Africa's Most Entrepreneurial Ethnic Groups

By AskAfricans



In the age of the globalization, the most entrepreneurial communities win. It’s not just a matter of individual success but some communities that possess certain skills will emerge to dominate significant sections of the economy. This can be seen in India’s Parsi and Marwari, and Punjabi communities, the Punjabi of Pakistan, the Chinese in South East Asia, the Lebanese in West Africa, the Indians in East Africa or the Jews in the United States. But what about Africans? The domination of African economies particularly by Indian and Lebanese communities might lead one to deduce that there is a virtual dearth of entrepreneurial talent amongst sub Saharan Africa’s 1 billion people. However there are certain communities in Africa that have distinguished themselves through great trading skills which have seen them amass significant wealth. In the age of globalization where entrepreneurship and a sense of adventure in business determines who wins and who loses, they will be perfectly placed to reap from the global markets.

Igbo of Nigeria
The Igbos of Nigeria are Africa’s most energetic and most entrepreneurial people. They are not ancient traders but emerged much more recently with the onset of the British colonialism. Through sheer grit, hard work and a talent for spotting new opportunities, they emerged as the dominant traders and business leaders as Nigeria raced towards independence in the mid 50s. The Igbo dominance of Nigeria’s commerce and industry was one of the reasons that led to the Biafran war. Today you can find Igbo traders all over the world from South Africa, Kenya, Ivory Coast, China, Japan, the United States, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Ireland, Vietnam, India amongst others. They are mostly merchants although a significant number have diversified into industry, banking, and transportation and service businesses. Researchers have identified the Igbos along with the Ashkenazi Jews and the Swiss Protestants as the people with the greatest achievement motivation in the world.

Kikuyu of Kenya
Like Nigeria’s Igbos, Kenya’s Kikuyu established businesses with the onset of colonialism. Since Kenya’s pre-colonial economy was entirely in the hand of white settlers, many Kikuyu businesses emerged following Kenya’s independence in 1963. Today, the Kikuyu run businesses straddling virtually all sectors of the Kenyan economy ranging from transportation, retail trade, tourism and hospitality, manufacturing, and much more. Kikuyu business communities can be found in virtually all East African cities such as Kampala, Kigali, Juba, Kinshasa, Bujumbura, Dar es Salaam and in countries such as the United States, Britain and China.

The Somali
With their country in shambles for over two decades, one can easily assume that the Somali must be the most impractical people with the worst management skills. But if their success in business is put into consideration, nothing could be further from the truth. The Somalis rank amongst some of Africa’s most entrepreneurial communities. They mainly operate as merchants owning several stalls and are dominant in import-export trade due to their networks in Dubai and Guangzhou. You will find Somalis in businesses such as imports of clothes, shoes, watches, laptops and other manufactured goods mainly from Asia. Export trader mainly involves miraa or khat to Somalia, Djibouti, Eritrea and the Arabian Peninsula. In recent years, many Somalis have diversified into transportation, hospitality and banking.

The Chagga of Tanzania
Numbering just 2 million people, Tanzania’s Chagga are known for their great entrepreneurial skills and are the wealthiest ethnic community in Tanzania. They are also one of the most educated people in Tanzania. Together with their prowess in harnessing agriculture, the Chagga are great merchants and are present in almost every corner of the country. They have massive financial power in Tanzania and own businesses ranging from banks, insurance companies, tourist resorts, airlines (Precision Air) and are players in many other sectors of the economy.




Akan people of Ghana and Ivory Coast

From the 15th century to the 19th century the Akan people dominated gold mining and trading in the region and, from the 17th century on, they were among the most powerful groups in west Africa.

