Abstract
To assess whether sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is going to experience a Demographic Dividend in the near future, it is necessary to take a close look at the economic growth in the region. After a brief reminder of the main growth determinants, the chapter presents the evolution of the average growth rate for sub-Saharan Africa during the period 1960–2015. Two main periods have been identified. The first, from 1960 to around 2000, called “the tragedy period”, is a period of low growth and extreme poverty. The second, from 2000 to 2015, called “the hope period”, is a period of solid growth resulting from improved macroeconomic policies and structural changes. The chapter also reviews the main risks of a downturn. The conclusion is that the SSA economic recovery is extremely fragile. To benefit from a substantial demographic dividend, not only the fertility rates need to decrease sharply and rapidly in the near future, but also macroeconomic policies and structural reforms need to be firmly implemented.
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Notes
- 1.
IMF. Regional Economic Outlook: sub-Saharan Africa, Navigating Headwinds, Washington, DC: International Monetary Fund, World Economic and Financial Surveys, April 2015.
- 2.
Growth Commission Report, Washington, DC: The World Bank Group, 2008.
- 3.
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD ), Foreign direct investment inflows to Africa remained stable in 2014, New York: United Nations, 2014.
- 4.
World Bank, Diaspora sent $32.9 billion home to Sub-Saharan Africa in 2014, Washington, DC: The World Bank Group, 2015.
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Turbat, V. (2017). Economic Growth and Public and Private Investments. In: Groth, H., May, J. (eds) Africa's Population: In Search of a Demographic Dividend. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-46889-1_22
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-46889-1_22
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