Joel Jackson dreams of becoming the next Henry Ford. The British expatriate has moved to Kenya to launch Africa’s first local automaker. #-ad_banner-#Sure, Mercedes-Benz and others have built European-engineered cars in South Africa for decades, but no one has ever designed, built and sold a 100% African car. Jackson’s Mobius Two, an $11,500 SUV, is aimed squarely at Africa’s burgeoning middle class, which would like to own cars but often must pay up to 75% in excise taxes to import a foreign vehicle. You can understand why this fledgling entrepreneur is so excited as he raises money to get his… Read More
Joel Jackson dreams of becoming the next Henry Ford. The British expatriate has moved to Kenya to launch Africa’s first local automaker. #-ad_banner-#Sure, Mercedes-Benz and others have built European-engineered cars in South Africa for decades, but no one has ever designed, built and sold a 100% African car. Jackson’s Mobius Two, an $11,500 SUV, is aimed squarely at Africa’s burgeoning middle class, which would like to own cars but often must pay up to 75% in excise taxes to import a foreign vehicle. You can understand why this fledgling entrepreneur is so excited as he raises money to get his business off the ground. As a recent article in The Economist noted, the International Monetary Fund “predicts that four of the world’s six fastest-growing economies in 2014 will be in sub-Saharan Africa. And for the first time in living memory, inflation will dip below the GDP growth rate.” Nigeria, which is expected to pass South Africa as the region’s largest economy this year, is expected to grow 7.4%, according to the IMF. ‘Hopeless’ No Longer The Economist has made a major about-face when it comes to Africa. Back in 2000, its writers called Africa “hopeless,”… Read More