Africans equate prosperity with achieving financial freedom, as the continent continues to experience growth ahead of other developing economies.
This is according to the Barclays Africa Prosper Report, which captures what “prosper” means to Africans in 11 of those countries. The survey, which was conducted online, surveyed over 7 000 respondents from South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, Kenya, Ghana, Mozambique, Seychelles, Mauritius, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
Seventy-eight percent of the respondents were between 18 and 35 years of age, representing a significant portion of the ‘youth bulge’ – the future drivers of the African economy. The youth bulge is a common phenomenon in many developing countries where a large share of the population is comprised of children and young adults thanks to a decrease in infant mortality and steady levels of fertility.
The Barclays Africa Prosper Report identifies that Africa’s youth, given the right tools, are set to become the drivers of economic prosperity.
How Africans define what it means to prosper:
* If given $100 to help them prosper, 49% of respondents would invest it;
* Almost a third would buy a computer (30%) and books (24%) to help them prosper;
* While lack of finances is a major barrier to prosperity (66%), this is also the easiest aspect of their life to change (37%); and
* Nearly 50% of respondents would most likely consult a bank to obtain financial prosperity. Only 10% said they would consult a family member.
Bobby Malabie, group executive of Marketing, Communications, Citizenship and Public Affairs at Barclays Africa says: “The Barclays Africa Prosper Report shows that people work hard for their money and want their money to work hard for them. What is particularly encouraging is that when questioned further, the youth of Africa would rather invest their money to fund further education than to spend it on flashy consumer goods.
“Investment, education and savings are seen by Africans as the main drivers of prosperity to open the doors to economic growth. It is also clear that Africa’s emerging youth presents the continent with an unprecedented opportunity to deepen our human capital, and with the right tools, tomorrow’s decision makers can unlock Africa’s potential.”
Providing an independent analysis of the research, Professor Monde Makiwane of the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) says: “A decrease in mortality rates coupled with the youth’s connectivity to a global community which is increasingly aided by technology, means we have an emerging youth bulge of Africans that are more optimistic than ever before. Africa’s youth are confident they will be around to live their future.
“Given this optimism, they prefer to spend their money on computers and books to aid their prosperity, rather than making flashy statements in their local communities by parading the latest must-have item.
“The Barclays Africa Prosper Report addresses critical issues of financial behaviour and prosperity that have either been missed or poorly measured by previous social and financial surveys in Africa.
“Encouragingly, one of the most significant findings from this African survey is the high level of savings and investments reported by participants. Almost 50 percent of respondents would save or invest to help them prosper financially, a powerful statistic if viewed in the context of the Asian savings boom,” says Makiwane.
Several decades ago, Asia experienced a youth bulge. The continent took advantage of this by creating employment opportunities and mobilising the youth to save.
Continued economic growth and a high savings rate have fuelled wealth creation in the region and its propensity to save is exceptional when compared to the United States or Europe. Gross national savings range from a low of 24% of GDP in the Philippines to a high of 50% in China, compared with 13% in the US and 19% on average across Europe.