Publication:
The Africa Competitiveness Report 2015

Abstract
The Africa Competitiveness Report 2015 comes out at a promising time for the continent: for 15 years growth rates have averaged over 5 percent, and rapid population growth holds the promise of a large emerging consumer market as well as an unprecedented labor force that - if leveraged - can provide significant growth opportunities. Moreover, the expansion of innovative business models, such as mobile technology services, is indicative of the continents growth potential. However, Africa continues to be largely agrarian, with an economy that is underpinned by resource-driven growth and a large and expanding informal sector. Indeed, more than a decade of consistently high growth rates have not yet trickled down to significant parts of the population: nearly one out of two Africans continue to live in extreme poverty, and income inequality in the region remains among the highest in the world. What is more, across sectors - from agriculture to manufacturing and services - productivity levels remain low. It will be necessary to raise productivity across all sectors of the economy to achieve higher growth and create quality employment, and turn this progress into sustainable inclusive growth.
Link to Data Set
Citation
World Economic Forum; World Bank; African Development Bank; Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 2015. The Africa Competitiveness Report 2015. © World Economic Forum. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/22014 License: CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO.
Associated URLs
Associated content
Report Series
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Publication
    Inclusive Global Value Chains
    (OECD, Paris, and World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-10) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development; World Bank
    This reports focus is making global value chains (GVCs) more inclusive. This is achieved by overcoming participation constraints for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and facilitation access for Low Income Developing Countries (LIDCs).The two major points of this report are 1) participation in GVCs is heterogeneous and uneven, across and within countries and 2) available data and survey-based evidence suggest that SME participation in GVCs is mostly taking place through indirect contribution to exports, rather than through exporting directly.
  • Publication
    A Globalized Market--Opportunities and Risks for the Poor : Global Poverty Report 2001
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2001-07) African Development Bank; Asian Development Bank; European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; Inter-American Development Bank; International Monetary Fund; World Bank
    The Global Poverty Report considers the effects of globalizing markets on poverty in developing countries. It outlines the channels through which increased trade openness can affect poverty and examines the evidence from four regions: Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean. Written at the request of the G8, the report is the result of a joint effort of the regional development banks, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund. Increased openness can affect an economy in various ways, creating opportunities for the poor as well as risks. First, it can affect the prices of goods and services that the poor consume and produce, benefiting those who are net consumers of goods that become cheaper and those who can obtain higher prices for their products on international markets. Second, it can affect the demand for and returns to factors of production that the poor have to offer, such as labor. Third, it can affect government revenue and the resources available for antipoverty programs. Fourth, it can influence the potential for economic growth, which in turn affects poverty. Fifth, the short-term costs of transition, as well as the possible increased volatility of growth stemming from the opening up of markets, may increase the need for social protection mechanisms. Comprehensive trade reform can help reduce poverty when it is part of a set of reforms that improve the domestic macroeconomic and investment climate, enhance infrastructure and technology, and contribute to the provision of knowledge and skills. However, these effects vary significantly across countries, regions, and groups within countries, which makes it difficult to generalize about the effects of trade liberalization on poverty.
  • Publication
    Factory Southern Africa?
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2016-01) Farole, Thomas
    Once concentrated among a few large economies, global flows of goods, services, and capital now reach an ever-larger number of countries worldwide. Global trade in goods and in services both increased 10 times between 1980 and 2011, while foreign direct investment (FDI) flows increased almost 30-fold. A value chain is global when some of these stages are carried out in more than one country, most notably when discrete tasks within a production process are fragmented and dispersed across a number of countries. Southern African Customs Union (SACU) - region global value chains (GVCs) are both a new reality and significant opportunity for expanding non-commodity exports to support growth, diversification, and job creation in the region. The task-based nature of GVCs creates opportunities for developing countries to establish very quickly a position in global trade within a sector in which they may have had no previous experience. For South Africa, GVCs are seen as a route to higher manufacturing exports and greater value addition. For other SACU countries, GVCs are seen as a route to diversification and global integration, and to leverage the possibility of greater investment from South Africa itself. The main objectives of the study are as follows: (i) to understand trends of GVC participation and competitiveness of South Africa and the wider SACU region, the outcomes from this participation (exports, jobs, and productivity), and the factors that determine competitiveness; (ii) to map the extent of value chain integration across the region and identify barriers to deeper integration; and (iii) to identify policies and actions that will be required to develop a globally competitive, high value-adding factory Southern Africa.
  • Publication
    The Role of Trade in Ending Poverty
    (Geneva: World Trade Organization, 2015-06-25) World Bank Group; World Trade Organization
    The expansion of international trade has been essential to development and poverty reduction. Todays economy is unquestionable global. Trade as a proportion of global GDP has approximately doubled since 1975. Markets for goods and services have become increasingly integrated through a fall in trade barriers, with technology helping drive trade costs lower. But trade is not an end in itself. People measure the value of trade by the extent to which it delivers better livelihoods, through higher incomes, greater choice, and a more sustainable future, among other benefits. For the extreme poor living on less than $1.25 a day, the central value of trade is its potential to help transform their lives and those of their families. In this way, there is no doubt that the integration of global markets through trade openness has made a critical contribution to poverty reduction. The number of people living in extreme poverty around the world has fallen by around one billion since 1990. Without the growing participation of developing countries in international trade, and sustained efforts to lower barriers to the integration of markets, it is hard to see how this reduction could have been achieved.
  • Publication
    Malaysia Economic Monitor, June 2016
    (World Bank, Kuala Lumpur, 2016-06) World Bank
    The MEM is the World Bank's biannual flagship publication on Malaysia. It provides analysis of recent economic developments and the near-term outlook for Malaysia. Each publication also focuses on a special topic related to Malaysia's transformation into a high-income economy. Malaysia is at the forefront of a "new generation" of trade agreements that will shape trade and investment over the next decade. The 14th MEM focuses on how Malaysia can use trade agreements to bring new opportunities to the Malaysian economy and accelerate its transition to high income status.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

No results found.