialities of name.

Chinnery-Hesse is determinedly leading a radical revolution destined to institute fundamental changes in the Ghanaian information industry.

The Ghanaian computer wiz is vigorously pursuing an ambitious plan to overhaul and transfer Ghanaian business and government operations from antiquated practices of manual record keeping to computerized information storing, from antediluvian accounting systems elaborated on manual ledger and long note pads to the convenience and effectiveness of computer spreadsheets and databases.

"We are taking it industry by industry," say Hesse who also plans to export his computer software revolution into other African countries tormented by similar malaise, notably Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal and Gambia.

Soft products are preferred in Ghana over Microsoft's lavishly financed products, notably Excel and Access.

A hotel receptionist in Accra was recently asked whether the hotel uses Microsoft products, and she quickly retorted, "No, no, we only use Soft."

It is not precisely pellucid whether the preference of Soft products over Microsoft's products reflects bold expression of jingoistic pride and support for locally made software. Yet one thing is abundantly clear, and that is the fact that such support for local products highlights a radical and welcomed shift in our characteristic racially induced loath, often flat out rebuff, for products made in Africa.

What's monumentally important and delightful here is that Africans are increasingly patronizing products made in Africa, a sharp departure from the indoctrinations and tendencies of colonial attitudes deeply entrenched in most of us.

Soft's growth is staggering.

Launching his firm with one raggedy computer stuck in a crowded corner of his bedroom, Hesse now has a staff of 70 with 20 programmers and developers ferociously cranking out software in response to the escalating demands for it in Ghana.

Profoundly driven by limitless and ambitious plans to rival Bill Gates Microsoft, this Bill Gates of Africa is seeking to pull in international investors to finance his business expansion aspirations.

What are his secrets?

Hesse says that software programs developed for use in Africa must factor in the crucial need for durability, that is, the software programs must be built to endure the piercing, harsh and bitter hot weather of Africa as well as tolerate the depressing menace of constant and extended power outages.

Above all, Hesse insists that his software must be affordable.

Ike Mgbatogu, MPA, is the principal political writer and analyst for the Onumba.com - an on-line voice of the nation located in Columbus, Ohio, U.S.A. He can be reached at Ikeuzondu@onumba.com or (614) 848-7747.

Copyright © 2003 Ike Mgbatogu / Onumba Communications. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.