By TesfaNews,
Eritrea was the second fastest growing economies in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) last year, according to a new International Monetary Fund report. According to the report, five of the 20 projected fastest-growing countries in 2011 were in Africa.
Ghana leads the list at 13.5 percent followed by Eritrea by 8.2 percent. It lists the other fastest growing SSA economies as Ethiopia (7.5%), Mozambique (7.2%), Rwanda, Nigeria, Angola, DR Congo, Zambia and Botswana.
“Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa remained robust in 2011 at 4.9 per cent. Excluding South Africa, which accounts for over a third of the region’s GDP, growth in the rest of the region was even stronger at 5.9 per cent in 2011, making it one of the fastest growing developing regions,” reads part of the report.
With hundreds of millions of dollars worth investment made on the purchase of thousands of machineries earlier this year, the dynamics of the Eritrean economy for 2012 will beat anyone’s expectations. With the added determination from the Eritrean government, the economy is expected to show a significant boost this year as long as the expansion and maximization of agricultural yields along with the mining and construction booms maintained their momentum.
Another report by the World Bank, however, warns of economic shocks in 2012 that will be more severe than those experienced during the previous global financial and economic crisis.
“Increased investment flows, rising consumer spending, and the coming on stream of new mineral exports in a number of countries should accelerate Sub-Saharan Africa’s growth to 5.3 per cent in 2012 and 5.6 per cent in 2013. Nonetheless, merchandise exports, tourism receipts, commodity prices, foreign direct investment and remittances are all susceptible to a Euro Area recession,” it further notes.
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