Browsing: World Bank

Economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) softened markedly in 2022 to 3.4 per cent as inflationary pressure, weak external demand,…

Before the Covid-19 Pandemic struck, East African countries had a common agenda to invest in infrastructure development. As the three…

Kenya is set to host the 6th edition of Africa Agri Expo in February 2023 amidst dwindling growth in the…

Over 20 million children in the Horn of Africa will suffer severe hunger, thirst and disease in 2023 Africa food…

The Russia-Ukraine war has impacted Africa’s economic growth by increasing food shortage Africa is facing impending food crisis that will…

Africa produces more fertilizer than it consumes yet it imports to meet demand gaps Poor inter-country trade facilities affect fertilizer…

Remittance flows to developing regions were shaped by several factors in 2022 including reopening of host economies as the COVID-19…

Kenya is one of 23 African nations at risk of debt distress. The major causes of debt distress include poor fiscal management and macroeconomic frameworks to sustain growth, a shift in debt structure toward more costly financing sources, and excessive government expenditure levels.

Kenya’s debt was at about 70 per cent of GDP in 2021, up from 50 per cent in 2015. China is Kenya’s biggest bilateral creditor. It accounts for 67 per cent of the bilateral debt (primarily for infrastructure projects), an increase from 13 per cent in 2011.

One of the features of many countries that are endowed with abundant natural resources is that they save less than what is expected, considering the rents obtained from extracting and selling natural resources.

If the countries saved more, they would grow at a sustainable and faster rate. To gain a better understanding of sustainable development, it is useful to examine the concept of genuine saving.

Genuine saving is defined as public and private saving at home and abroad, net of depreciation, plus current spending on education to capture changes in intangible human capital, minus depletion of natural exhaustible and renewable resources, minus damage of stock pollutants (CO2 and particulate matter).

South Korean industry began with the production of textiles and footwear and then moved into heavy industries like steel, heavy equipment, ships, petrochemicals, electronics, and automobiles by the 1980s.

Africa needs to follow the economic lead of countries like South Korea that developed into advanced states through export-led economic growth and the development of strong domestic economies. South Korea committed to rapid industrialization. This is what caused the economy to take off. However, it is important to note that economic development was also set in motion by leaders who implemented land reform and educational development.

Oxford Research notes, “Industrialization was characterized by a close pattern of cooperation between the state and large family-owned conglomerates known as chaebǒls. This close relationship continued after the transition to democracy in the late 1980s and 1990s but after 1987, labour emerged as a major political force, and rising wages gave further impetus to the development of the more capital-intensive industry.”