Sub-Saharan Africa

Global Economic Upswing Creates a Window of Opportunity

October 10, 2017

Versions in عربي (Arabic), 中文 (Chinese), Français (French), 日本語 (Japanese), Русский (Russian), and Español (Spanish)

The global recovery is continuing, and at a faster pace. The picture is very different from early last year, when the world economy faced faltering growth and financial market turbulence. We see an accelerating cyclical upswing boosting Europe, China, Japan, and the United States, as well as emerging Asia.

The latest World Economic Outlook has therefore upgraded its global growth projections to 3.6 percent for this year and 3.7 percent for next—in both cases 0.1 percentage point above our previous forecasts, and well above 2016’s global growth rate of 3.2 percent, which was the lowest since the global financial crisis. Continue reading “Global Economic Upswing Creates a Window of Opportunity” »

By IMFBlog| October 10th, 2017|Advanced Economies, capital markets, developing countries, Economic outlook, Emerging Markets, Employment, Environment, Financial Crisis, Fiscal policy, Global Governance, Government, IMF, inclusive growth, Inequality, monetary policy, structural reforms, technology, trade, wages|

Chart of the Week: The Potential for Growth and Africa’s Informal Economy

By IMFBlog

August 8, 2017

A street vendor sells roasted corn in Tanzania: Unregistered household enterprises comprise a significant portion of sub-Saharan Africa’s economy (photo: Ton Koene/VWPics/Newscom)

By 2035, sub-Saharan Africa will have added more working-age people to their workforce than the rest of the world’s regions combined. And this growing workforce will have to be met with jobs. In the region, up to 90 percent of jobs outside agriculture are in the informal sector. This includes household enterprises that are not formally registered, like street vendors or domestic workers. It also includes off-the-books activities by registered firms—for example, the taxi driver who offers a discount if the meter is not turned on.

Continue reading “Chart of the Week: The Potential for Growth and Africa’s Informal Economy” »

By IMFBlog| August 8th, 2017|Africa, developing countries, Employment, Finance, growth, Inequality, labor markets, Uncategorized, wages|

Uganda’s Recipe for Growth

By IMFBlog

July 21, 2017

Construction worker in Uganda (photo: James Akena/Reuters/Newscom)

After two decades of steady growth, Uganda’s economy has slowed, and life for Ugandans is not improving fast enough.

Drought in the Horn of Africa, regional conflict, and slow credit growth have contributed to this decline, with per capita growth falling to ½ percent from an average of 5 percent for the past 20 years. Continue reading “Uganda’s Recipe for Growth” »

By IMFBlog| July 21st, 2017|Africa, Economic outlook, growth, International Monetary Fund, Investment, oil, Public debt, taxation|

Banking On the Go

By IMFBlog

June 23, 2017

Tayo Oviosu at IMF lecture (photo: Ryan Rayburn/IMF staff)

Worldwide, more than two billion people are without bank accounts, and only one in three adults in sub-Saharan Africa has access to any type of financial services. In this podcast, Tayo Oviosu, founder and CEO of Nigeria's leading mobile payment platform, Paga, reveals how his company is rapidly bringing millions of unbanked Nigerians into the banking fold. Continue reading “Banking On the Go” »

By IMFBlog| June 23rd, 2017|Africa, banking, developing countries, Finance, Financial regulation, growth, International Monetary Fund, jobs, Low-income countries, Spring Meetings, technology|

The Compact with Africa—The Contribution of the IMF

By Christine Lagarde

June 12, 2017

Versions in عربي (Arabic), 中文 (Chinese), Deutsch (German), Français (French), 日本語 (Japanese), Русский (Russian), and Español (Spanish)

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde on a visit to Nigeria in 2016 (photo: IMF staff/Steve Jaffe)

Some of the world’s top policymakers and investors are gathering in Berlin to discuss a new initiative that could help reshape Africa’s economic future.

Millions of citizens could see tangible economic benefits from the recently launched Group of Twenty advanced and emerging economies' initiative, known as the “Compact with Africa.” The goal is to boost private investment by harnessing the expertise and resources of governments, investors, and international organizations.

The Compact is about facilitating projects that can lift productivity and living standards. It is about creating fresh opportunities on a continent where 70 percent of the population is under 35 years of age.

Continue reading “The Compact with Africa—The Contribution of the IMF” »

By IMFBlog| June 12th, 2017|Africa, developing countries, Economic outlook, Emerging Markets, Employment, Financial markets, G-20, Global Governance, Government, growth, inclusive growth, Inequality, infrastructure, interest rates, International Monetary Fund, Investment, jobs, labor force, labor markets, productivity|

Restarting the Growth Engine in Sub-Saharan Africa

By IMFBlog

May 19, 2017

Version in Français (French)

The IMF’s latest economic health check of sub-Saharan Africa shows that growth fell to its lowest level in 20 years.

