What Africa needs to realise its potential

On May 20th, a new book laying out a vision for Africa, “Africa 2050: Realizing the Continent’s Full Potential” was launched on the sidelines of the African Development Bank’s Annual Meetings in Kigali. More than one hundred participants including ministers from AfDB member countries and high level officials of international organizations were in attendance. This book was a collaborative undertaking between the Japan International Cooperation Agency Research Institute (JICA-RI) and the U.S. based think-tank, the Centennial Group. Using socio-economic analysis, the goal of this book is to provide the long-term outlook for African countries to 2050, and to propose challenges to making these visions a reality leading up to 2050. After repeated consultation with African countries and other related institutions, the book was eventually published in January 2014 by Oxford University Press. According to the findings set out in the book, Africa will see burgeoning populations and accelerating urbanization towards 2050. The continuous creation of jobs that can absorb the redundant labor force will therefore be a key factor for both economic growth and social stability on the continent. Currently African countries have economic structures which rely on fossil fuels and mineral resources. These structures are capital-intensive and cannot be expected to create many job opportunities. The transformation of economic structures in Africa will be a crucial challenge to keeping sustainable growth as well as to utilizing the private sector. It is hoped that each African country will shift its economic structure towards a more sustainable one, while developing market and investment climates which allow for private sector investment, and enhanced productivity in both the agriculture and industrial sectors. At the same time it is hoped that African countries will systematically foster human capital by enriching education and health services. In the context of development assistance for African countries, it is imperative that assistance primarily targets infrastructure management, trade and investment which accelerate the economic growth, agricultural development, human resource development, and the creation of jobs for promoting “inclusive growth”. During the launch event, Callisto Madavo, one of the editors of Africa 2050, voiced the view that the steady economic growth seen on the continent since the 1990’s had raised the expectation of African people for further progress and a brighter future in the coming decades. To sustain the current economic growth, Madavo emphasized the importance of broad understanding and political support for the visions raised in Africa 2050, and expressed strong expectations that concrete action would be taken by African people and their governments. Another editor, Theodore Ahlers, explained the methodology of the analysis and the contents of the book. He explained the “10 drivers of change” as an analytical framework, and offered concrete action plans based on the “three strategic frameworks” for realizing the bold visions - prosperous people; competitive economies; and an integrated continent -whilst emphasizing the importance of job creation. Throughout the Q&A session, participants repeatedly praised the framework of the “10 drivers of change” and the “three strategic frameworks” upon which the dynamic long-term outlook is based. Dr. Albert Toikeusse Mabri, Minister of Planning and Development of Côte d’Ivoire, who has engaged in the consultation process, commended the work. Chad’s Minister of economy and planning, the former president of the African Development Bank, and other high level delegates, expressed their gratitude toward the authors of this book. The officials held active discussions especially on economic integration, regional integration, a single currency, and the role of the private sector. As identified in the book, the development needs and challenges for Africa are broad and wide ranging. The launch seminar revealed that there is a call amongst African countries for JICA to collaborate with them to address these development challenges. JICA will strive to implement programs and projects based on the approaches drawn from its rich experiences, aiming at contributing to inclusive development and economic growth. The areas of focus are as follows; In the infrastructure sector, JICA’s focus is on cross-border infrastructure which aims at a higher investment impact, together with assistance for capacity development related to the efficient management of infrastructure operations such as the “One Stop Boarder Post”. In the field of human resource development, JICA will focus on capacity development through the improvement of mathematics and science education at primary and secondary level; assistance for higher education in the field of science and technology; and other educational support leading to the acquisition of jobs. In the agricultural sector, JICA will place higher priority on increasing agricultural productivity, as well as improving livelihood through spreading out market and business- oriented agriculture to small scale farmers. JICA will provide assistance for the promotion of Base of Pyramid (BOP) businesses and Public/Private Partnerships (PPP), reflecting the rising interest in trade and private investment in Africa by the Japanese business community. In terms of reducing downside risk deteriorating development outcomes, JICA also supports enhancing the resilience of African countries in the areas of climate change, disaster prevention, the achievement of Universal Health Coverage, and conflict prevention. With strong leadership and political commitment from each country, JICA will tackle the identified challenges in partnership with the African governments, with a vision to achieving the goals indicated in Africa 2050. The writer is the Vice President of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Director of JICA Research Institute.