The Hopeful Continent
This document is extracted from Handshake Issue #11: Africa.
More than a decade ago, The Economist christened Africa “the hopeless continent,” lamenting its prospects for growth and change. Today, the tide has turned. In 2013, the very same magazine lauded the improvement in lives in Africa over the past decade, and declared that the next decade will be even better.
Many of Africa’s economies are among the world’s fastest growing. At least a dozen have grown by more than 6.0 percent annually for six or more years. But success gives rise to new challenges. Although private investment is no longer novel in Africa, it does not yet meet growing needs. A younger population and expanding middle class have new demands. Infrastructure bottlenecks threaten sustained development.
