Books are a good tool to see into the minds of great men and women, and here on the African continent, numerous African businessmen and women have taken time out to document their thoughts and experiences navigating the business terrain. For anyone looking for the how-tos of business success, these books are a great resource.
They serve as guides for knowing the investment environment, outlining the risks, and identifying key solutions to business development in Africa. Below are the top 10 books written by leading business executives in Africa.
Leaving Tarmac: Buying a Bank in Africa
By: Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede
Leaving the tarmac: buying a bank in Africa by Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede is a story in risk taking, entrepreneurship, business partnership,strategic international alliance, and passion for a professional career in banking.
It highlights the issues encountered during the merger and acquisition processes in Nigeria and some of the bank acquisitions in Africa. It also situated the growth of Access Bank in the complex process of growth and provided strategies to manage each challenge as it occurred.
The seventeen-chapter book touched on major regulatory policies and developments in Nigeria’s financial market.
About the Author
Aigboje hails from Sabongida-Ora, Edo State in southern Nigeria, and lived with his family in Lagos, where he attended elementary school at St. Saviours School. At age 19, he graduated from the University of Benin, Edo State, with a LLB degree and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1987.
He holds a Trium MBA, awarded jointly by the London School of Economics, New York University, and HEC Paris. In 2000, he attended a three-month Executive Management Programme course at Harvard Business School.
He began working as a lawyer with Continental Merchant Bank during his NYSC year in 1988. Aigboje joined Guaranty Trust Bank Plc in December 1991, where he resigned as Executive Director in March 2002. He, along with his close friend, led the 2002 acquisition of Access Bank and was the Chief Executive Officer of the bank till December 2013.
In 2017, he retired as the President of the Nigeria Stock Exchange, and still remains as an Ex-officio of the national council.
He served as non-executive Director of Africa Finance Corporation, and chaired the Associated Discount House Limited in 2011.
Aig-Imoukhuede also served as board chairman and director of FMDQ OTC PLC until August 1, 2014, founded Coronation Merchant Bank in 2015, and has led the growth and expansion of the Coronation Ecosystem.
He collaborated with the Office of the Head of the Nigerian Civil Service (OHCSF), led by Folashade Yemi-Esan to digitalize work processes and public service delivery.
By: Jim Ovia
Africa Rise and Shine is the story of Ovia’s business and banking success and how he was able to create one of Africa’s largest banks. Spanning decades of both world and Nigerian history, Africa Rise and Shine dives into the events that led to Ovia’s triumph.
About the Author
Jim Ovia was born on November 4, 1951, in Agbor, Delta State, Nigeria. Holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Southern University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 1977. And a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Louisiana, Monroe, Louisiana in 1979
He is the founder of Zenith Bank Plc, one of the most profitable financial institutions in Nigeria, and during his two decades of leadership, he helped position the bank as one of the largest and most profitable in Africa.
Ovia chairs the Cyberspace Network Limited. Founded Visafone Communications Limited and was the chairman of both the Nigerian Software Development Initiative (NSDI) and the National Information Technology Advisory Council (NITAC), as well as a member of the Honorary International Investor Council.
Starting your own Business in South Africa
By: Barrie Terblanche, Pamela Moeng, Guy Macleod
The book contains all the information you need to start, manage, and sustain a small business in South Africa, now updated to incorporate the latest changes to SA legislation that affect small businesses.
The book is divided into three parts that cover the key stages in starting a business: Planning, Getting started and Scaling up. The material is further divided into clear and manageable chapters, each dealing with a particular element of the process. The chapters offer: vital information, step-by-step guidelines, relevant SA case studies, advice and support, links to other resources, and information on women in business.
About the Authors
Barrie Terblanche is a graduate of Stellenbosch University, a financial and business journalist who co-owned and edited the newspaper Big News for the Business Owner. He won the Africa SMME journalist of the year award (2003) for his writing on small, medium and micro-enterprises and regularly contributes to the ”It’s your business” supplement of the Sunday Times newspaper.
Pamela Moeng worked in educational publishing before moving to the Department of Trade and Industry (dti) to head up one of their business publications unit. She has extensive experience with small business development in South Africa and has a particular interest in the challenges facing women in industry. She currently works for the Gauteng provincial government in a directorial capacity.
Guy Macleod has an MBA from the University of Stellenbosch Graduate School of Business. He has set up and run several businesses and currently works as a business consultant.
1000+ Practical Business Ideas and Directory of Money Sources
By: Sunkanmi Vaughan
The book offers tremendous practical benefits to individuals who are about to start their own business or already own a business as entrepreneurs.
The book details how to create and protect your own business, and provides over a thousand practical business ideas and how to execute them.
Learn creative ways to write a business plan and practical tips on how to run your business profitably, and obtain bonus sample business plans and user-friendly business plan templates.
This Book is illustrated with reader-friendly graphics to further help you retain memory
Written in easy-to-understand English language with professional content layout for easy identification.
About the Author
Sunkanmi Vaughan is the CEO, Biz Life-line,a consultant, author, University of Lagos-trained pharmacist, and speaker who helps individuals and organisations overcome the challenges of business start-up and survival.
He is currently a consultant on training to the Lagos State Government, and has worked with other respected consultancy outfits for large corporate engagements.
Sunkanmi is a member of the Nigerian Institute of Training and Development (NITAD), Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) , Chartered Institute of Loan and Risk Management (CILRM) and Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN).
