It provides comprehensive and comparable data and analysis of 31 African economies, accounting for 86 per cent of Africa’s population and 91 per cent of its economic output. Five editions have already been published and the sixth edition was launched on 13 May 2007 at the Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank in Shanghai. The SAIIA launch constitutes the first presentation of the AEO report in Africa.
A consistent finding across the Outlooks, which is reflected in this year’s report, is that Africa urgently needs to move from volatile to sustainable growth. On aggregate Africa achieved its 4th straight year of strong growth in 2006 and prospects are promising for 2007 and 2008. However, the continent remains highly dependent on the ups and downs of the global economy. External vulnerability is a reflection of the marginal and passive role played by the continent in the globalisation process, and of its limited integration in international trade and investment flows in particular. The report concludes that Africa can become the active architect of its own integration in the global economy by better mobilising internal resources and using external catalysts for growth (investment and development aid) more strategically.
