Africa boasts six out of 10 fastest growing economies

31 October 2011

Dr Ilse Niemann-Struweg, Head of the School of Business and Economics, Monash South Africa; Mr Roelf Meyer, Director FeverTreeConsulting; Ass Prof Dina Burger, Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor: Research, Monash South Africa

“There is currently less conflict on the African continent than there was 10 years ago and a benefit of this is that six out of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world, are now in Africa. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other reports indicate that this will continue to be the case for the next ten years,” said Roelf Meyer at a Public Lecture hosted by the Monash Africa Centre and the School of Business and Economics at Monash South Africa last week.

Roelf Meyer, an Executive Director of FeverTreeConsulting, discussed the current African political and business environment and looked at the challenges that lie ahead from a South African and African perspective.

He felt that the developments over the past ten years give credibility to the statement by former President, Thabo Mbeki in 2000, that this century would belong to the African continent.

Rwanda, which had conflict resulting in a genocide `in 1994, is today one of the 10 fastest growing economies. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which is now the biggest country in Africa, is about to have its second democratic elections. While it has not yet overcome all of its problems, it has great potential wealth and far less political violence today than in the past.

Meyer said: “It is significant that Africa has taken ownership of its problems and responsibility to address situations of conflict and violence and there is an eagerness to find our own solutions. Overall the situation on the continent is relatively positive. There are exceptions however, such as Somalia.”

“The three main reasons for political conflict worldwide are ethnicity, religion (which sometimes go hand in hand) and political greed, where those in power refuse to relinquish it, and those not in power wanting to grab it. The most recent example of this is the conflict in Ivory Coast.”

When discussing South Africa’s relationship with the rest of the continent, Meyer suggested that instead of the Limpopo River, the northern border of South Africa should rather be seen as the Congo River and Mount Kilimanjaro.

He said that in the future, South Africa will be expected to contribute to the development of the SADC region. “We need to recognise the benefits of cooperation which include, for example, the fact that Congo River has the potential to provide hydro-electric power for the whole continent.”

“Beitbridge is South Africa’s second most important export port with products being exported to (mainly SADC) countries to the north. The buying power of these countries is increasing all the time. For example, Angola is currently the fastest growing economy in the world. If we can produce the products to export to these countries, it will provide tremendous growth potential for South Africa.”

“Growth in the areas of Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Kenya also mean that sub-Saharan Africa could become the economic powerhouse of the continent in future.”

“The next 10 years will be very important for Africa and we need to have an inclusive look into our future. The development of our potential will depend on this generation to become a reality,” said Meyer.

 “The important factors in solving conflict situations are firstly, to treasure the notion of inclusivity. For SADC to be successful, all 12 countries need to be part of the process. Secondly, it’s about developing trust and seeing the point of view of others involved in the process and then pursuing a dream together.”

“Thirdly, it is important to take ownership of, and responsibility for, the outcome of the situation. One of the major success factors in the South African negotiations was that there were no foreign mediators. In other conflict regions, they often rely on others to help solve their problems, thereby complicating the situation.

“While it is fine to make demands, when working towards resolving a conflict situation, it is also necessary to make it clear what your contribution is going to be. Both sides need to take responsibility for the outcome.”

He added that in order to realise the SADC dream, South Africa should take responsibility to start the process and that all countries involved should be fully accountable.

Roelf Meyer was actively involved in politics for 21 years with his most recent role being Minister of Constitutional Affairs (1991-1996).  He was intimately involved in the negotiations on the settlement of the South African conflict as Chief Negotiator for the National Party Government. It was in this capacity that he negotiated the end of apartheid together with Cyril Ramaphosa who was Chief Negotiator for the African National Congress (ANC).