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| Africa Competitiveness Report | |
|---|---|
| Title | Africa Competitiveness Report |
| Publisher | World Economic Forum |
| First | 2000 |
| Frequency | Biennial |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Language | English |
| Subject | Competitiveness, Development, Investment |
Africa Competitiveness Report
The Africa Competitiveness Report is a series of biennial assessments produced to evaluate factors shaping private sector performance across Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Egypt and other African countries. Drawing on indicators used by institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and African Development Bank Group, the report synthesizes data on infrastructure, institutions, human capital, and market efficiency to inform policymakers, investors, and multilateral agencies including the International Finance Corporation and African Union Commission.
The report aims to benchmark comparative strengths and weaknesses across nations like Ethiopia, Ghana, Morocco, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda to attract foreign direct investment from firms such as Standard Chartered, Chevron Corporation, GlaxoSmithKline, and Vodafone Group. It provides actionable guidance for stakeholders including the European Investment Bank, United States Agency for International Development, Japan International Cooperation Agency, and philanthropic actors like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. By linking indicators to frameworks used by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, World Trade Organization, and International Labour Organization, the report positions national reforms within global value chains involving hubs like Dubai, Rotterdam, and Shanghai.
Methodological foundations rely on composite indices inspired by the Global Competitiveness Report, the Human Development Index, and the Doing Business indicators maintained by the World Bank Group. Data sources include national statistical offices such as Statistics South Africa, surveys by McKinsey & Company and Boston Consulting Group, and datasets from UNICEF, World Health Organization, Transparency International, and Freedom House. The methodology aggregates measures for physical infrastructure (ports like Port of Durban and airports like Jomo Kenyatta International Airport), financial systems featuring banks such as Ecobank and exchanges like Nairobi Securities Exchange, human capital grounded in institutions like University of Cape Town and University of Nairobi, and technological readiness encompassing firms like MTN Group and Safaricom.
Rankings emphasize regional clusters: North Africa (including Algeria, Tunisia), West Africa (including Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire), Central Africa (including Cameroon, DR Congo), East Africa (including Burundi, Somalia), and Southern Africa (including Botswana, Namibia). Top performers often include Mauritius, Seychelles, South Africa, and Botswana, while lagging countries appear among fragile states listed by United Nations peace operations such as MINUSMA and UNAMID. Rankings cross-reference risk assessments by Moody's, Standard & Poor's, and Fitch Ratings as well as trade profiles tied to OPEC members and mineral exporters like Angola and Zambia.
Recurring findings highlight the role of connectivity nodes such as Mombasa, Lagos, and Alexandria in shaping trade competitiveness, the rise of digital finance exemplified by M-Pesa and e-government pilots in Estonia-inspired reforms in Rwanda, and demographic trends involving youth employment in countries like Nigeria and Ethiopia. The report documents commodity dependence affecting exporters like Nigeria (oil) and Ghana (gold), diversification successes in Morocco (manufacturing) and Kenya (horticulture), and resilience in fiscal policy linked to Botswana’s sovereign wealth practices and Chile-style stabilization funds debated within African Union forums.
Recommendations target regulatory reform inspired by precedents such as the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 model, investment promotion reforms reflecting practices of Singapore’s Economic Development Board, and governance improvements referencing anti-corruption measures championed by Transparency International and legal frameworks like the United Nations Convention against Corruption. Suggested reforms address transport corridors modeled on the Trans-African Highway and energy projects similar to Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam planning, financial inclusion strategies leveraging Central Bank of Kenya innovations, and education reforms paralleling curriculum changes at Aga Khan University and technical institutes like IIT Bombay-linked partnerships.
The report has influenced policy dialogues within G20 Africa-focused initiatives, guided concessional financing by African Development Bank, and shaped private investment flows coordinated with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Critics from think tanks like Centre for Global Development and academics at London School of Economics and Harvard University argue the report can overemphasize market liberalization, underweight informal sector dynamics chronicled by ILO studies, and rely on indicators contested by civil society groups such as Oxfam and Amnesty International. Debates have arisen over weighting schemes similar to controversies in the Doing Business methodology and reproducibility concerns raised in econometric critiques from University of Oxford researchers.
Launched around 2000 and updated periodically, editions have been produced alongside major summits such as the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos and conferences hosted by NEPAD and the African Union Summit. Special thematic editions have focused on sectors like agribusiness, energy, and digital innovation, highlighting case studies from Ethiopian Airlines, Dangote Group, and Safaricom. The series evolved by incorporating satellite data from NASA and nighttime light analyses used in studies by Billions to Trillions-era research, and it continues to be cited in policy papers by institutions including Chatham House and Brookings Institution.