Re: keeping the discussion going

Sure, rule of law and security of life and property cannot be ignored towards creating a successful commercial enterprise, nevertheless why is there break of law and insecurity of life and property?

Right, where are the goods(I’d also have it represent services for many reasons)that are going to be used to “create” this commerce or market for capital(ism) to venture on.Indeed there has to be the “compellation” or “realization” of existing financial system on the need for low interest loans, yea.

Now, I feel what is needed is not only technology that will leave the pages of doctoral thesis to the silicon-valley like Basement that churned the kind of Larry Elison, Bill Gates and various technology and bio-tech moguls of the 90s but indeed also technology that would leave the pages of ordinary lecture scripts or common textbooks in every common library to Obosi like “hut” that churned the kind of Friedrich Krupp, Henry Ford and various Engineering Moguls in the 19th Century!

India, China and Brazil as mentioned should only not be seen from the way they appear on the surface, these are countries that got themselves grounded in the so called old economy (Steel, Automobile, Railways, Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, and Agriculture).
A Larry Elison or Bill Gates as was rightly stated, started to exist big time in the 1990’s almost a century after the Fords e.t.c. I mean such Larrys and Bills won’t have existed at any time without a solid Manufacturing backup.

As for entrepreneurs, they’ll exist where there is an enterprise. There’s enterprise where there’s goods. There’s goods where there’s manufacturing. There’s manufacturing where there’s man(female/male) and functional machines.

See where I’m driving at, nobody should think of escaping building engines and equipments and I don’t just mean prototypes, they must be rolling past factory band lines in its tens, hundreds and possibly thousands
Right and I’d like to know which entrepreneurs we mean here, do we mean international investors coming with capital, technology and every other resource?-that alone wouldn’t get any developing society to the desired economic zenith.
Or international investors coming with capital only? because there’s a developed intellectual society to invest in? – The developed intellectual society doesn’t exist and such investors are not coming- I submit.

Or is it indigenous Entrepreneurs we mean here ? then I’d say developing society is not devoid of entrepreneurs.. but as was rightly stated the kinds that set India, China and Brazil on the path of rapid economic development and stability is what is needed.

That/those kind(s) of entrepreneur(s) as I’d understand would have been and should be

1. yea, indigenous (one way or the other but at least one way) .

2. assured of a developed intellectual society to invest in.
or
1. and 3. confident of developing a developed intellectual team/group/society.

You see, developing society has wise, intelligent, clever and brilliant people, however all these attributes becomes developed with education(formal, informal, both) and discipline.

When I hear entrepreneurs I get the impression one can actually come with all the capital in the world to a Zimbabwe or an Angola or any country out here or in there, to manufacture (not assembly) automobiles and really would set up, it won’t because it can’t.

Those with ideas and academic qualification in developing society, there’d better be loads of them (it can only improve things).
t. rightly mentioned somewhere the importance of mass education. I’d want to mention there’d better be someone who had done, doing or wants to do something or with academic qualification in Manufacturing Engre-Tech, Specialist Welding Engre-Tech (with ones idea on welding as just roadsidewelding we’d possibly understand better when one tries to weld stainless steel or Aluminum)Casting and Foundry Engre-Tech. Plastic injection-Tech, Metallurgy (heat treatment Processes), Materials-Surface Engre-Tech and Design Engre.At least these key areas just have to be there.

You see, my vision is "a people" who have taken their development and taken their destiny in their heads; then possibly in their hearts and if it’s fine in their hands as well. I tell people "jokingly" that taking it in the hands is risky because the day the hands are gone yea, development and destiny vanishes and one is there to see and live in underdevelopment and without destiny, however when the head is gone then yea, underdevelopment or development, with or without destiny isn’t less important.

I have singled out automobile as a source which is one of the surest way to economic development(industrialization) and the Asian tigers realized this, so did India, Brazil and China(the other day I read that Chinese cars are gradually taking space around Victoria Island).An Automobile has hundreds of parts with each of them requiring its own Factory band lines for production.

Those Factories and band lines would provide the necessary development of any other industry that requires machines or mechanization, and then one can talk about industrialization. After now one can get to see why I earlier posted that there has to be focus on Engineering now specifically mechanical engineering and its specialist/diversified fields.

Build engines, mechanize and our agricultural problem are largely solved. Ogo rightly emphasized the need to put some focus on agriculture, correct, in my opinion it has to be mechanized agriculture that is the only agriculture I understand.
t. asked for the state of agriculture in naija; In my opinion the state of agriculture mirrors the state of mechanical engineering, if there are no engines, there’s no manufacturing, no steel mill after 30 years and $10Billion of effort, no turbines built, no basic industry (by my own terms) then that’s the state of mechanical engineering.

