The African Development Bank (AfDB) has advised Nigeria and other African countries to engage in global value chain system as a viable opportunity and strategy that could help them achieve strong, sustained and inclusive growth as well as structural transformation.
This is a key argument of the 2014 African Economic Outlook, the flagship annual publication of the bank launched on Thursday in Abuja. Ousmane Dore, AfDB country director in Nigeria, said at the launch that global value chain would allow Africa to set up new and more productive activities that drive structural transformation.
The outlook has the theme, ‘Global Value Chains and Africa’s Industrialisation,’ and was chosen based on the conviction that global value chains hold high promise for boosting employment and a structural transformation on the continent.
The report notes that currently, Africa captures a small but growing share of trade in global value chains, with sectors integrating differently. The continent’s share in global trade in value added grew from 1.4 percent in 1995 to just 2.2 percent in 2011.
AfDB is concerned that for instance, Africa’s exports to the rest of the world grew faster than those of any other region in 2012, but the continent’s participation in global value chain is currently limited to lower value activities although opportunities exist for upgrading to higher ones.
But the bank strongly argues that more efficient participation in regional and global value chains could serve as a springboard for Africa in economic diversification, domestic resource mobilisation and investments in critical infrastructure.
