Mo Ibrahim

Electoral turnout is falling among the young, and political apathy is on the rise.

You get over your first love by falling in love with something new.

Nobody in Africa loves to be a beggar or a recipient of aid. Everywhere I go in Africa, people say, 'When are we going to stand up on our feet?'

The state and its elites must be subject, in theory and in practice, to the same laws that its poorest citizens are.

I think we need to look at ourselves first. We should practice what we're preaching. Otherwise, we are hypocrites.

Experience counts in government even more than in business.

Many Africans are used to a life where they get up in the morning and don't know what they're going to do that day.

There's no point in trying to hoard money after life, so better really to share with people.

What is a government supposed to do for its people? To improve the standard of living, to help them get jobs, get kids to schools, and have access to medicine and hospitals. Government may not directly provide these public goods and services, but government must be accountable for whether or not they are delivered to citizens.

Rwanda really did take very strong steps towards development. I mean, this place is unrecognizable. There's a very good management of economy and resources - it's a success story, and that's great.

Africa was perceived - it still is to some extent - as a place which is very difficult to do business in. I don't share that view.

Everywhere in Africa, you see Indian, Chinese, Brazilian businesses. Other than Coca Cola and the oil companies, it is very rare to see American businesses.