Ghana’s economy continues to stagnate with a decelerating Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
This was contained in the second Africa’s Pulse report for 2016, which was released today.
The report is a twice-yearly World Bank Group analysis of issues shaping Africa’s economic prospects.
According to the report, economic growth within sub-Saharan Africa is expected to fall further to 1.6 percent in 2016 from the projected 3 percent.
The1.6 percent projected growth is said to be the lowest level of growth in over two decades.
The worst decline in aggregate growth is blamed on challenging economic conditions in the region’s largest economies like Nigeria, South Africa and Angola.
According to the report even though a quarter of African countries are showing some resilience, economic activity has been notably weak across oil exporters.
The report showed that some countries on the continent including Ghana continue to face headwinds from low commodity prices, tight financial conditions and domestic policy uncertainty.
Generally, oil exporters in Sub-Saharan Africa continue to experience slippages in economic growth due to shocks from the collapse of commodity prices.
Punam Chuhan-Pole, World Bank Lead Economist for Africa speaking to reporters across the continent underlined the limited diversification of African economies on the continent.
“Adjustment to low commodities has been limited in several commodity exporters, even as vulnerabilities have mounted, I therefore think the adjustments efforts should include measures to strengthen domestic resource mobilization, so as to reduce overdependence on resource-based revenues.”
In Nigeria according to the report, GDP contracted during the first two quarters of the year due to low oil revenues and a fall in manufacturing, among other things but in South Africa, the economy contracted slightly in the first quarter, before rebounding in the second quarter, due to an increase in mining and manufacturing output.
Meanwhile the report is projecting a recovery of the sub Saharan real GDP growth at 2.9 percent in 2017 after which it is expected to rise moderately to 3.6 percent in 2018.
The report also stated that the agriculture sector in Africa has been neglected for far too long.
In view of this the World Bank’s Chief Economist for Africa, Albert Zeufack, called for increasing agricultural productivity on the continent stating that improved agriculture is central to transforming Sub-Saharan African economies.
–
By: Norvan Acquah – Hayford/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana