Africa’s economic growth to outpace global average in 2024 — Afreximbank report

The economic growth across Africa is projected to exceed global average this year, according to a new report published by the Afreximbank, despite several downside risks, including increasing levels of sovereign debt, associated sustainability risks, and excessive exposure to adverse terms-of-trade shocks.

The report entitled ‘A Resilient Africa: Delivering Growth in a Turbulent World’, the lender says that African economies will grow on average by 3.8% in 2024 slightly outpacing the predicted global growth of 3.2%, whereby the growth is expected to maintain the upward curve reaching 4% in 2025.

The report says that, overall, the outlook for the African continent this year remains positive despite the challenging economic environment last year. Despite some potential risks, including escalating geopolitical tensions, volatile domestic political environments, high commodity prices and inflationary pressures, and potential food insecurity, most macroeconomic indicators are expected to improve in 2024 and 2025.

The ongoing global challenges undermined the performance of Africa’s trade, which contracted by 6.3% in 2023 after expanding by 15.9% in 2022, while intra-African trade expanded by 3.2% over the same period, Yemi Kale, Afreximbank’s Group Chief Economist, said. “This performance is reflective of the resilience of the African economy and the potential impact of the African Continental Free Trade Area’s (AfCFTA) single market for the continent as a tool to protect them from global shocks,” Kale added. “Our analysis in the report also revealed large untapped potential in intra-African trade, especially in machinery, electricity, motor vehicles, and food products.”