The diversification of African economies is one way through which the recent economic growth achievements could be sustained. Africa’s economic transformation can be achieved through both horizontal and vertical diversification. In addition, such diversification will help to build competitive economies that can productively be integrated into the global economy. Diversification is therefore a pre-condition if Africa is to register accelerated development. The scaling-up of current real growth to desired levels and in a broad manner can also be sustained if there is deepening in the diversification of African economies.
The relevance of diversification to economic growth and development is not new.
But diversification might have been abandoned at a time when it could have played a major role in strengthening gains from earlier reforms efforts on the continent. The Economic Report on Africa 2007 presents the theme of diversification as a new paradigm for Africa’s development. The report argues that diversification is a prerequisite to achieving positive development in the continent. This chapter and the following two will provide analytical and empirical evidence of the importance of diversification as a key pillar in the continent’s development.
This chapter explores Africa’s diversification trends to see how Africa has fared in its attempts to diversify its economy and to enable structural transformation to take place. Practical export experiences of some countries are also presented. This then leads to what this Report calls the diversification regimes that characterize the results of the diversification efforts.
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