Реферат: Short Overview of African Countries
According to ECA’s "Africa Economic Report 2000" shows, for five years running, Africa's GDP has grown faster than its population, reversing the falling living standards of the previous 15 years. While growth trends for the region as a whole remain depressed, some African countries are doing well. Fourteen countries have grown on average by 4 percent a year during the 1990s, with rising annual incomes of 2-3 percent and even higher, with another 10 countries following close behind with growth rates above 3 percent a year. Some countries have grown at 7 percent a year or higher (Mozambique, 7 percent, and Uganda, 7.1 percent). "These figures show us that economic reforms over recent years have slowly but surely improved growth in many African countries and allowed the private sector to take root," says Alan Gelb, Chief Economist of the World Bank's Africa region . "However, despite this rising trend, countries are still vulnerable to conflict and external shocks in world markets, such as the recent rapid increase in oil prices and fallout from the East Asia crisis. These two forces have together produced highly unfavorable terms of trade for oil importers."
Now shortly about the social indicators. Although life expectancy has risen slightly in Africa, this is happening at a slower rate than elsewhere and, since 1990 the HIV/AIDS epidemic has caused it to decline, especially in countries with high adult infection rates. In Zimbabwe, for example, life expectancy has fallen by five years, while in Botswana, it has fallen by over ten. Life Expectancy at birth is ranging between 37 year (Sierra Leonne) and 71.8 year (Seychelles). The rule is that Africans living in countries beset by conflict are more likely to have shorter life expectancy at birth and have higher infant mortality rates than other more stable countries. Sierra Leone is a striking illustration of this trend with the region's lowest life expectancy rate at just 37 years, and its highest infant mortality rate at 169 deaths per one thousand. Child mortality is a particularly acute problem for many countries in Africa. Infant mortality is close to 10 percent, and on average 151 of every 1,000 children die before the age of 5, although in many countries the mortality rate exceeds 200 per 1,000. Illiteraci level is extremelly high for the whole territory of Africa. Population per physician oscillates in the following range lowest: 827 (Seychelles), highest: 53986 (Niger). There’s no use to say that population per hospital bed is also in very poor condition. Despite major strides that had been made in the eradication of malaria, the disease is on the rise again throughout Africa. Elsewhere in the world HIV/AIDS is on the decline. In Africa, HIV/AIDS has reached pandemic proportions, threatening to wipe out Africa’s fragile social and economic gains. Two-thirds of the world’s 34 million AIDS sufferers are in sub-Saharan Africa. Today in 21 African countries more than 7 percent of adults live with HIV/AIDS, with the highest absolute number of cases found in South Africa, where one in every five adults has contracted the virus. Countries like Niger, Sudan, and Mauritania, which have some of the lowest incidence of AIDS in the region, offer great potential for control.Yet as countries like Senegal and Uganda show, with the necessary political will and resources, the AIDS pandemic can be rolled back. A little bit better situaion is observed in the sphere of education. The new report shows that Africa has made more progress in education than in health with literacy rates improving for both men and women. At 41 percent, the illiteracy rate in the region is still high compared to rest of the world, but it is at its lowest point ever. Of particular significance is the advance being made in girls' education. While this represents welcome progress, far more needs to be done. Half of Africa's children of school going age are out of school; this is even lower in rural areas and among girls.
The statistical data may vary depending on source due to the insufficent automatization of statistical institutions of the region. That’s why World Bank approved a grant to transfer systems to six Southern African countries (Mozambique, Botswana, South Africa, Lesotho, Tanzania, and Zambia) to strengthen their statistical reporting capabilities. "The quality of development data depends on the source. Our goal is to empower statistical offices in Africa, and help them to move from hand-written National Account tables to a modern system that is easy to adopt, maintain, and capable of delivering quality data," says Ziad Badr, the team leader of African Development Indicators 2001, and a senior World Bank economist in its Africa region . "This will bring statistical institutions in Africa into the new millennium, and provide a reliable system to measure development progress and identify remaining challenges."
In summary, macro balances, or getting the prices right, is not economic reform just as casting a ballot is not democracy. The hallmarks of a capable state are strong institutions of governance; a sharp focus on the needs of the poor; powerful watchdogs; the rule of law; intolerance of corruption; transparency and accountability in the management of public affairs; respect for human rights; participation by all citizens in the decisions that affect their lives; as well as the creation of an enabling environment for the private sector and civil society.
4. Economic organizations in Africa
The main economic power of Africa south of the Sahara Desert is South African Republic. Through its well developed infrastructure and deepwater ports, South Africa handles much of the trade for the whole southern African region. In 1970 its immediate neighbours, Botswana, Swaziland and Lesotho, and latterly Namibia, signed the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) enabling them to share in the customs revenue from their trade passing through South African ports. In order to counter the economic dominance of South Africa in the southern African region, the countries to the north of it organised themselves into the Southern African Development Conference (SADC). Member states include those of the SACU as well as Angola, situated north of Namibia, and it's oil-rich enclave of Cabinda, and Mozambique on the east coast, and the countries of south-central Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi. Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania signed Treaty for Enhanced East African Co-operation in order to allow free flow of goods and people. The small landlocked central African countries of Rwanda and Burundi form part of an economic union of countries in the central African region. Other members of the Economic Community of Central African States are Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, the oil-rich Congo and Gabon and the vast country of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is a solid geographical bloc of 15 states from Nigeria in the east to Mauritania in the west. The countries of Mauritania, Mali and Niger are located in the southern stretch of the Sahara Desert while the remaining countries are splayed out along the coast line. As a result of their respective colonial histories, these countries are divided into French and English-speaking states. The francophone countries include the republics of Benin, Burkina Faso, Togo, the Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire), Guinea and Senegal while the remaining states of Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the Gambia have English as their official language. The Republic of Guinea Bissau is a Portuguese-speaking state to the south of Senegal.
