Given that industrialisation is the pathway to sustainable development, it is important to critically understand where Africa – and indeed sub-Saharan Africa – finds itself as a world region in this regard, and why. The 2016 Mo Ibrahim Foundation Report on 10 years of governance on the continent highlights two startling facts: not only is Africa currently the most unequal region on the planet, it is also the poorest producer on the planet. Africa today has the lowest manufacturing share in GDP growth among all emerging market regions. Despite the continent’s strong exports of minerals and oil in previous decades, its sluggish pace of industrialisation and beneficiation has resulted in the region’s shrinking share in world trade.1 Africa’s exports, as a share of the world’s total, have dropped from around 4.0% in 1970 to 2.45% in 2014. This is in stark contrast to emerging Asia’s share, which rose from around 3.0% to over 20% in this same period.3
Jonathan Rowland
Editor
Jonathan joined Palladian in 2007, after studying at the University of Manchester. He took on the role of Editor of World Cement in January 2017 after seven years as Editor of World Coal. He also launched Dry Bulk in 2016 - a new publication covering the global trade and transportation of dry bulk commodities.
Outside of the office, Jonathan spends most of his time running after his two daughters. He also enjoys following his home football (soccer) team, Leicester City, and the England and Wales Cricket Team.
