By 2050, the continent is estimated to be home to 2.5 billion people and a market with a combined business and consumer spending of $16.12 trillion.The report titled “A New Era for Global Business and Investment in Africa” lists four high-potential sectors that hold lucrative opportunities for companies looking to invest in Africa.
These sectors are automotive, agriculture and agro-processing, pharmaceuticals, and transport and logistics, which are all expected to see rapid growth in terms of production and trade volumes under AfCFTA.
“Given that South Africa is the most industrialised and sophisticated economy in Africa, it is well positioned to take advantage of opportunities presented by AfCFTA. The development of the free trade area will require massive investment in logistics and telecommunications infrastructure to reduce the cost of doing business and enable free movement of people, goods and services,” explains Ntombela.
With the green energy transition and digital transition in full motion around the world, the delegation that represented South Africa at WEF2023 expressed support for calls to reskill and upskill workforces, particularly the youth, to prepare them for future workplaces and to mitigate job losses.
The delegation is impressed by the progress made by the WEF’s Reskilling Revolution; an initiative launched in 2020 to empower 1 billion people. So far, the initiative has reached 350 million people.
Climate change also took centre stage at WEF with world leaders and business executives committing themselves to supporting the implementation of the Paris Agreement, which calls on all countries to cut carbon emissions to limit global warming to around 1.5 degrees celsius and strive towards attaining net zero emissions by 2050.
This commitment requires countries and businesses to move away from using fossil fuel energy sources like coal and crude oil and adopting clean and environmentally friendly energy sources such as wind and solar power.
The launch of the new Coalition of Trade Ministers on Climate, which brings together over 50 countries, was also a highlight of this year’s WEF annual meeting.
The coalition aims to tackle climate change by promoting trade and investment that encourages adoption of goods, services, and technologies that mitigate climate change in both developed and developing countries.
“However, the global challenges that were highlighted at WEF 2023 cannot be resolved in a fragmented world in which countries are pulling in different directions. These challenges require collaboration and unity by the nations of the world, where counties are working together to find solutions in an integrated global economy,” concludes Ntombela.