5. Problems and ways to solve them
The biggest challenge to doing business in Africa is the lack of quality information about Africa. Some of the other challenges of Africa are:
· fluctuating currencies
· bureaucratic red tape, which is slowly getting easier to wade through
· graft and corruption
· nepotism
· wars and unrest, though the changes in South Africa are starting to create a ripple of peace and democracy throughout the region
· lack of local capital
· monopolies such as marketing boards, state trading firms, foreign exchange restrictions, trade taxes and quotas and concentration on limited commodities all place a disincentive on exports, thus delinking Africa from the world economy.
· lack of infrastructure, though in areas such as telecommunications and energy, Africa is able to use new technologies to leapfrog more advanced economies
However, none of these challenges is insurmountable; in fact, some entrepreneurs would contend that African risk is lower than that even of North America.
There is hardly could be a person, who is able to resolve all the problems considering the challenges in the list. But there are a number of tasks to be completed in order to improve the quality of life and gain stable economic growth.
Resource mobilization To halve poverty by 2015 countries must reach the 8 percent growth in GDP each year, instead of present 4.4 %. To reach this rate investments must be 40 percent of gross domestic product. Even with major increase in domestic savings, there are still huge financing gaps. Africa’s rate of return on Foreign Direct Investment is 29 percent per year, higher than any other region of the world. Annual average foreign investment flows have increased from $1.9 billion in 1983-87 to $6 billion in 1993-97. But this is just 4 percent of the total investment pouring into developing countries. In the face of global financial volatility, Africa's nascent capital markets have also remained buoyant. Yet institutional investors remain resistant to the possibilities in Africa. African countries have undertaken significant economic reforms, but investment has not come.
Regional co-operation Regional integration is the key to Africa's success in the 21st century. The challenge is for the subregional initiatives to march together and in step with the World Trade Organization.
Information technology Information and communication technologies present some of the most exciting possibilities for Africa in the new millennium. “With new ways to communicate we can leapfrog through several stages of development; cut the cost of doing business; and narrow the gap of huge distances. …At ECA, we want to make sure that Africans are drivers, not passengers, on the information highway…” says Dr. K.Y. Amoko, executive secretary, Economic Comission for Africa. at the National Summit on Africa held in Washington D.C. 17 February 2000. There was registered a significant growth in Internet spreading through the continent. E-Commerce, television and radio are also developing rapidly.
Governance Ensuring and sustaining good governance must be an African responsibility, first and foremost.
Social investment . Social spending has become a major casualty of recent budget cuts in many African countries. To expect that Africa can progress when investment in its human capital is declining is a classic case of being penny wise and pound foolish. Social investment challenges of health, education, housing, water supplies and sanitation are enormous and demand the creativity and partnership of all caring parties.
Gender equality Excluding Islamic countries, Africa is the most remarkable region in terms of discrimination against women. Since the UN's Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995, the world better understands the need to free women to become equal participants in development. This is not just a matter of rights but of good economic sense. “It is past time to lead by rhetoric; it is time to lead by example.” (from the National Summit on Africa documents”)
Preventing conflict The world has learned expensively that it is cheaper and far more humane to prevent conflict than to fight a war. So it is one of the most actual problems for African countries. To quote the UN Secretary General, "in the past twenty years we have understood the need for military intervention where governments grossly violate human rights and the international order. In the next twenty years we must learn how to prevent conflicts, as well as intervene in them." Peace can no longer be just about peace making and peace keeping. It is also about peace building.
African diaspora must also take part in ongoing processes. A lot of Africans live in European countries as well as in United States. They are able to help their historical homes in three major ways.
First , Become an Advocate for Africa: For every devastating image of Africa they see on television, not far from that camera there is an image of people striving to develop. As a start, they should visit Africa, spread the word about it, become a personal lobbyists for Africa. They must lobby for African products in their stores; lobby for strong US-Africa ties.
Second , Invest in Africa: Investing in Africa could be profitable. Now is the time for African-Americans to put their money where their mouths are. They can invest in Africa, through such convenient ways as the mutual funds that concentrate on Africa. Members of other diasporas have accelerated development in their ancestral homelands through widespread individual investments. Surely African-Americans can do it, too.
Third , Invest politically in Africa , 40 percent of United Nations assistance is currrently going to Africa. When the US and other flourishing countries pay their UN dues, when someone pays voluntary contributions to United Nations he/she helps Africa. Foreign aid helps building schools as well as improving governance in terms of efficancy.
While many write off Africa as the continent of despair, other enterprising individuals and organisations have recognised the huge, untapped potential of Africa and are actively pursuing business ventures across the continent.
African Development Indicators show clearly where the regions greatest social challenges and opportunities lie. Indeed, Africa's future economic growth will depend less on exploiting its natural resources, which are being depleted and are subject to long-run price declines, and more on its labor skills and its ability to accelerate a demographic transition.