Africa will register growth: AfDB

The African Development Bank said on Wednesday the continent will register a 4,8 percent growth this year, which is expected to accelerate to 5,3 percent in 2014. In its latest African Economic Outlook report, the Tunis based bank said improved productivity in the agriculture and mining sectors was propelling the continent’s Gross Domestic Product.

The African economy grew by 6,2 percent in 2012.

“The main drivers of growth are expansion in agricultural production, robust growth in the services sector, and a rise in oil production and increased mining activity, mainly in resource-rich countries,” the AfDB said. It, however, said the strong performance was fraught with short-term challenges.

The setbacks include the need for the continent to consolidate macroeconomic conditions in the face of a major volatile economic environment, improving institutions and regulations for private sector activity and addressing infrastructure bottlenecks.

African governments should increase access to key public services as well as address issues of poverty and inequality, it said.

Analysts have noted that Africa’s growth has failed to address unemployment and growing poverty as access to basic food stuffs and social amenities remains a privilege for a few.

Africa is failing to leverage its huge resource endowment to improve the lives of its peoples due to its continued export of raw resources which are processed in developed nations and then resold at higher prices.

Instability, in some cases fuelled by developing nations, has also setback the continent’s development prospects.

The AfDB report focuses on issues relating to the management of natural resources, conflict prevention, democracy, regional integration, and transparency and accountability, among others.

AfDB aims to spur sustainable economic development and social progress with overall aim being to contribute to poverty reduction through mobilisation and allocating resources for investment in member countries and providing policy advice and technical assistance to support development efforts.

Meanwhile, the AfDB’s work in clean energy financing received some welcome recognition last week from Asian Development Bank President (ADB) Takehiko Nakao. The ADB President commended the African Development Bank for its commitment to promoting clean energy investments during the 6th annual meeting of the Asia Solar Energy Forum (ASEF) on Solar Energy Technology Trends and Opportunities held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, from November 20-23.

Specifically, Nakao recognized the AfDB for its investment in the solar energy field.

He also emphasized that Africa has better solar energy resources than Asia and that the continent must exploit those resources prudently to fuel its development. Nakao went on to stress the need for collaboration among development finance institutions (DFIs), highlighting a seminar later in the conference where the AfDB would share its expertise on financing solar projects. The ADB president emphasised that Africa had solar energy resources that were comparable to the best in Asia.

Youssef Arfaoui, Chief Renewable Energy Specialist, Energy, Environment and Climate Change Department, represented the AfDB at the conference. During a session entitled “Solar Development Opportunities in Other Regions and Lessons Learned”, Arfaoui gave a presentation on “Powering the Future on Africa’s Terms – Supporting the Transition Towards Clean Energy”.

“Investing in renewable is important to ensure the energy mix,” said Arfaoui. The AfDB played an important role in the forum, which has further reinforced its collaboration with the ADB.

Also during the conference, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, Rustam S. Azimov, extended warm greetings to the African Development Bank, also noting the need for South-South collaboration with African countries. Given Uzbekistan’s enormous potential of solar energy, the country is poised to developing this energy in the country and in Central Asia. – New Ziana.