World bank says Africa is the challenge of the 21st century
Regional, Politics, 5/18/2000

An official of the World Bank Wednesday said sub-Saharan Africa poses the most daunting development challenge of the 21st century.

Callisto Madavo, the bank's vice president for Africa, was quoted by the Panafrican news agency PANA as saying countries in sub-Saharan Africa are about the only places where there has been no real economic recovery in recent years. Instead, he said, there is the real danger that the area could be left behind in the global explosion of technology, especially in the domain of information.

Madavo, from Zimbabwe, formally assumed office as overseer of the Bank's activities in the Africa region (excluding north Africa) at the beginning of the month, after sharing the post with another colleague for a couple of years.

He arrived in Dakar Tuesday from Mali as a part of a mini-west African tour that would also take him to Cote d'Ivoire and Nigeria.

Some 475 million of the region's roughly 600 million people live on less than two US dollars a day. Another 250 million live on less than one dollar a day, Madavo said.

"The problem is that Africa is the only continent where poverty is increasing," Madavo added, arguing that the solution lies in acceleration of economic growth.

The region's economic growth must rise to an average 7 % per annum to reduce poverty by half by 2015. In the second half of the 1990s the region's growth averaged 4 %, 1 % less that required to begin to reduce poverty.

"The issue is not just getting the numbers right. Quality economic growth matters in terms of creating jobs, assisting the rural poor and promotion of education," he said.

To achieve this, the private sector has the key. Thus, it is up to African governments to create an environment conducive to attract dynamic private sector investments that create jobs and introduce new technology.

Civil strife has made this almost impossible in a number of countries such as Sierra Leone, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, and Eritrea, among others.

Madavo estimates that between 20 and 25 % of Africa's population currently lives in conflict zones.

"Without stability, security and peace, the private sector is not going to come," he said calling on politics to empower the people to participate in the political and economic life of their countries. Emphasis also need to be placed on the involvement of grassroots communities in government programs and activities.

The governments must also ensure transparency, property rights, accountability and anti-corruption mechanisms

On its part, the World Bank is adapting to the realities of the region by adjusting its methods of doing business, especially giving Africans themselves the space to develop their own programs.

He insisted that the critical issue now is not debt cancellation per se but whether the funds derived from debt relief are properly channeled to sectors that benefit the people and help reduce poverty.

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