Statistics released in 2018 by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for 2017 reveals Nigeria and South Africa are the largest economies in Africa with a combined GDP of around$750 billion. 1.5 Contribution to GDP growth in Africa, by region, 2016–20 6 1.6 Real GDP growth, by country, 2018 8 1.7 Contribution to GDP growth in Africa, by country, 2010–20 9 1.8 Consumption as proportion of GDP in Africa, emerging and developing Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, 2001–18 9 Congolese dictator Mobutu Sese Seko became notorious for corruption, nepotism, and the embezzlement of between US$4 billion and $15 billion during his reign. The top nations in 2007 include Mauritania with growth at 19.8%, Angola at 17.6%, Sudan at 9.6%, Mozambique at 7.9% and Malawi at 7.8%. Copyright © The African Exponent. It once boast of a booming tourism sector, however, extremist groups and their threat to the security of lives has had significant effect on the economy.The services sector accounts for just over half of GDP and industry a quarter, made up of mining, primarily phosphate rock mining, construction, and manufacturing. Recent decades have brought efforts at various degrees of regional economic integration. Ethiopia and Rwanda round up the top three with 8.5% and 7.8% respectively with Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya being the other East African economies in the top 10. [60][74][75], The situation whereby African nations export crops to the West while millions on the continent starve has been blamed on the economic policies of the developed countries. The African Union is the largest international economic grouping on the continent. Improved economic growth across Africa has been broad, with variation across economies and regions. Seven of the ten industries contracted in the fourth quarter. [41] Some scholars who believe that Africa was generally poorer than the rest of the world throughout its history make exceptions for certain parts of Africa. 25: 2010). [30], According to the researchers at the Overseas Development Institute, the lack of infrastructure in many developing countries represents one of the most significant limitations to economic growth and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). [36] Niall Ferguson agrees with his last point, arguing that colonialism's main weaknesses were sins of omission. [137], There are two African currency unions: the West African Banque Centrale des États de l'Afrique de l'Ouest (BCEAO) and the Central African Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale (BEAC). The government intervened by cutting expenditure, increasing non-oil revenue, and devaluing the kwanza. A consumer class is also emerging in Africa and is expected to keep booming. The North African country's GDP stood at $109.824bn in 2017. This number continues to While Nigeria’s economic recovery will be weak, the Western and Central Africa region is expected to experience an average growth of 1.4%. As a manufacturing hub, it is the most industrialized, technologically advanced, and diversified economy on the African continent. Tanzania & Zanzibar. [59] The African Investment Bank is meant to stimulate development. WASHINGTON, April 8, 2019 – The growth story in Sub-Saharan Africa in the past few years has been one of faltering recovery from the worst economic crisis of the past two decades. [94], Many large infrastructure projects are underway across Africa. IMF data in 2017 showed that the country's economy increased by 1.3% which surpassed the national treasury’s expectation of 1.0%. New Holland Publishers. The economic historian David Kenneth Fieldhouse has taken a kind of middle position, arguing that the effects of colonialism were actually limited and their main weakness wasn't in deliberate underdevelopment but in what it failed to do. Research in Public Choice economics such as that of Jane Shaw suggest that protectionism operates in tandem with heavy State intervention combining to depress economic development. Gold mining is Africa's main mining resource. as more banks target the continent's emerging middle class. [63], The African Ministers of Trade agreed in 2010 to create a Pan-Africa Free Trade Zone. "Should Africa challenge its "odious debts? During 2019, 3G will overtake 2G to become the leading mobile technology in the […] [82] Increased investment in African agricultural technology in general has the potential to reduce poverty in Africa. In fact, Nigeria is Africa’s largest crude oil supplier. [31] Some sectors are dominated by state spending, others by overseas development aid (ODA) and yet others by private investors. Perhaps the most crucial indicator of South Africa’s economy in 2019 is that it is an election year. Some writers, such as Walter Rodney in his book How Europe Underdeveloped Africa, argue that these colonial policies are directly responsible for many of Africa's modern problems. Africa’s 10 fastest-growing economies. [38], Africa's relative poverty predates colonialism. [78][79] The IFPRI has estimated in 2003 that the impact of subsidies costs developing countries $24 billion in lost incomes going to agricultural and agro-industrial production; and more than $40Bn is displaced from net agricultural exports. Africa is richly endowed with mineral reserves and ranks first or second in quantity of world reserves of bauxite, cobalt, industrial diamond, phosphate rock, platinum-group metals (PGM), vermiculite, and zirconium. Influential political include pre-colonial centralization, ethnic fractionalization, European settlement, natural resource dependence, and democracy. 