Today, Africa imports almost everything and anything from basic household essentials to the foundations and building blocks for any functioning modern society - its infrastructure and the capital, components and competencies to develop it. For decades, Africa and Africans have shown their inclination to look outwards to the rest of the world rather than inwards for solutions to some of the most pressing social and economic issues facing the region.

As Africa looks to draw in hundreds of billions of dollars over the coming years to finance its infrastructure, invest in its businesses and support its development programmes, Imported brings much needed attention to the obvious and not-so-obvious human and economic cost to the region of its over-reliance on imported goods, capital and expertise from other parts of the world in trying to meet those aims. Rather than locking in the capital it attracts, its pervasive culture of importing sees Africa relinquish much of what it stands to gain from foreign direct investment.

Imported sheds light on the current methods employed by governments, development organisations and impact investors on development projects and initiatives in Africa. It explores ways to reorientate foreign investment, overseas development assistance and Africa's long-term sustainable development goals to lock in Africa's wealth for the benefit of Africa first.