Africa’s Business

Landscape
Top 5 Economies
 CONTENTS

GDP in Africa
I
Biggest African
II Economies

Country Summaries
III

2
I. Background:
GDP in Africa
No single statement about
Africa can be true

African countries are too diverse for generalizations

4
 The largest components of the
Total economy of African economy are

Africa is expected
to reach a GDP of Agriculture Trade
$29 trillion by
2050 Natural
resources

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-
5
rankings/richest-african-countries
 • GDP – Gross Domestic Product is still the best
indicator of a nation's overall economic health despite
its shortcomings

GDP: Pros &

• GDP measures the monetary value of all the products
and services that are produced in a country within a
given period of time

Cons as
– Provides a relatively accurate estimate of size &
growth rate of a country’s economy
– Allows for broad comparisons between different

basis for
countries and time periods – helping
investors/funding agencies make investment
decisions

investment • However, GDP can be problematic

– Does not capture volume of informal economy

decision
– GDP can be misleading because of changes in
commodity prices/ fluctuations in exchange rate
– Masks inequalities in income distribution
– Country GDP does not reflect GDP/capita
– GDP doesn’t account for differences in cost of
living and inflation rates between countries
6
 The “African
Growth” story is
complicated
• Many of the world's poorest
nations are in Africa
• Most African economies are
unstable
• Poverty is widespread
• But some African countries
have the fastest-growing
economies in the world
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-
7
rankings/richest-african-countries
II. Biggest African
Economies
 Largest African Economies Ranked by GDP

2000 2015 2020 2021

-
Spotlight on 1 South Africa Nigeria

Africa’s 2
3
Egypt

Nigeria
South Africa

Egypt

Biggest 4 Algeria Algeria

Economies 5
6 Libya
Morocco

Angola Ethiopia
Morocco

Ethiopia

7 Tunisia Sudan Kenya Kenya

8 DRC Kenya Ghana Ghana

9 Cote d'Ivoire Ethiopia Tanzania Angola

10 Tanzania Ghana Cote d'Ivoire

9
Total African African GDP Breakdown by country

GDP 2021 Mozambique

Rwanda
Nigeria

estimated at
Gabon
Zambia
Libya

USD 2.7 Trillion

18%
Sudan
Tunisia

(IMF) Uganda
Cameroon
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Côte d'Ivoire 16% South Africa
Tanzania

Africa Angola

contributes Ghana

Ethiopia

only 3% to
15%
18%
Kenya 6%
Egypt

Global GDP Morocco

Algeria

10
5 African countries have GDPs of over $100
billion in 2021 – representing 61% of total African
GDP
African GDP Breakdown by country GDP Billion USD

Nigeria,
Rest of 18%
Africa, 39%
South
Africa, 16%

Egypt, 15%

Morocco,
5% Algeria, 6%

11
 Egypt, Nigeria
& South Africa
dominate
consistently in
Africa GDP
rankings
• All three have diversified
economies and large
populations
• Stable political systems
• Economies relatively resilient
over long term
Challenges Lie Ahead
• Africa GDP contracted by 1.6% in 2020
but rebounded by 6.9% in 2021
• Projected growth will fall to 4.1% in 2022
and 2023 – but fundamentals remain
strong
• African economies are being negatively
impacted by various factors including:
• Covid-19 pandemic continuing impact
• Climate change
• Slowing global economy exacerbated by
geo-political tensions mainly war in
Ukraine
Source: African Economic Outlook 2022

13
III. Country
Summaries
Common Factors among biggest African
Economies

Large populations High % of youth

Emerging middle class –

and increasing levels of Diversified economic
homegrown base
consumption

Rich natural resources, Important export

especially petroleum commodities – minerals,
and natural gas agricultural goods
15
 Nigeria
Population 206M • Largest population in Africa – nearly 200
million
Area, sq km 910,770 • Powerhouse economy
• Abundant natural resources
GDP per capita US$ 2,097 • Rich agriculture sector – accounting for 18%
of national GDP
• 1st in Africa in terms of farm output
• Biggest exports:
– Oil
– Cocoa
– Rubber
• Economy is vulnerable to fluctuations in
world commodity prices

https://knoema.com/atlas/Nigeria 16
 Nigeria

https://www.afdb.org/en/countries-west-africa-nigeria/nigeria-economic-outlook
17
Egypt
• One of largest populations in
Africa at 100M
• Usually ranks as 2nd or 3rd
strongest African economy
• Diversified economy including
– Petroleum and natural gas
– Exports Population 102M
– Tourism
– Wholesale and Retail Trade Area, sq km 995,450
– Construction and Real Estate
• Over 32.5 % of the population are
GDP per capita US$ 3,548
living below poverty line
• https://knoema.com/atlas/Egypt
18 18
Egypt

19
Population 59M
Area, sq km 41,213,090
GDP per capita US$ 5,091
• https://knoema.com/atlas/South-Africa
South Africa
• Economy is always ranked in top 3 African
Economies
• Most industrialized, technologically
advanced and diversified economy in
Africa
• One of the fastest growing economies in
the world
• Main economic activities:
– Mining
– Manufacturing
– Financial services
– Tourism
• Abundant natural resources making it one
of the world’s largest exporters of gold,
diamonds, platinum and iron ore
20
https://www.afdb.org/en/countries/southern-africa/south-africa/south-africa-economic-outlook

South Africa
21
Algeria
• Algeria is the largest country in the
continent by landmass
• Economy mainly driven b y oil and
gas sector – therefore vulnerable to
global oil demand/prices
• Major contributors by sector include:
– Agriculture (33.3 %)
– Industry (39.3 %)
– Services (47.4 %) Population 44M
• Main export goods include petroleum,
natural gas and petroleum products. Area, sq km 2,381,741
• Hydrocarbons (oil and gas) make up
almost 70 % of the country’s revenue
GDP per capita US$ 3,310
• Political uncertainty and social unrest
continuing risks
• https://knoema.com/atlas/Egypt
22 22
https://www.afdb.org/en/countries-north-africa-algeria/algeria-economic-outlook

Algeria
23
Population 40M Morocco
• Stable and resilient economy
Area, sq km 446,300
• 2nd richest non-oil producing country in Africa
• Major contributors to the GDP:
GDP per capita US$ 3,009 – Agriculture (14.8 %)
– Industry (29.1 %)
– Services (56 %).
• Economy is driven by mining and
manufacturing
• 3rd largest producer of phosphorus in the
world
• Diversified exports including
– Electrical equipment
– Automobile parts,
– Aircraft parts,
– Inorganic chemicals,
– Citrus fruits,
– Fish

• https://knoema.com/atlas/South-Africa 24
 Morocco

https://www.afdb.org/en/countries/north-africa/morocco/morocco-economic-outlook
25
THANK YOU

26