Africa Navigates Economic Potential
Africa’s path to rapid urbanization and economic growth is obstructed by lower commodity and oil prices and slow economic growth in China, said Lyal White, professor and director of the Centre for Dynamic Markets at the Gordon Institute of Business Science, or GIBS.
Political stability and labor are also concerns, White said during the opening keynote address at Breakbulk Africa in Johannesburg Wednesday.
Africa’s economy is expected to double in the next 10 to 12 years, nearing US$4 trillion by 2025. That growth requires significant infrastructure spending for power, water and transportation – an estimated US$5 billion to US$10 billion required each year.
Lyal argued that there is a skewed perception of Africa in the global context. He said that publicized data is often not a true reflection of the continent’s economic achievements. This is mainly due to the fact that many achievements and opportunities go unnoticed.
“Another major issue we have is that people tend to view Africa as a homogenous whole,” he said. “This is even though we are made up of individual countries, with individual circumstances, opportunities and challenges.”
In order to paint a more accurate picture, GIBS has developed a Dynamic Market Index (access at www.gibs.co.za), which looks at emerging markets contextually. It measures institutional change over seven years and deems countries as either moving forward, remaining static or going backwards. Botswana and Mauritius are regarded as the most dynamic markets on the continent.
Lyal advised there is no “one Africa” strategy, and stressed the need to embrace the disruption that leads to progressive change and set realistic timelines.
Photo: Lyal White gives keynote address at Breakbulk Africa.
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