Why Africa is Poor by George Ayittey

Africa's deteriorating economic situation is baffling. The continent's untapped mineral wealth is immense. It has "40 percent of the world's potential hydroelectric power supply; the bulk of the world's diamonds and chromium; 30 percent of the uranium in the non-communist world; 50 percent of the world's gold; 90 percent of its cobalt; 50 percent of its phosphates; 40 percent of its platinum; 7.5 percent of its coal; 8 percent of its known petroleum reserves; 12 percent of its natural gas; 3 per cent of its iron ore; and millions upon millions of acres of untilled farmland. There is not another continent blessed with such abundance and diversity" (Lamb, 1983, 20). Angola, for example, "contains an estimated 11 percent of the world's known reserves of diamonds. Its diamonds are stunning: at an average price of about $140 a carat, with some reaching $350, they are second in quality only to Namibia's, and more than 12 times more valuable than Australia's" (The Economist, 14 September 1996, 68).

In addition, Africa has 64 percent of the world's manganese, 13 percent of its copper, and vast bauxite, nickel and lead resources. It also accounts for 70 percent of cocoa, 60 percent of coffee, 50 percent of palm oil, and 20 percent of the total petroleum traded in the world market, excluding the United States and Russia. The tourism potential of Africa is enormous. Unrivaled wildlife, scenic grandeur and pristine ecology constitute Africa's third great natural resource after agriculture and mineral wealth. Yet, paradoxically, a continent with such abundance and potential is inexorably mired in steaming squalor, misery, deprivation, and chaos. “Instead of being exploited for the benefit of the people, Africa’s mineral resources have been so mismanaged and plundered that they are now the source of our misery,” said the United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan at the July OAU Summit in Lome (Daily Graphic, July 12, 2000; p. 5).

Africa's economic performance remains dismal and prospects for the new millennium are bleak. The continent, consisting of 54 countries, is the least developed region of the Third World despite its vast mineral wealth and natural resources. Indices of Africa's development performance have lagged persistently behind those of other Third World regions. For example, in 1997, GDP per capita for Africa was $560, compared to $4,230 for Latin America and $730 for Asia. Economic growth rates in Africa in the 1970s averaged only 4 to 5 percent while Latin America recorded a 6 and 7 percent growth rate. From 1986 to 1993 the continent's real GNP per capita declined 0.7 percent, while the average for the Third World increased by 2.7 percent. For all of Africa, real income per capita dropped by 14.6 percent from its level in 1965, making most Africans worse off than they were at independence. “Four out of 10 Africans live in absolute poverty and recent evidence suggests that poverty is on the increase . . . If Africa wants to reduce poverty by half over the next 15 years, it needs to ......

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Source: Free Africa Foundation