The results often do not go with normal perceived notion of who the globalized societies are. For example, though the USA is the largest importer of goods from around the world, its globalization ranking over all is 27, for economic globalization it comes 50th. This is because of the huge internal market the USA has. Whilst Switzerland on the other hand has a large external market relative to its size and has a globalization index of 5. The top 12 globalized societies are all European.

China, the great exporter, in terms of economic globalization comes in at a paltry 103. Singapore totally relying on the world for its economic activity is ranked number 1 for economic globalization. The index is made up of three components, economic, political and social globalization index. The sum makes up the overall globalization index.

The most economically globalized society in Africa according to the KOF index is Angola ranked at 51, followed by South Africa and Zambia ranked at 55 and 56 respectively, ahead of countries like Brazil and Japan. These African countries are ranked reasonably probably because of the lack of a domestic market, but it does convey a positive note of wanting to do business with the world.

Maybe the AU (African Union), African Development Bank, or some economic institution will start an African integration index, ranking how much African countries are economically integrated with fellow African countries. It would be good for the public to know and could be a useful tool in helping African economic integration as the progress of this integration could be charted over time.

Economic integration

It would be also good for the public to know who really believes in African economic integration, in intra African trade and expose the phoniness of the African leaders who talk about this everyday yet every day there is some excuse against African integration.

Reality is simple, who do Africans think will help them if they do not help themselves? All the African leaders are afraid of sanctions from the Western white world, yet if these people had been true revolutionaries by today those sanctions would not matter as Africa would have most of its trade with itself. This of course is what the advisors from the west fear, hence their propaganda puts out the notion that a black men can only think what he is taught by a white human and must regurgitate whites, no, that is a lie. If Africans realised that 2 + 2 = 4 at Yale it is just that at Obafemi Awolowo University then Africans will start to appreciate what they have. The trick for CNN and BBC is to say the 4 at Princeton is better than the 4 at Swaziland and for Africans to believe that, then they will look down on one another.

It is time for Africans to believe in themselves and one another, look at tomorrow rather than today, and Intra African trade will take off. Original thought comes from anybody, it is true that to regurgitate whites means ease of employment, but that dissolves ones potential and has short term benefits, it is sacrilege. What are African leaders protecting when they put up tariffs against one another, industries that where built in colonial times, afraid you cannot do better than colonisers. Remember Steve Biko, “black man, you are on your own”, and, “The most potent weapon of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.”

As long as we believe in our minds we cannot do, CNN and BBC will always say 4 from Harvard is better than 4 from Zambia, then Africa will continuously seek partners from other sources and despise those in Africa who can because BBC has said 4 from Oxford is better than 4 from ourselves and neighbour. There will never be Intra African trade, because the advisor from London will say my 4 is better, forget about that fellow black. You can then forget about freedom, you free people to do because you believe they can do, if you do not believe they can do why free them, let them rely on natural resources as is advised by London and Washington, if there are no natural resources, the little you have make a deal with Ottawa to extract, the rest can suffer and their minds will stay closed or barrel of a gun will sort them out.

*A knowledge economist residing in Canada and author of book “Fundamental Theory of Knowledge” that can be found at www.lulu.com He can be contacted at bhekukhumalo@gmail.com