Blogs

Is the Commodities super cycle slowdown a shock for Africa?

Tumbling commodity prices have refocused attention to sustainability of growth in Africa. For over a decade, high demand and rising prices for Africa’s commodities have contributed significantly to growth on the continent. However, since 2011, continued fall in the price of oil and natural gas, and, more recently other minerals, are threatening to turn tailwinds into headwinds. Declining demand in major emerging economies coupled with continuous fragility in developed economies, as well as volatility in the currency and shrinking confidence all call for a reality check.

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Tunisia’s economic future is in Africa

Following the attacks of previous months, Tunisia’s central bank revised its growth estimates for the country; this is not likely to exceed 1 per cent in 2015. This slowdown is due partly to the security situation, but at a more structural level also to the slump in external demand for goods from Tunisia, which conduct 64 per cent of its trade with the European Union.

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Africa needs inclusive development

Africa's much trumpeted growth is real. It is a significant historical achievement to be able to almost triple GDP in one and half decade. The business of attribution is always a risky undertaking and it would be no different in this case. To say this achievement was provoked by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is very partial. To say it was despite the MDGs would be nonsense. Africa's growth has been possible by a combination of factors, some internal, some external.

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Harnessing foreign direct investment

Dubbed the new investment frontier, Africa’s attractiveness is becoming more visible to large corporations, institutions and investors.

Reflecting this, foreign investment (FDI) flows have grown exponentially since the turn of the millennium. Countries such as South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt and Morocco are leading the way.

High growth economies such as Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania and Mozambique are also becoming important investment destinations. In 2014, Mozambique and Ethiopia were among the star performers.

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Preparing Africa for the next Trade negotiations

The deadlock in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) so called Doha Development Round negotiations remains firmly in place.  Negotiators seem unable to meet deadline after deadline for delivering on many of the Round promises. Last year in the meeting that was held in Bali, Indonesia, there were some baby steps that were painted as a breakthrough. That optimism has evaporated since.

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African Migrants: payback time?

Since the beginning of this year a relentless flow of images from the Italian island of Lampedusa, the city of Calais where the Eurotunnel starts, Bodrum in Turkey, the eastern islands of Greece, or the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla in Morocco, are invading television screens and media outlets.  They portray a massive scale attempts by desperate souls trying to reach European countries. The EU Commissioner in charge of migration declared this month this is the worst migrant crisis since World War II. Is it?

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The role of big data in Africa’s regional integration

The ambitions of a young Ugandan entrepreneur to expand his coffee processing business will soon be within reach. East Africa’s accelerated integration process is opening up possibilities that were unthinkable not long ago. In a couple of years he may be able to tap into West Africa’s 350 million people without having to pay the high tariffs and transport costs that currently make it easier to export to Europe than to other parts of the continent.

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Financing for Africa’s Transformation

By Carlos Lopes and Amina J. Mohammed

As the race to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) draws to a close, the momentum will only intensify as the baton passes to the post-2015 development agenda, including global goals for people and planet to be adopted by world leaders in September at the Headquarters of the United Nations. How ready is Africa to embrace this ground-breaking universal development agenda?

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Are Africans ready for their future?

A few weeks ago, on my way from Dire Dawa to the historical city of Harar, in eastern Ethiopia, I came across a minivan that had an intriguing message on the rear window. It read as follows: “If you don’t see my mirrors, I can’t see you”. This funny message put me on a thinking tailspin, as I realized what a wonderful metaphor it was for our continent’s current moment.

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