In this podcast, the IMF African Department’s Celine Allard, who oversaw the report, says that this drop brought a halt to the 5 to 6 percent growth rate that was enjoyed in the last two decades. Some factors contributing to this slowdown are lower commodity prices, the devastation of a severe drought—exacerbating crop infestation and leading to a famine affecting some 20 million people—and political conflicts that affect trade.

Continue reading “Restarting the Growth Engine in Sub-Saharan Africa” »

By IMFBlog| May 19th, 2017|Africa, Economic research, exchange rates, financial policy, Fiscal policy, Government, IMF, monetary policy, Public debt, structural reforms, Uncategorized|

Emerging Economy Consumers Drive Infrastructure Needs

By Paolo Mauro

May 4, 2017

Versions in 中文 (Chinese), Français (French), 本語 (Japanese), Русский (Russian), and Español (Spanish)

The infrastructure needs of emerging market economies, like China or India, differ from those of advanced economies like the United States or Germany. Many emerging economies must substantially expand their energy and transportation networks, or build them from scratch, to accommodate rapid economic growth. Our research shows the more people make, the more they spend on transportation. With emerging economies’ middle classes booming and incomes rising, this has big implications for how policymakers choose to invest in infrastructure. Continue reading “Emerging Economy Consumers Drive Infrastructure Needs” »

By IMFBlog| May 4th, 2017|Advanced Economies, Economic research, Emerging Markets, Government, growth, IMF, infrastructure, Investment|

Helping Feed the World’s Fast-Growing Population

rabah-arezki-imf By Rabah Arezki

Agriculture and food markets are plagued with inefficiencies that have dramatic consequences for the welfare of the world’s most vulnerable populations. Globally, farm subsidies amount to over $560 billion a year—equivalent to nearly four times the aid given to developing countries by richer ones. Major emerging-market nations have increased subsidies rapidly, even as rich nations cut theirs drastically. Meanwhile, tariffs on farm products remain a major point of contention in global trade talks.

One third of global food production goes to waste, while food insecurity is still rampant in developing countries. Even with the explosion of agricultural productivity since the middle of the 20th century, food security remains a challenge for much of the developing world. Food-calorie production will have to expand by 70 percent by 2050 to keep up with a global population that’s forecast to grow to 9.7 billion from last year’s 7.3 billion. Food insecurity can lead to violence and conflicts that can spill over well beyond borders. Continue reading “Helping Feed the World’s Fast-Growing Population” »

By IMFBlog| January 31st, 2017|Africa, Asia, China, commodities, developing countries, Emerging Markets, Globalization, IMF, India, International Monetary Fund, Investment, natural disasters, poverty, trade|

The Fruits of Growth: Economic Reforms and Lower Inequality

Lagarde.2015MDPORTRAIT4_114x128 By Christine Lagarde

Versions in: عربي (Arabic), 中文 (Chinese), Français (French), 日本語 (Japanese), Português (Portuguese), Русский (Russian), and Español (Spanish)

Growth is essential for improving the lives of people in low-income countries, and it should benefit all parts of society.

Traveling through Africa in the last few days, I have been amazed by the vitality I have witnessed: business startups investing in the future, new infrastructure under construction, and a growing middle class. Many Africans are now making a better living and fewer are suffering from poverty. My current host, Uganda, for example, has more than halved its absolute poverty rate to about 35 percent from close to 90 percent in 1990.

But we have also seen a flip side. Poverty, of course, but inequality as well remain stubbornly high in most developing countries, including in Africa, and too often success is not shared by all. Continue reading “The Fruits of Growth: Economic Reforms and Lower Inequality” »

By IMFBlog| January 26th, 2017|Economic research, growth, IMF, Inequality, International Monetary Fund, Reform|

A Sea Change: The New Migration from sub-Saharan Africa

By Jesus Gonzalez-Garcia and Montfort Mlachila

Versions in Français (French), and Português (Portuguese)

Migration of sub-Saharan Africans is growing rapidly. Just like the region’s population, the number of migrants doubled since 1990 to reach about 20 million in 2013. In the coming decades, migration will expand given the demographic boom in the working-age population—the group that typically feeds migration. We studied these trends in a recent paper because both receiving and sending countries need the right policies so all can benefit.

Continue reading “A Sea Change: The New Migration from sub-Saharan Africa” »

By IMFBlog| November 2nd, 2016|Advanced Economies, Africa, developing countries, Economic research, Employment, growth, International Monetary Fund, Migration|

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