Trade Diversification for Africa

The countries of sub-Saharan Africa have shows comparatively higher growth in GDP in the last few years in spite of the effects of the financial crisis. Understandably, this has created a lot of confidence in the overall managers and governments of the countries in the continent. As it is, the view is that growth of 5% annually shows that the countries are doing something well and have managed to overcome the effects of the financial crisis which has crystallized into a general economic crisis in Europe and the US. 

Due to the state of affairs in Africa, nobody would envy the continent of this new growth momentum but still be cautious about its prospects in the medium term. African countries in the early 1960s experienced growth rates akin to what is seen today and failed to maintain that for the medium term. Writing in The Root, Njaramba Gikunju addresses the background issues while covering the later realization by sub-Saharan African governments that they would suffer secondary effects of the crisis. What is less convincing and demonstrably false in that article is that trade with China as replacement for European export markets would be Africa's main avenue for maintaining growth and escape from poverty. 

To my mind, the continent of Africa gets lots of inappropriate advise but it is inconceivable that Chinese investments and trade opportunities alone would lift the continent's people out of poverty. Africa's main problem in trade is that it has a small portfolio of products to ship out and that these are primarily commodities. Trading the same with China, Brazil or India does not in guarantee faster growth in itself. trade diversification goes both in terms of new destinations for imports and exports in addition to diversification of products. It is not one or the other.