Africa is well placed to industrialise

it must help Africa accelerate its development by promoting rapid and responsible industrialisation.

Africa is by no means destined to lag behind the rest of the world economy. On the contrary, it could easily become a global economic powerhouse – and within the next decade. But, to fulfil its economic potential, Africa must industrialise.

The importance of this has been stressed repeatedly at recent international forums, including last August’s Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI), and the G20 summit in Hangzhou, China, the following month. For the first time, the G20 placed industrialisation in Africa and all of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) on its agenda. The African Union’s Agenda 2063 also supports this drive.

The recent UN General Assembly resolution declaring 2016-2025 the Third Industrial Development Decade for Africa is yet another push in this direction.

The UN Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), has been tasked with operationalising and leading the implementation of the concomitant programme, including mobilising the needed resources.

All of these declarations and commitments are an important first step. But they will mean little unless they are translated into concrete and effective action that advances African industrialisation, creates jobs, and fosters inclusive and sustainable economic growth and development. The question is how.

The short answer is money and action. We must challenge the international community and development partners to back their words with real financial commitments. And we must build partnerships to operationalise programmes that will enable Africa to become the world’s next main engine of economic growth.

Such programmes must recognize and tackle the acute challenges the continent faces. The economic growth experienced in recent decades has not been structurally driven, sustainable, or fully inclusive. Indeed, growth rates vary widely across the continent, and not all Africans are benefiting.

Though the middle class in Africa has expanded markedly in recent years, generating a consumer boom and boosting domestic investment, many people still struggle to make a living. Unemployment rates are high, especially for young people and women a reality that drives many Africans to head north.

To keep them home, Africa’s economies must move beyond producing raw materials to build dynamic and competitive manufacturing sectors with higher value added. Here, Africa must draw on the opportunities presented by participation in global and regional value chains. New and innovative industrial-development strategies, as well as carefully tailored measures to attract foreign direct investment, must be introduced.

Of course, to develop such strategies and participate effectively in industrial value chains, Africans need knowledge. Investment in education and skills training is imperative to facilitate successful and lasting industrialization. By understanding and drawing on proven innovations from around the world, Africa could leapfrog more developed countries technologically, building the capacity to produce more sophisticated, higher-value goods.

Africa is well placed to industrialise. Beyond its massive natural-resource endowments, the continent has a favourable demographic profile (its rapidly growing population means that it will soon have the world’s largest workforce) and high urbanisation rates. It also benefits from a highly educated diaspora.