Botswana ranks as Africa’s top competitive economy, ahead of other powerhouses such as South Africa and Nigeria, according to a survey by the World Economic Forum (WEF) released on Wednesday.
But the study — issued at the opening of a three-day conference on business in Africa in the Mozambican capital of Maputo — made some damning claims about the state of the continent’s economies.
”The long-awaited renaissance of the African economy has not taken place,” it said, describing dismal economic performance as ”the worst 20th-century tragedy” after decolonisation.
Botswana ranked first among 25 African countries surveyed, picking up the highest scores for the quality of its public institutions and macroeconomic climate, while following short on the heels of South Africa in the field of technology.
”The WEF’s Executive Opinion Survey and its annual compilation of individual country profiles identifying strengths and weaknesses are an important contribution to the better understanding of the challenges faced by policy makers and the international community,” said Klaus Schwab, the WEF’s executive chairperson.
”This survey is an attempt to place the continent in a broader international context,” Schwab said in introducing the survey.
The survey places Botswana in 36th place in 102 countries surveyed by the WEF worldwide, it said.
At the bottom end of the scale, Chad ranked the lowest, with problems listed as access to financing, the lack of infrastructure and corruption.
Chadian lawmakers last week paved the way for President Idriss Deby to stand for another term as they voted resoundingly to amend the country’s Constitution and lift the limit on the number of presidential mandates.
In general, the survey criticised development on the continent, saying a long-awaited revival of the economy has not taken place.
”Indeed, it is very hard to pinpoint a single group of African economies that have experienced high, sustained per capita income growth,” it said.
It added most sub-Saharan African countries are worse off economically today than they were directly after decolonisation.
”Per capita GDP [gross domestic product] in sub-Saharan Africa is now $200 lower than in 1974, a decline of 11% in a quarter of a century,” it said.
”During the same period, the world was growing at an annual average rate of 2%, while per capita income of many of the East Asian countries was converging rapidly towards advanced country levels,” it added.
On Wednesday, Africa’s political and business leaders were to meet in Maputo to assess the state of the continent’s ambitious economic rescue plan, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development.
Two years ago, at the end of the WEF’s meeting held in the South African port city of Durban, the plan received a strong backing from business, with about 130 major companies signing up to it and other firms following suit.
But the plan seems slow in getting off the ground.
The WEF’s Africa director, Haiko Alfeld, said last week: ”Clearly there is a problem. We hope to take this process forward.
”We want and hope that this [meeting] would catalyse developments and catalyse partnerships, galvanise action that will bring tangible results.” — Sapa-AFP