Akan Jungle Warfare,
The Third Anglo-Empire of Ashanti War.
The Graphic 1874

This wealth in gold attracted European traders.Initially the Europeans were Portuguese but, eventually the Dutch and British joined in the quest for Akan gold. Groups such as the Benin Empire in modern day Nigeria and states in Central Africa would serve as intermediaries who waged wars on neighboring states in their geographic area to capture people and sell them as slaves to Europeans(Portuguese) who subsequently sold the enslaved people along with guns to Akans states in exchange for Akan gold.[15] Akan gold was also used to purchase slaves from further up north via the Trans-Saharan route. The Akan purchased slaves in order to help clear the dense forests within Akanland.[15] About a third of the population of many Akan states were enslaved people. The Akans went from buyers of slaves to selling slaves as the dynamics in Akanland and the New World changed. Thus, the Akan people played a considerable role in supplying Europeans with slaves for the trans-Atlantic slave trade.[16] Ghana later apologized to the descendents of slaves for the role some of its people may have played in the slave trade.

Akan people, especially the Ashanti, fought against European colonists to maintain autonomy including many Anglo-Ashanti wars. the war of the Golden Stool, and other similar battles.

By the early 1900s all of Akanland in Ghana was a colony or protectorate of the British while the lands in the Ivory Coast was under the French. On 6 March 1957, following the decolonization from the British under the leadership of Kwame Nkrumah, the Gold Coasts Akanland was joined to British Togoland, and the Nothern region, Upper East region and Upper West region of the Gold Coast to form Ghana.[19] Ivory Coast gained independence on 7 August 1960.


http://m.modernghana.com/news/455846/1/africas-most-entrepreneurial-ethnic-groups.html

Stale.
This one is more current, and from the horse' mouth.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/06/rivers-state-others-have-overtaken-s-east-in-commerce-industry/

King Hate The great and his Tajus won't like this news

I was expecting to see yoruba in the list.

Imagine some kenyan and Ghananian ethnic groups are more hard working then the so called yarib.aboons

Obviously africa has accepted that igbos are the light and their only true african super race.


Call me a racist.

.

some fool posted one rubbish link citing hausa/fulani lagos ibadan expressway JUNK filled newspaper called VANGUARD well i blame him not. monkeys will always be monkeys.
BIAFRA must be restored soonest
the ZOO must fall
IGBO speaking biafrans own the entrepreneurship world in AFRICA no dispute
lazy scratched face illiterate yorubas be spewing trash and hating
poverty stricken hausa fulani be hating
the igbos will continue to soar
my goodness me
biafra is the hope of black africa
eziokwu CHINEKE

The neighbours the Igbos are lumped up with in Nigeria can never see anything good about the igbos. The igbo nation will prosper more if they can have their own country. I believe the birth of Biafra will help the igbos achieve their potential.

God bless Biafra.

OkutaNla:
Stale.
This one is more current, and from the horse' mouth.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/06/rivers-state-others-have-overtaken-s-east-in-commerce-industry/

illiterate!
River state isn't a Tribe...

the way this guy is spamming political section of nairaland with his usual crap is alarming.

mkpi hausa.
u don't own Nigeria's economy again, its Ghana.
lmfao.

Txonyi:
s[s]ome fool posted one rubbish link citing hausa/fulani lagos ibadan expressway JUNK filled newspaper called VANGUARD well i blame him not. monkeys will always be monkeys.
BIAFRA must be restored soonest
the ZOO must fall
IGBO speaking biafrans own the entrepreneurship world in AFRICA no dispute
lazy scratched face illiterate yorubas be spewing trash and hating
poverty stricken hausa fulani be hating
the igbos will continue to soar
my goodness me
biafra is the hope of black africa
eziokwu CHINE[/s]KE

goat!

Macelliot:

illiterate!
River state isn't a Tribe...

Ode! Did you even read the article? According to it, the Igboman who granted the interview mentioned non-igbo states of Kano, Ogun, Lagos, and Rivers as having overtaken pre-dominantly igbo SE. I didn't say it, an igboman did . Besides, that article is more recent than the OP's and is by an igboman, so why are you victimizing me?

