Many African economies appear to have turned the corner and may be moving to a path of faster and steadier economic growth needed to reduce high level of poverty, according to the World Bank Africa Development Indicators 2007 released in Washington on Monday.
“ADI indicates that spreading and sustaining growth, going forward, can be achieved by accelerating productivity and increasing private investment,” the bank said in a press release on Monday.
In 2005 the latest year for which ADI 2007 posts data, the performance varied substantially across countries, from -2.2 per cent in Zimbabwe to 30.8 per cent in Equatorial Guinea, with nine countries posting growth rates of near or above the seven per cent threshold needed for sustained poverty reduction.
“Over the past decade, Africa has recorded an average growth rate of 5.4 per cent which is at par with the rest of the world.
The ability to support, sustain and in fact diversify the sources of these growth indicators would be critical, not only to Africa’s capacity to meet the MDGs, but also to becoming an exciting investment destination for global capital” the World Bank Vice-President for the Africa Region, Mrs. Obiageli Ezekwesili, said.
African countries fall into three broad categories along this continuum. The first group of seven countries comprises the region’s seven major oil exporting economies, home to 27.7 per cent of the region’s population.
The second grouping of 18 countries (35.6 per cent of the region’s population) show diversified, sustained growth of at least four per cent.
The third grouping of 17 countries (home to 36.7 per cent of the region’s population) is characterised by their resource-poor nature, their strong volatility, are conflict-prone, afflicted or emerging from conflicts or just trapped in slow growth of less than four per cent.
“Greater integration with the global economy especially through export trade, are characteristics common to all African countries that have recorded sustained growth.
These, according to the ADI, largely explain the aggregate efficiency levels and investment volumes – comparable to India and Vietnam – recorded by these countries” Ezekwesili added, pointing out that overall investments in Africa increased from 16.8 per cent of GDP to 19.5 per cent of GDP between 2000 and 2006.
By Chijama Ogbu
The Punch
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
