HOW TO MAKE AFRICA WIN OFF THE FIELD TOO

When all else fails, try sports. It's good for the soul.

- Sanjeev Gupta

For centuries, resource exploitation and extraction from Africa has been a constant.

The untold misery, the unaccounted siphoning, the unprecedented loss of humanity.

Yet another big resource loss in modern times is going unnoticed.

Sports is big business globally. But there is a paradox.

Every time I watch soccer or rugby or basketball or cricket or every other sport virtually, I see what the world sees. The best athletes in the world are largely African; albeit wearing different colors.

Imagine the potential of those left behind? They are winning it for us on the field. How to make Africa now win off the field too? To play sports is business, not mere recreation. Its impact on both youth and economic development is inarguable. The jobs it creates are obvious. The bonds it forges that bring national pride and cultural expression to the fore is stirring.

Yet, while single-use stadiums exist, there are no real multipurpose sports arenas outside of Kigali on the continent.

Stadiums are hard to fill. Sports arenas get filled easier because of their adaptability, thus, making the business case stronger.