Unless otherwise indicated, the report is based on data and estimates provided by the staff of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), used for the April 2023 World Economic Outlook (WEO). The 45 Sub-Saharan African countries studied are classified into three distinct groups: oil exporters, other resource-intensive countries, and non-resource-intensive countries.
The data used conform, as far as possible, to the rules of internationally recognized statistical methods, but the scope of international comparisons might sometimes be limited by certain data gaps.
Despite the $50 billion in financing provided by the IMF between 2020 and 2022, sub-Saharan Africa is facing a shortage of funding in a worrying regional economic context:
However, the situation is not homogeneous. On the one hand, countries that are not dependent on natural resources could see an upturn in growth, however modest (mainly the countries of the East African Community). On the other hand, countries with significant economic weight may be dragging down the regional average by slowing economic growth (notably South Africa).
To offset the macroeconomic imbalances that are undermining the region, the IMF has identified four priority areas for action:
💡 To complement the report, three analysis notes explore current issues in sub-Saharan Africa. Firstly, « Geoeconomic Fragmentation » discusses the adverse consequences for the region of an increasingly fragmented world, and calls for a strengthening of countries’ resilience. Then, « Managing Exchange Rate Pressures » describes the factors behind pressures on regional exchange rates, and considers solutions for preserving African economies. Finally, « Closing the Gap » focuses on concessional climate financing.
