Why African competition lags
AN AFRICA report by economists has concluded that weak transport infrastructure, including ports, is a major factor preventing the continent from becoming more competitive.
The report – compiled by the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the World Economic Forum – was prepared for the World Economic Forum on Africa, which is under way in Cape Town.
Inland transport costs should be addressed via advances in infrastructure and deregulation, it found. A road transport network to move goods inland from ports – acting to link stronger economies such as Nigeria and South Africa – could increase trade by $250Bn in 15 years, the report found.
That would stimulate shipping demand, but such a network remains a distant prospect, the economists noted.