Unlocking Africa’s Business Potentials
By: Landy Signé
Unlocking Africa’s Business Potential examines business opportunities in the eight sectors with the highest potential returns on private investment—the same sectors that will foster economic growth and diversification, job creation, and improved general welfare. These sectors include: consumer markets, agriculture and agricultural processing, information and communication technology, manufacturing, oil and gas, tourism, banking, and infrastructure and construction.
The book identifies potential business risks and offers mitigation strategies. It also provides policymakers with solutions to attract new business investments, including how to remove barriers to business and accelerate the development of the private sector.
About the Author
Lanry Signe is a senior fellow in the Global Economy and Development Program and the Africa Growth Initiative at the Brookings Institute. A professor and founding co-director of the Globalization 4.0 and Fourth Industrial Revolution Initiative at the Thunderbird School of Global Management.
He was a visiting scholar at the University of Oxford, as well as the Sub-Regional Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics in central Africa. He received many awards and achievements.
By: Victor Kgomoeswana
Africa is Open for Business contains a dynamic and different view of the opportunities available in Africa from those usually portrayed in the news and in other media. Kgomoeswana focuses on the stories behind the headlines as well as sharing his personal experiences of Africa while traveling and doing business in a way that is as entertaining as it is informative.
About the Author
Victor Kgomoeswana, well known as an African business expert with a profile on radio and television, shares 50 stories of innovation and opportunity behind the business headlines of the last ten years on the African continent, with some revised content since the first edition of the book in May 2014.
From the introduction of M-PESA in Kenya to changing the image of Nigeria as Africa’s fraud capital, and from Rwandan coffee farmers to other remarkable stories in between, Kgomoeswana criss-crosses the continent to highlight and revisit the most fascinating business stories and their impact on the future of Africa.
African Markets and the Utu-buntu Business Model
By: Mary Njeri Kinyajui
African Markets and the Utu-buntu Business Model sheds light on the ethics and values that underpin the work of traders and artisans in Nairobi, as well as their resilience and positive impact on urbanization. This book makes an important contribution to the discourse on urban economics and planning in Africa.
About the Author
Mary Njeri Kinyanjui is a writer, researcher, teacher and volunteer community organizer. She is a firm believer in social and economic justice and self-reliance. She holds a PhD in Geography from Fitzwilliam College at the University of Cambridge in the UK, and she’s a senior research fellow at the University of Nairobi’s Institute for Development Studies. She was also a visiting associate at the Five College Women’s Studies Research Center in Mount Holyoke, Massachusetts.
How to Succeed in the African Market
By: Oppong-Amoako Winfred
The book covers key topics such as informal trading, China’s investment in the continent and the impact of recession on long-term GDP growth, and lays out certain factors that need to be taken into consideration before investing, including cross-border trading, corruption, permits and legal contracts.
In this book, Winfred presents a detailed picture of Africa’s investment environment, outlining the risks, challenges, misconceptions and opportunities, and providing a step-by-step guide for approaching the African market.
About the Author
Winfred holds a master’s degree in executive leadership counselling and marketing & Public Relation.He specializes in executive coaching, business expansion into Africa, personal branding, strategic and critical thinking, resilience mastering, and communication strategiepublics for public and media engagement.
He works with governments, CEOs, and leaders in key positions in Africa and globally. Winfred is also a writer and author of “Upgrade to Africa Business Class: Why You Should Expand Your Business into Africa, and many more
Africa’s Business Revolution: How to Succeed in the World’s Next Big Growth Market
By: Acha Leke, Musta Chironga, and Georges Desvaux
The book provides the inside story on business in Africa and its future growth prospects, and it helps executives understand and seize the opportunities for building profitable, sustainable enterprises.
From senior leaders in McKinsey’s Africa offices and a leading executive on the continent, this book draws on in-depth, proprietary research by the McKinsey Global Institute as well as McKinsey’s extensive experience in advising corporate and government leaders across Africa.
Brimming with company case studies and exclusive interviews with 40 of Africa’s most prominent executives and development leaders, this book comes to life with the vibrant stories of those who have navigated the many twists and turns on the road to building successful businesses on the continent.
About the Authors
Acha is a senior partner at McKinsey and chairman of the firm’s Africa offices. He is leading the firm’s expansion across Africa and has worked in more than 20 countries.
Mutsa is an executive at Nedbank, one of South Africa’s largest banking groups. He was previously a partner at McKinsey and served banks in a dozen African countries, mostly on capturing growth opportunities.
Georges is a senior partner at McKinsey and a former managing partner of its African and Japanese offices. A leader of McKinsey’s global marketing work, he has helped build the firm’s consumer insights and analytics capabilities.
Africa’s Greatest Entrepreneurs
By: Moky Makura
Africa’s Greatest Entrepreneurs is a collection of stories about 16 of the most successful entrepreneurs and business visionaries currently operating in Africa. Each chapter is dedicated to a single entrepreneur and focuses on a sometimes rough, often challenging, but mostly exciting, journey to success.
This book examines the life of each entrepreneur and maps out the path each elected to follow in tackling and overcoming the obstacles that stood in the way of the realization of their dreams. Meet, among others, Kagiso Mmusi, the Motswana transport millionaire; Richard Maponya, the South African retail giant behind Soweto’s Maponya Mall; Kwabena Adjei, the rags-to-riches Ghanaian millionaire; Wale Tinubu, the Nigerian head of the Oando oil and gas giant; Ndaba Ntsele, the South African king of high finance; and Mo Ibrahim, the Sudanese-born telecoms millionaire.
About the Author
Moky Makura is a Nigerian author, journalist, actress, and businesswoman who serves as an executive director of Africa No Filter, an organisation aiming at induce change in Africa by means of mass media.
