Emerging economy
Africa’s economy is largely informal but it is touted as an emerging economy by the World Bank and the International Monetary Organization. The continent also has a youthful labor force that is highly skilled and unskilled. In terms of ease of doing business compiled by the World Bank,
the continent has some stringent bureaucratic hurdles and a less conducive environment for setting up and doing business. However, foreign direct investment to Africa rose to $46 billion in 2018, an increase of 11% the previous year, according to the United Nations Conference on
Trade and Development.
Furthermore, investors from countries like France, the Netherlands, the United States, United Kingdom and China are the biggest investors in Africa. This goes to show that despite the less conducive environment for doing business as reported by the World Bank, Africa is very attractive to investors from developed countries.
RELATED STORIES
Africa is also embarking on a new era buoyed by the launch of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA). The objective of the AfCTA is to create a single continental market for the movement of goods and services, free movement of business persons and investment. AfCTA creates a single market of 1.2 billion people and a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of more than US$3.4 trillion.
