UNFree Media: Lagos

There was no disguising the buzz in the room  this week, when Paul Collier (author of The Bottom Billion, the 2007 classic) stood up to speak on the theme of "Yes Africa Can" under the glittering chandeliers of the World Bank's 12th floor Gallery.

Collier believes that Africa, coastal West Africa in particular, is already undergoing a transformation which will turn it into the world's next low cost powerhouse of manufacturing.

He enthuses that some of the best places for economic growth in Africa are the regions emerging from conflict. He cites places like Southern Sudan, where the diaspora has been harnessed to invest and help guarantee that investments do not simply vanish into thin air. PeaceDiv.com

Collier wasn't invited to talk about threats to the burgeoning African renaissance from the continent's authoritarian leaders, ethnic conflict, the spread of internet censorship, the vicious crackdowns on freedom of expression and the narrowing space for civil society in many countries etc. He was there to make the case that Africa is booming and he pointed out that  experienced European and American investors (who lost money in the last African commodities boom, are missing the boat this time).

Chatting afterwards he dismissed as overblown, the fears that the Chinese driven investment boom, (vast amounts of money without strings attached for transparency, human rights, environment) was such a bad thing: "Something is better than nothing in many of these countries..." he told me.