I answered this on my quora,
What Africa will look like in twenty years from now depends on what we as Africans are doing in recent times ie. Today. Our way of life today will determine what Africa will look like in 20 years. However this is What I think Africa will look like in twenty years from now which will be 2037;
The majority of Africans will live in urban areas. Rapid urbanisation will occur in response to rising demographic pressure, a likely deterioration in agricultural productivity . . . and reduced costs of migration. Urbanisation will put significant pressure on the existing infrastructure of African cities. Providing new city dwellers with access to land and basic services delivery will also prove to be major challenges.
Increased connectivity through mobile phones and the internet will boost migration because people will be more informed about destination countries. Better communication will also reduce the psychological impact of migrating, as it will be easier for migrants to stay in touch with family and friends at home.
Climate change may also increase the need to move from the worst affected areas, either to cities within Africa or outside the continent.
Despite the potential negative effects of the migration of highly skilled workers, sometimes called the “brain drain”, it does hold certain benefits for African countries. One of the greatest advantages is the remittances they send back home. Between 1990 and 2010, reported remittance inflows to Africa quadrupled, reaching nearly US$40 billion last year, equivalent to 2.6% of Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2009. Actual remittances are expected to be significantly more than this figure.
Climate change will benefit farming in the northern hemisphere, while having a negative impact on African agriculture. “Rain-fed African agriculture is considerably more climate sensitive than agriculture elsewhere, and soil degradation will have substantially increased due to the population pressure.
There are many factors influencing what schools may look like in 20 years: unprecedented global forces and unforeseen technologies and paradigm shifts in the ways students want to learn and teachers want to instruct. I predict that the future of education will require educators to be more entrepreneurial, collaborative, creative and innovative. Additionally, learners will be even more tech savvy, demanding, confident and focused as consumers of education.
Many schools now have one-to-one devices or are heading in that direction. Our future challenge relates to students using technology — if we look at technology as just a better tool to administer and grade tests, then we’ll have missed the boat. Presently, cell phones and social media are still frowned upon in the classroom in some areas of the country. In 20 years, schools will have advanced technology in the classroom to complement teachers’ lessons. For example, a science class may cover 3D printing and how it can be used to replicate prosthetic limbs to change someone’s life.
Technological innovation is likely to make companies more productive, and to make it easier for political parties and social movements to connect to potential supporters. However, it may also have a range of less positive effects that are often overlooked. Most obviously, by 2037 large parts of the manufacturing sector will have become mechanised, while driverless cars will be on the streets. These innovations will help to drive up profits for business owners, but are likely to undermine employment in parts of the economy that have traditionally been labour intensive.
In politics, I can’t say more but I acknowledge that African politics are not homogeneous. Young people in different regions of the continent are faced with a complexity of the challenges in politics whose nuances I cannot fully comprehend. The future of African politics depends on electing the most talented, ethical and committed public servants. Let us not discount the incredible passion African youth have for change, and let us engage in our political future.
In summary, while African politics will change significantly over the next two or three generations, this transformation is more likely to be evolutionary than revolutionary. The meaning and significance of ethnic identities are hard wired into the politics of many countries, and are sustained by a range of cultural, social and political practices. It will take more than demographic change to reverse this state of affairs. After all, one of the most notable recent elections in which different communities voted in very different ways occurred not in Africa but in the United States, where neither urbanization, GDP growth, or a large middle class has eroded the salience of race.
