Only 10% of imports come from another African country and only 17% of exports are going somewhere in Africa. I believe that our latest research says that Africa trades much more with the rest of the world than it does with its neighbors. So Africa really comes with its sort of free trade ambition at this very time where things are changing. And therefore, it can really carve for itself much more independence if it does the right things.
Cohost Janet Bush talks with Carlos Lopes. He is a professor in the Mandela School of Public Governance at the University of Cape Town. He’s also an affiliate professor at Sciences Po, Paris, an associate fellow in the Africa Program at Chatham House, and a member of the African Union reform team. Lopes was the policy director for UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and executive secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa. He serves as an advisor on MGI’s research on Africa, including our latest report, which discusses the continent’s human capital and natural resources and how they can help to accelerate productivity and reimagine Africa’s economic growth. His views are his own. In this podcast, he covers topics including the following:
- The factors constraining Africa’s potential
- The promise of AI for Africa
- The threat and opportunity of climate change for Africa
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