1 Transport and trade were the main drags on overall activity, according to the latest gross domestic product (GDP) figures. Nonetheless, African stock exchanges still account for less than 1% of the world's stock exchange activity. [117] and Dangote Cement Factory, Obajana is the largest cement factory in sub-saharan Africa. [123], Africa's US$107 billion financial services industry will log impressive growth for the rest of the decade[which?] South Africa’s economy contracted for a second quarter this year in the three months through September as farming, mining and factory output slumped. The rate of return on investment in Africa is currently the highest in the developing world. Oil-rich countries such as Algeria, Libya and Gabon, and mineral-rich Botswana emerged among the top economies since the 21st century, while Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo, potentially among the world's richest nations, have sunk into the list of the world's poorest nations due to pervasive political corruption, warfare and braindrain of workforce. In addition, Africa has created the ‘Africa Action Plan’ in order to obtain new relationships with development partners to share responsibilities regarding discovering ways to receive aid from foreign investors.[58]. [31] In sub-Saharan Africa, the state spends around $9.4 billion out of a total of $24.9 billion. The digital economy thrives on trust. [60], Economic activity has rebounded across Africa. [3] Several international business observers have also named Africa as the future economic growth engine of the world.[10]. Some of the country’s main exports include petroleum, insulated wire, video displays, and gold. Governments will need to ensure business friendly regulatory environments in order to help foster innovation. More info. [124] The banking sector has been experiencing record growth, among others due to various technological innovations. The biggest non-petroleum based industries are tourism, textile production, food processing. [citation needed], Both the African Union and the United Nations have outlined plans in modern years on how Africa can help itself industrialize and develop significant manufacturing sectors to levels proportional to the African economy in the 1960s with 21st-century technology. [130] Members of the African diaspora abroad, especially in the EU and the United States, have increased efforts to use their businesses to invest in Africa and encourage African investment abroad in the European economy. p. 19. New York City: Nova Publishers. [31], In Africa, it is argued that to meet the MDGs by 2015, infrastructure investments would need to reach about 15% of GDP (around $93 billion a year). According to an estimate by FocusEconomics, the MENA economy expanded an aggregate 2.0% annually in Q3. Best …, Tudor Heritage Black Bay: Excellent Craf…, 7 Money Questions You Should Ask Your Pa…, Open Call for African Startups Addressin…, Sports Betting Industry Predictions for …. [62] Ghana and Kenya, for example, have developed markets within the region for construction materials, machinery, and finished products, quite different from the mining and agriculture products that make up the bulk of their international exports. Other post-colonial scholars, most notably Frantz Fanon continuing along this line, have argued that the true effects of colonialism are psychological and that domination by a foreign power creates a lasting sense of inferiority and subjugation that creates a barrier to growth and innovation. Although these subsidies and tariffs have been gradually reduced, they remain high. "Enfin ! This number could reach a projected 128 million by 2020. Local conditions also affect exports; state over-regulation in several African nations can prevent their own exports from becoming competitive. The Economist, The African Century, 28 March 2020. The 2005 share of world production from African soil is the following: bauxite 9%; aluminium 5%; chromite 44%; cobalt 57%; copper 5%; gold 21%; iron ore 4%; steel 2%; lead (Pb) 3%; manganese 39%; zinc 2%; cement 4%; natural diamond 46%; graphite 2%; phosphate rock 31%; coal 5%; mineral fuels (including coal) & petroleum 13%; uranium 16%. The World Bank reports the economy of Sub-Saharan African countries grew at rates that match or surpass global rates. Jared Diamond argues in Guns, Germs, and Steel that Africa has always been poor due to a number of ecological factors affecting historical development. 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