Africa is a continent of great change and opportunities – however, Europe finds it difficult to understand that its future lies in the south.
This is the word from Giovanni Tria, Italian minister of finance and economy, speaking in Rome at a conference on Africa, challenges and opportunities: Italy and the African Development Bank.
Africa is currently home to five of the world’s fastest growing economies, and only four African countries out of 54 will record negative growth in 2018, compared to eight in previous years.
According to Tria, The current narrative about Africa is all wrong. “Africa today has five distinctive advantages – a huge land mass of 30-million square kilometers, huge resources, a fast-growing population, fewer conflicts and major developments in education, and an economy that has consistently expanded over the last 15 years, even though it still only accounts for 3% of global GDP,” he says.
There is clear evidence of sustained demand growth across the continent. Consumer spending will reach $2,5-trillion by 2030, while business-to-business investments will reach over $3,5-trillion in the same period.
“With a growing middle class and rapid urbanisation, consumer demand from a burgeoning middle class will turn the continent into a prime collective investment opportunity that cannot be ignored,” says Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank.
“This is proof positive of an Africa in the process of full transformation. Africa is the new international investment frontier,” he adds.
With $11,6-billion, Italy was the largest European investor on the continent in 2017, and the third largest after China and the United Arab Emirates.
According to Adesina: “The migration crisis in Europe is one of the biggest current social and political challenges that Italy and Europe have to deal with. I do not believe that the future of Africa’s youth lies in Europe. Neither does it lie at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea. The future of Africa’s youth is in Africa helping to grow its economy and employment opportunities.”