The Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies says Africa as a continent has emerged as the next growth frontier and it is increasingly being recognised as such by the entire world. Minister Davies was delivering a speech on the first day of the fourth Conference of the African and Chinese Entrepreneurs at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, today. More than a thousand businesspeople from China and Africa attended the conference, which ends tomorrow.
"Africa has emerged as the next growth frontier of the world and it is increasingly being recognised as such.The average rate of growth in the African continent this year is predicted by the International Monetary Fund to reach 5.5%. Six of the ten fastest growing economies of the world are located on the African continent," said Minister Davies.
He added that China continued to be in the forefront of the shift in the locus of dynamism in the world economy from the north and west to the south and east. He said even though growth forecasts for the People's Republic of China have been tampered in recent times, China remained the main hope for avoiding contagion from the European crisis becoming a global recession.
"There are at least three elements of the partnership between China and Africa that can be attributed to this impressive economic performance by African countries. Firstly, a quarter of the new growth in Africa can be attributed to a mineral products boon, which has risen largely from the increased demand for mineral products arising from China and other countries of Asia due to their industrialisation.
"Secondly, we have seen a consumption boon on the African continent, driven in part by the high consumption of products which are manufactured in China. The products, such as cell phones and information and communication equipment, have fuelled growth on the African continent which has given rise to service sector growth and new employment in service activities linked to information and communication technology. Lastly, we have seen infrastructure development taking place across the African continent and China has been a very important partner in a number of infrastructure projects across the continent," explained Davies.
Minister Davies however conceded that Africa still faced the challenge of turning the growth spirit which has been experienced in recent years, and which the continent continue to experience, into a sustained development effort.
"Increasingly, we will encounter African leaders saying the next phase of African development needs to be characterised by the industrialisation of the African continent. That's our ambition. That's what we think needs to happen if we are to consolidate this growth spirit into a sustained development effort," said Davies.
Speaking later in a ceremony to officially open the conference, Chinese Prime Minister Mr Wen Jiabao, said despite volatilities in the international arena in recent years cooperation between China and Africa have weathered the storm and continued to grow and strengthen.
"China Africa business ties have seen exciting growth both in size and structure. Bilateral relations have grown rapidly with increased trade mix. For three years in a row China has been Africa's biggest trading partners. In 2012 bilateral trade increased to 166 billon US dollars. Africa's export to China doubled in three years with increasing varieties including steel, agricultural products, mineral products and other finished industrial products. Notable progress has been made in cooperation in financing and cooperation projects launched by China better meet Africa's development needs," said Jiabao.
Minister Davies will be attending the Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) tomorrow and Friday. He will be part of the SA delegation that is led by President Jacob Zuma. FOCAC is a platform established by China and African countries in Beijing in 2000 for collective consultation and dialogue and a cooperation mechanism between the developing countries, which falls into the category of South-South cooperation. Foreign and trade and industry ministers from more than fifty African countries are expected to attend.
Enquiries:
Sidwell Medupe
Departmental spokesperson
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E-mail: MSMedupe@thedti.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Trade and Industry
18 Jul 2012