AfDB to invest $35bn to boost economic growth in Africa
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has said it will invest a whopping $35billion over a period of 10 years to boost economic growth in the African continent, adding that the development will raise Africa’s GDP to above $5.6 trillion.
The AfDB noted that Africa needs to industrialise and add value to everything that it produces from agriculture, to minerals, oil, gas and metals.
AfDB’s President, Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, disclosed this at the end of the annual Board of Governors meeting in Busan, South Korea, at the weekend, adding that the continent must focus more on industrialisation to boost economic development.
Adesina said that the region was “de-industrialising”, calling on continents’ leaders to learn from Korea, China and Japan.
According to him, between 2012 and 2018, Africa’s industrial value-added declined from $702bn to $630bn.
He said in Nigeria, the value-added dropped by 41 per cent, South Africa by 26 per cent with both Egypt and Algeria declining by 67 per cent respectively.
This is even as he noted that Morocco’s industrial output expanded by 16 per cent while Ethiopia’s value-added grew five-fold.
Ethiopia, the region’s second most populated country, is currently sub-Saharan Africa’s fastest growing economy.
The bank plans to invest $35bn over the next 10 years to help the region industrialise as the bank allocated $1.2bn to industrialisation in Africa.
Adesina said, “The plan should help Africa raise its industrial gross domestic product a little more than $700bn today to over $1.72trn by 2030.
“Africa needs to move up the bottom to the top of the global value chains.
“To drive its industrialisation process, Africa must quickly build a globally competitive, well-educated, highly skilled workforce for the future; and the future already here. We cannot afford to waste any more time.
“Africa should also invest more in education and training to further build the “skills of the future”, which will help “the industrial revolution in the future”.
But he warned that industrialisation can be harmful for the environment and called for countries to “pay careful attention to less polluting energy pathways.
