Geographical Reach

Africa’s time has come, and great change is evident across the continent. In the past decade, Africa has attained greater political stability. Its economy is increasingly private sector-led, and the results are becoming apparent. Africa has the fastest growing economy in the world, outpacing both Asia and Latin America.

Six of the world’s ten fastest-growing economies of the last decade were in sub-Saharan Africa, and in the next five years seven of the ten fastest growing countries are projected to be in Africa. Africa is the perfect proving ground for modern-day capitalism. For most of the last decade its equity markets outperformed global indexes. Africa is abundantly endowed. It is home to 60% of the world’s diamonds and phosphates, 10% of its oil reserves, 90% of its platinum and chromium, and 40% of its gold ore. It has 60% of the world’s underutilised arable land, and half of Africa’s more than one billion people are below the age of 24. The continent’s staggering potential is ripe for unlocking, and the key to this treasure chest is the private sector. The mobilisation of both foreign and domestic investments is pivotal to its economic development. The sustenance of Africa’s promising growth rests on the development of new financial markets, the construction of good quality infrastructure, and the innovative processing of its rich and varied natural resources.