The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group Chief Economist, Louis Kasekende, has said that the continent’s economic outlook is improving just as the countries of the western Hemisphere and Asia are showing signs of economic recovery. Mr. Kasekende expressed optimism as to the continent’s economic prospects while speaking in an interview with the AfDB Web team ahead of the institution’s African Economic Conference (AEC) which is an annual event that brings together researchers and policy-makers for them to share perspectives on economic and development challenges facing the continent.
“Just as the countries in the western Hemisphere and Asia are showing signs of economic recovery, there are signs that the outlook for Africa is also improving. However, the recovery remains weak for it to be a basis for optimism that Africa is back on a higher growth trajectory. In 2009, we are forecasting a growth rate of 2% for the continent, improving to 3.9% in 2010. Strong recovery will depend on a revival of demand in developed and emerging economies, plus recovery in financial flows to the continent. To maintain growth on a higher trajectory, the challenge facing the continent is to increase the level of investment to at least over 30% of GDP, while also increasing the efficiency of that investment,” Mr. Kasekende said, adding that the AEC had brought the AfDB closer to many research institutes on the continent, pointing out that the AfDB had begun to collaborate with some of the research institutes with regard to AfDB knowledge generation and dissemination activities.
Speaking about the usefulness of the AEC, Mr. Kasekende said “the AEC has been useful in helping us improve the quality of our existing major publications such as the African Economic Outlook (AEO) and the African Development Report, which we now regularly disseminate during the conference as a way of influencing policy,” adding that “We are also using AEC proceedings to improve the quality of our journal, the African Development Review. Every year, we produce a special issue of the Journal containing papers presented at the plenary sessions.”
