12/7/2002
New UN Report Is Cautiously Optimistic About Africa's Economy

Africa grew faster than any other developing region in 2001, reflecting better macroeconomic management, strong agricultural production, and the end to conflicts in several countries, according to a new United Nations report to be released shortly.

"Tracking Performance and Progress," is the title of the latest Economic Report on Africa, the annual flagship publication of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). It concludes that this growth was made despite a slowdown of all major economies and the effects of the 11 September terrorist attacks on the United States.

Africa's average gross domestic product (GDP) grew overall by 4.3 per cent last year, it says, although this figure masks wide disparities on the continent, from a 65 per cent expansion in Equatorial Guinea to a contraction of 7.5 per cent in Zimbabwe. The report emphasises that economic growth remains fragile, and confirms that at current rates Africa will not achieve any of the Millennium Development Goals - such as cutting hunger and poverty in half - set by world leaders at the UN 2000 Millennium Summit.

The report provides a cautiously optimistic prognosis of the medium-term prospects for Africa, including the opportunities created by the US African Growth and Opportunity Act, the European Union's "Everything but Arms" initiative, the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), and the launches of the Doha Development Round and the Africa Union.

On the downside, the issues of political governance, civil conflicts, and developments in the world economy will dominate in the medium-term, according to the report, which also supplements its traditional analysis with seven in-depth country studies spanning the diversity of Africa.