Mechanical Engineers have to seek and tell themselves the empirical truth. Then we’d require in every engineering field to do the same if they are haven’t. True is, mechanical engineering education “naija style” is not broad, complete, pure or empowering for any serious industrialization.

You see, I see three ways to start approaching the economic development (industrialization).

1. Top-Down approach: Some visionary, focused, intelligent, wise and disciplined leadership from the top government that’ll realize the need and how to achieve productivity, sadly the leadership has been… well let’s not discuss politics here, we’d possibly require t. to launch another Blog for that.But the mentality is that politicians see these things as “technology don go far, man no go ever fitcatchup or even get any levels”. That’s half truth and the rest is simply naive.

2. Bottom-Up Approach: A team/group or one person getting the knowledge or acquiring technology, source capital and every other key resource somewhere + the attributes as mentioned in 1. to get the ball rolling or rolling faster.

The third approach is obviously both, which would possibly see any society on rapid economic development.

I have specifically mentioned these 3 approaches to highlight the statement that FG doesn’t patronize or encourage Engr’s in naija may be true, however another statement I'd make is that the Engr’s have not made themselves patronized may also be true.


To address any 4.points summarized by t.

1. Affordable Universities- Right, affordability the way I understand means comfort in the fund-cost relationship (ya’ll know I ain’t an economist but let’s go ahead); fund(on the students part) and cost( On part of Uni(I’d include living expenses generally) ) Let’s assume cost is fixed at it’s maximum, the funds has to have a fixed point at a minimum that assures comfort (affordability).

Yea I’d just have to analyze it right here.The equilibrium basically shouldn’t be distorted irrespective of whether the two fixed points are varied or not. At best is to see how to ensure that the “cost maximum” is lowest and the “fund minimum” is highest.

a. The FG, StateG and Uni’s have to know who is and should be in charge of the Uni, who’s generating revenue and who’s disbursing and at which formula.

b. Students can go into some sponsorship agreement with Uni’s and vice-versa (this way Uni becomes readily affordable).

c. I’m aware students get stipends from them home state governors through them student associations (this can be encouraged).

Another approach is if one has to work, then focus on work for a year or thereabout, save up money then focus on Uni.


2. Cutting edge Vocational studies t. rightly asked if “vocational studies in secondary school are useful in practice, they're supposed to accomplish just this”
The truth is that I don’t know what the 3 inbetween the 6-3- and 4 educational system means and I will not know because I don’t want to know. In my opinion there should be a system that is channeled through to SS3 without break.
Infact I hear it’s now smooth ride from 6 to JSS1 so more like 9-3-4 or so anyway, In my opinion any vocational study that makes sense to me has to start after SS3, I mean there has to be a sort of yea as it is with jamb, polyjamb, college of education entrance exam, theeeeeen there has to be an entrance exam into vocational studies (depending on which one) as well, infact even trading should have entrance exam and traders should have trading qualification certificates, yeees (that would keep some people out of there and in somewhere they should/could be).

Other vocational studies one should remember are formally trained electonics technicians, machinist, welders (stainless steel and alluminum), fitters, and every other technician required to get grounded in the key areas of manufacturing engineering.
Many other vocations including hairdressing, barbing, capentery, sowing, name them... they must all begin after SS3.

Robotic technicians (automatisierungstechniker) has it’s market in any serious manufacturing, shippbuilding and any other serious welding construction project. There’s also market for Biotech technicians in national and multinational research organization, there shall be more market when there is manufacturing somewhere, however bio-tech exports to Europe is coool. Dr. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is doing fine, she got India on bio-tech map.

I guess points 3. 4. and 5. have been responded to however I want to highlight on 4. A key educational investment is to get well grounded in mechanical engineering education including its diversified/specialists fields.Engineering qualification or not, I believe it’s only when one engineers or is engineering that technology is born. The transformation of science to technology is engineering.

As I gradually wind up this post, people, get me right; remember or go through the statement on my vision, understand what I understand as the entrepreneur one requires or should be and realize why I’m driving on every mechanical engineering.
The day indigenous driven quality products starts to be churned out in that country, economists would have a larger economy, business administrators would have larger businesses, accountants would have larger accounts to keep, people would enjoy good music, there would be many very healthy people and they would pass on to their eternal/new life haven lived!

Re: Recipes for Economic Development

Anonymous, t and Ogo, you’ve raised interesting points there. Education is key. I believe though that the society has to be science oriented in it's education. The science of now is the technology of tomorrow or after now. Nevertheless, in having a science oriented educated society, very special focus has to be on engineering education, because it's when one engineers or is engineering that technology is born. Technology is the bedrock of any economically developed society.

The Big Easy is not Easy

I know this is kinda off topic, but i have been pondering for a week , dismayed by the turn of events in New Orleans in the wake of this disaster. I have some thoughs on my blog..kindly check it out , what do u think? leave some comments