Report says Malawi among ‘best performing’ economies, JB upbeat
President Joyce Banda has said reports that Malawi will be among five best performing countries in the next five years should unite all Malawians in the New Year, 2014 to sustain the status quo so that deep-rooted poverty among the masses is reduced significantly.
“I have just learnt that the international auditing firm Ernst & Young has projected that Malawi will among five African economies whose GDP growth from 2012-2017 will be significantly high. This is good news and a recipe for working even harder, together, as Malawians.
“I wish to encourage unity of purpose among all of us regardless of differences in political, religious and other beliefs,” said President Banda at Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe on departure for Nigeria.
According to Ernst & Young’s 2013 Competitive Survey, the projected GDP growth from 2012-2017 identify Malawi, Mozambique, Angola, Ethiopia and Zambia as economies that will outperform others, reports ventures-africa.com.
Malawi tops the list with an expected GDP growth during this period of 7 percent and followed closely by Mozambique at 6.8 percent economic growth.
In the third place is Angola with the projected GDP growth of 6.5 percent in the next six years. Ethiopia’s GDP growth is expected to be 6.3 percent while Zambia is expected to grow its GDP by 6.2 percent.
Despite the negative impact of global economic crises, the size of the African economy has more than tripled since 2000, according to Ernst & Young. The continent also holds bright prospects, with many countries in Africa set to continue recording high economic growth levels in the future.
According to the International Business Times website, the number of Africans living in the cities has surged dramatically and it could soon surpass that of India, which is considered to be the leader at this stage. It is believed that in the next 16 years, half of all Africans will be living in the cities. It is also understood that Africa’s middle class is set to be bigger than that of India.
Ventures-africa.com reports that according to the African Economic Outlook, Malawi’s economic growth in 2013 and next year is forecast to bounce back to 5.5 percent and 6.1 percent respectively.
“The state has renewed its commitment to credible macroeconomic policies. Good governance has prompted the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to approve a new Enhanced Credit Facility (ECF) programme for the country. This has led to the reopening of donor financial back-up to Malawi,” reports venture-africa.com.
In her Christmas and New Year Message broadcast on state radio and television, the President noted that united efforts have helped to lay strong foundations for the country to heal and move towards sustainable growth.
“Our united efforts have put the economy on a growth path to end poverty and unemployment,” she said.
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