OkutaNla:
Stale.
This one is more current, and from the horse' mouth.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/06/rivers-state-others-have-overtaken-s-east-in-commerce-industry/

Oya add this

https://www.nairaland.com/2614901/list-nigerian-tycoons-impact-ghanas

Almost 82% of Nigerian business entrpenuers in ghana are Yorubas.

Igbos are upping their drug businesses and 2X2 shops while other Nigerian groups are overtaking the business arenas.

Ilekeh:


Oya add this

https://www.nairaland.com/2614901/list-nigerian-tycoons-impact-ghanas

Ma Da won loun. They are just reminiscing on the good old days, as in past glory things . They are still good traders though, I give that to them.

OkutaNla:


Ode! Did you even read the article? According to it, the Igboman who granted the interview mentioned non-igbo states of Kano, Ogun, Lagos, and Rivers as having overtaken pre-dominantly igbo SE. I didn't say it, an igboman did . Besides, that article is more recent than the OP's and is by an igboman, so why are you victimizing me?

States where mentioned not Tribes...

---

I'm refering to tribes...

if you want to know somebody suffering from inferiority complex, just check out the dude who is thumping his chest the most. people who are good don't go around boasting about it, they let other people blow their trumpets for them.
empty drum they say makes the most noise.

i would rather give it to the region where other tribes are rushing to go.

you know. the region that some people are claiming as theirs and would rather kill to have.

I mean the region where people who can't wait to abandon their ancestral home instead of developing it, pack luxurious buses one after the other to go to.

well I didn't mention any names.

Op you've been on serious fire today o. Who or what set u ablaze? Digging up reports and links back-to-back.

Smile no dey your face o.

Macelliot:
States where mentioned not Tribes...

---

I'm refering to tribes...

stop educating those illiterates.

OkutaNla:


Ode! Did you even read the article? According to it, the Igboman who granted the interview mentioned non-igbo states of Kano, Ogun, Lagos, and Rivers as having overtaken pre-dominantly igbo SE. I didn't say it, an igboman did . Besides, that article is more recent than the OP's and is by an igboman, so why are you victimizing me?

d worst is dat u hav never been to any of d states mentioned. Igbos r highly mobile, tribe is difrnt frm state.
Secondly, d pesn quoted jst expressed his feeling, its not an official statistics

Ioannes:
if you want to know somebody suffering from inferiority complex, just check out the dude who is thumping his chest the most. people who are good don't go around boasting about it, they let other people blow their trumpets for them.
empty drum they say makes the most noise.

i would rather give it to the region where other tribes are rushing to go.

you know. the region that some people are claiming as theirs and would rather kill to have.

I mean the region where people who can't wait to abandon their ancestral home instead of developing it, pack luxurious buses one after the other to go to.

well I didn't mention any names.

u need to upgrade, this line of logic is already overused

@manchy7531 Oginikwanu? I megide kwa ife a tinye ndi Yoruba obara ngbani enu, aka mu adiro kwa ya. Asikwana na mu agwaro yi. LOL

Wait a minute, I typed ndi ofe and Nairaland transcribed it to ndi yoruba. How come? So Nairaland now recognizes that ndi ofe refers to ndi yoruba eekwa?

nwanlecha:
Wait a minute, I typed ndi ofe and Nairaland transcribed it to yoruba. How come?

nwanlecha:
@manchy7531 Oginikwanu? I megide kwa ife a tinye ndi Yoruba obara ngbani enu, aka mu adiro kwa ya. Asikwana na mu agwaro yi. LOL

How is markeet swiree e don tey wey i see you.Seems you just came back from a sabbatical.Just calm your flat tities hun well its already calm anyways .The OP never mentioned Yoruba so i advise you to stop squirting hun .

Owu kpa ori

basilo101:

u need to upgrade, this line of logic is already overused

Not by me.
you guys also need to upgrade, the "our tribe is the best in the world" attitude is already outdated since 1934,.end of the 2nd world war. you can ask Hitler.