During my travels, I saw in both Africa and South America, ingenious people using every method they could to repair and extend the utility of simple appliances we in the occidental world usually use only a few months or years. I felt truly humbled and even a bit overwhelmed by their determination, creativity and adaptability. I also felt saddened.
They reminded me of my own past as a child, in Africa. I had so little, yet I only remember how happy I was with what I had. Since I had no toys, I was obliged to be creative by building cars with some iron wire I’d found. For the wheels, I used a pair of old sandals. This was the way I entertained myself and my friends with next to nothing.
I grew up in The Democratic Republic of the Congo or simply the “DRC” (formerly known as Zaire), one of the richest countries in the world, yet I remember times of extreme hardship. I remember certain periods in my life when my family and I could only afford to eat a meal once every three days. Other privileges we here in the West often take for granted like adequate medical care and even basic education became a luxury for many of us in the DRC then. When the land was - and still is - so rich with resources, why was there so much poverty among so much of the general population there? The answer lies in the outdated process by which wealth is transferred and the reasons why.
In less that two decades Africa will be the first continent in terms of population, with more than 2 billion people. Currently with a population of over 77 million people, the DRC is the fourth most populous country in Africa. As Africa is considered by many to be the birthplace of mankind, in a way, all humankind is African and will soon be more so than ever. This is a population in dire need of a democratization of opportunity, in a continent rich in natural resources.
Over the last four years particularly African countries, I have seen signs that cannot be ignored. Hope, openness to innovation, a yearning for new growth and education about new technology and methods... and so many challenges that accompany these are creating an exciting and potentially revolutionary new era for the people of Africa. I quickly realized the necessity for us to bring a new kind of honest, dependable, robust and sustainable industry, supported by the people themselves, to encourage independence and a true sense of self-worth. This kind of new, transparent, distributed and democratized model of industry and creation of wealth for the people is now truly possible through blockchain technology. I saw the potential for the acceleration of progress through decentralized technology, and what it can bring to all populations living in what we used to call the “Third World.”
As CEO of a Fintech 3.0 company, I see firsthand how we can use this technology, allowing us to minimize cost, eliminating the necessity for middlemen in many procedures through the use of smart contracts on a blockchain ecosystem. Through this new tool we are able to more accurately calibrate offers to meet demand and in a secure and transparent way, as transactions on a blockchain are immutable and can be made transparent to all parties. These innovations in transactions and trade via blockchain will be especially valuable to low income countries, such as the general population of the DRC.
At Flashmoni, we have established an asset backed cryptocurrency company, using natural resources. I have now reached an important decision about how this technology will best function to bring fairness and opportunity, especially to the people of these impoverished nations in Africa like the DRC. We are committed toward maintaining assets backing our cryptocurrency securely in each country of origin with clear and accessible records available to all parties via the blockchain.
Currently the process by which resources such as gold can be bought and stored from a country such as the DRC is complex, time-consuming and needlessly expensive. It requires transporting the resource out of the DRC across many borders through other countries - at further cost and risk - to be finally purchased and held elsewhere. This laborious process is made necessary due to the major world banks that demand this. It has become counterproductive and ceases to benefit the actual country of origin, as so many fees, lost time and energy is spent in the process.
The most common response from these major banks for requiring this tedious process is the perceived instability of certain countries. There is a perception of corruption and a lack of trust that must be overcome. For instance, as more countries move toward a “cashless society” with the intention of avoiding corruption, digitalization through cryptocurrency can be utilized to great advantage. As an example, a policeman will think twice before asking for bribe if he knows the transaction can be easily tracked through a transparent blockchain ecosystem. This great shift in currency and accountability will create more honest and stable interactions and institutions, which in turn will build trust first among each small community, then each city and finally expanding to nations.
In addition, through the use of blockchain technology, we will overcome the unnecessary intervention of world banking institutions and their well-known corruption, as middlemen. Distributed ledger and smart contract technology will ensure fair, swift and secure transactions and the verification of asset backed commodities such as gold, making obsolete the old world functions of these ruling institutions, whose current purpose is often only to pillage the wealth of nations through fees and inflation.
Blockchain will also be utilized to trace the origin of assets backing our tokens. This will oblige all actors to be more cautious about their environmental and societal responsibilities and to act with integrity, as their actions will be evident on the blockchain to all parties.
Through the use of blockchain technology and smart contracts, my sincere hope and my dedicated commitment is for people of all nations to be empowered, to be able to access, take responsibility for and to trade freely the wealth of their land. To be compensated fairly, without the onerous restraints of old world institutions. We now see this possibility before us. It is up to us to take steps to reach our potential. Join us in this new dawn of empowerment. Learn more at www.ABCSummit.com and www.Flashmoni.io
