Manufacturing share of African GDP falling

Interesting piece.  In fact, Africa's agricultural and manufacturing GDP is falling. These realities should also be considered in light of the long standing WTO negotiations on agriculture and  non agricultural products. 
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Africa is uncompetitive, insufficiently export-driven, and situated too far from the world's main markets, argues economist Tony Hawkins.

"Africa has not been industrializing; it has de-industrialised. Since the 1990s, the GDP share of the continent's manufacturing sector has declined and now accounts for about 10% of the continent's GDP," said Tony Hawkins, economist and professor at the graduate school of management at the University of Zimbabwe.

"Over 60% of the industrial output from the whole of sub-Saharan Africa is generated in one country - SA."

"Asia's manufacturing industry, on the other hand, is growing fast. One of the reasons is that the industry in this part of the world is export-driven. In Asia, manufacturing accounts for 70% of the continent's total annual exports. In Africa, this is 20%," he said.

One of the reasons why Africa would not able to compete with China lay in the market it produced for. "Africa is manufacturing goods for their own, local markets," he added.

Africa is a small and poor market, with a low demand for high-tech products and a high demand for cheap goods. The problem is that the market for cheap goods is growing much slower than the high-tech markets the Asian manufacturing industries are producing for.

Let's not forget that Asia also produces cheap products for the export market and these are much more inexpensive compared with the goods made in Africa. They are often of a better quality. This hampers Africa's competitiveness.

Another major disadvantage was Africa's geographical location, Hawkins noted. Many African countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, are situated far away from the world's major markets such as Europe, Asia and Latin America. Exporting goods to these parts of the world requires high transport costs.

"Asia in this respect has taught us that having a competitive advantage globally no longer depends on natural resources and cheap labour," Hawkins continued. "It is about knowledge, strategic locations, and skills - among other things."

The situation in Africa could change for the better, he noted: "But only if African governments invest in their manufacturing industries and make them more competitive while upgrading the continent's export structures to overseas markets."