This article is reprinted from an article published on the site "GB UNIVERSE" operated by independent venture capital, Global Brain.The UNIVERSE editorial department, the company Hiroto Soda, and the GB SDGS team co -written.
SDGs initiatives are rooted in our society.As a Japanese domestic trend, SDGs has been moving significantly in the past year, and it is thought that the government announced by the government announced that the "2050 Carbon Nuvery" declaration has controlled.
GB has also focused on SDGs initiatives, and has been told many reports and supporting activities so far.
By the way, what I want to pay attention to this time is "SDGs in developing and emerging countries".In developing countries and emerging countries, they have different issues from developed countries in various aspects, such as the environment, society, and women.Do you know "International Day of beautiful air for the blue sky" on September 7?It is a new international day started in 2020.
The air we always smoke is not always beautiful in any land.Air pollution causes respiratory diseases such as heart disease and lung cancer.doing.
The relationship between air pollution and the death of the new colonavirus has been pointed out, and is concerned about emerging countries.In this article, through the initiatives of "Mago Creation Co., Ltd. (" MAGO ")", which wants to transform Ghana's slums into a sustainable society with the power of art and business, we will unravel the SDGs issues in developing and emerging countries.I want to try it.
In the last two or three years, many tools have appeared in productive contexts, and the service forms that optimize and provide major platform experiences have attracted attention.
Mao Nagasaka, the representative of MAGO, is an artist born in 1984 and became an on -street artist on the occasion of bankruptcy from a company he owned.He visits Ghana's slums "Agboog Brothy" in 2017, and meets people who make a living by burning electronic trash (e-wastes) abandoned by developed countries and selling metals such as copper taken out.
In this area, electronic devices that were no longer used by developed countries around the world were discarded and were nicknamed "the world's largest electronic equipment graveyard."
The dark part created by the capitalist mass production and mass consumer society has been pushed into a slums with a weak position.-Mago, who learned about this, launches this situation to the world and begins activities to solve it.
Their characteristics are the beliefs of the "sustainable capitalism" listed here.Sustainable capitalism is an activity that realizes a sustainable society while turning these three gears, "culture," "economy," and "social contribution."When I asked about this specific activity, Mr. Nagasaka, the representative of MAGO, commented as follows.
"For example, the more people owning MAGO's Ghana works, the less local garbage, the contributing to the economy, and the more cultural, and at the same time, the message of this problem spreads around the world. This is the sustainable capitalism.It is the essence. Mago is actively incorporating the economic activities that artists have been tabooed up to now. The people who bought it, the local people, and the earth are pleased.This is true sustainable. "(Mr. Nagasaka)
Such activities will be connected, and in the following year, in 2018, they will contribute to the establishment of the first school and museum in slums.Furthermore, the film, which captured this, was awarded four excellent prizes in the American documentary film award "IMPACT DOCS AWARD".
By the way, in this way, emerging countries have some tasks that are difficult to see from the outside.According to Mr. Nagasaka, there are two major problems, "environment" and "economy", in Ghana.In terms of environment, the vast land, which is said to be 30 Tokyo Domes, has become a problem because the endlessly piled electronic device is spread.In addition, residents living in the field are burning these electronic devices, extracting metals such as copper from inside and making a living, adding problems with air pollution.
And the economy.It seems that the work of polluting the environment and selling the metal obtained by burning electronic devices is only 500 yen a day.As a result, the negative loop that cannot be educated and cannot get out of poverty is swirling, and the worse is that their average life expectancy is in the mid -30s, in order to absorb the toxic gas generated by burning electronic devices every day.It is said to be a short life.
Mr. Nagasaka took action against this situation, and his eyes were already heading to the next world.
"We have provided more than 1,000 gas masks to local people through the sales of art works, and have been working with university graduate staff for children who can not go to school to operate schools.In addition, we are also constructing art museums as a new source of tourism revenue for foreigners. We are preparing to promote the following two major projects while further accelerating investment in the local area.By the way.
The first is the construction of a recycling factory to the site.Until now, there was no choice but to burn garbage, but we are planning to provide a means for processing electronic devices without polluting the air with appropriate processing.We will visit Ghana from November 2021 and conduct a survey for the construction of the first recycling factory.
The second is the olive cultivation project in Ghana.Olive absorbs more carbon dioxide than other plants and supplies oxygen.We are going to provide a business to clean the air to them, who have been working to pollute the air.In Japan, Shodoshima in Kagawa Prefecture is famous for its olive business, but in July 2021, land is purchased on Shodoshima and will receive lectures directly from olive business companies.Ghana Side is working to purchase land in the cultivation area while having local staff cooperate, and we will also promote this for commercialization. "(Mr. Nagasaka)
What is MAGO's sustainable capitalism, and Mr. Nagasaka explained that "the more the sales increase, the more the earth and the people become richer," he explained.I want to contribute a little to the realization of a world where reasonable products and services are evaluated from the world where reasonable products and services have been evaluated.This is the creation of a sustainable society that MAGO aims.
Mago's approach shows the possibility that "art" is not only an economic circulation method, but also as a messenger of the task, which is difficult to see, but it can solve a major but worldwide problem.He gave me.At first glance, problems that may not be solved may open a new path by applying another perspective.
Now, let's summarize the African potential as a GB as a GB.As described in MAGO's activities, in developing and emerging countries, there are cases in which the developed countries have once overcome the social issues that have been overcome.The issues of "environment" and "economy" are not just issues in Ghana in Ghana, but are also issues that have been held in other African countries for many years.On the other hand, in Africa, where infrastructure has not been maintained, the introduction of cutting -edge technology has appeared in Africa, which has shown dramatic changes in people's lives.
The representative example is "Leaype Frog (the growth of frog jump)".
In Africa, mobile phones have spread at a stretch over the spread of landline phones, and those who could not open bank accounts began to use mobile money without having an account.For example, there is a payment service M-PESA operated by Kenya Safari.com.It is a 75 billion KSH (about $ 700 million dollars) in a total of more than 22.6 million users in a country with a total population of 52 million (from the 2019 report).
Africa startups are the core of this rapid change.Their features are that they are aiming to solve social issues that apply to the whole Africa, which is happening in Ghana.
In the past five years, investment in African startups has grown by more than 7 times, exceeding 600 incubation facilities, which are the bases of entrepreneurs.
According to the United Nations, African population is estimated to increase from about 1.3 billion to about 2.4 billion by 2050, and one out of the world's population is expected to be African.They are using technologies that have never been on the continent to this huge consumer market.
Startup founders have also changed in recent years, and in addition to the cases where highly educated young people from Europe and the United States moved to Africa through local assistance activities, immigrants to Europe and the United States called "Dia Spolla".There is also a flow of returning to my home country and starting a business.Some of these "Diaspola" have experienced experiences at the top schools such as Harvard University and Stanford University ( *).
The latest Y Combinator's latest batch (2021, summer), which was held recently, has become one of the global startup investment areas.
According to African investors, he analyzed the change in the situation, saying, "I used to be in a college professor when Dia Spora returned to Japan, but now such human resources are starting a business."More excerpts).
In the future, GB will increase the focus on solving SDGs and social issues in Africa and emerging countries in the future.
* Quoted: JETRO (2020) "Africa! The latest trends of innovation and startups"
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