In Ethiopia in 2009 Pace International (www.pace-inc.com) launched the first African footwear export program to the US. Four years later a Chinese private enterprise committed $2 billion in Foreign Direct Investment, FDI, in Ethiopia into the footwear producing sector for export. The US State Department cited the Pace Initiative as the most successful export program of manufactured goods Africa has ever had. http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2013/apr/30/chinese-investment-ethiopia-shoe-cityIn less than 5 years, Ethiopia was thereby transformed from one of the poorest nations in the world for centuries with a $147 average per capita income upon our arrival in 2008 to today the #1 fastest growing economy in the world:http://www.businessinsider.com/world-bank-fast-growing-global-economies-2015-6In 5 years, with erratic, intermittent public funding, Pace International generated a success story that the entire donor community has not been able to attain despite having invested roughly $1 trillion over a 60 year span in Africa.http://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/za/Documents/strategy/za_ethiopia_growth_miracle_july2014.pdfThe economic revolution taking place in Africa now is being driven by the transfer of lower priced consumer goods manufacturing from China to Africa. Over 10,000 footwear factories in China have closed in the last 5 years; prices are rising and all US importers are eagerly seeking alternatives to China. African stock markets are reflecting these new realities rising 50%-300% compared to the SP500 over the last 5 years. A leading financial publication calls Africa, “The Final Frontier”. For savvy investors looking to diversify their portfolios, there’s only one place left to go: sub-Saharan Africa. Barron’s also cites Africa as the Final Frontier, stating, “Investors will lose a huge opportunity if they avoid vibrant and changing Africa.”And with wealth creation there is an automatic dividend, peace!