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ORGANIZATION MAKES THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN POVERTY AND PROSPERITY

Last delivery exposed why sub-Saharan African countries - SSA - decision makers need to think about an alternative strategy after the failure of successive WTO's rounds of negotiations at Seattle, Doha and Cancun.

This issue continue discussing the matter. It briefly reviews the state of the economy in sub-Saharan African countries to point out the need for a change of strategy to bridging the developing gap.

Organization, proper developing scheme and the strategy used to performing the scheme makes the difference between poverty and prosperity. This is true either for an individual, a community or a nation. In any poor country of the world, entrepreneurs, farmers and traders are examples that poverty is not a fatality. These people organized themselves to becoming prosperous despite adverse conditions.

To uproot poverty and move towards general prosperity to be enjoyed by every class of society, a suitable development strategy should be devised and implemented in SSA countries. Otherwise, all development efforts would end without any noticeable result, not to speak of failure.

That is obvious and is what SSA countries are experiencing right now at the beginning of the new millennium.

Size of the Economy in World's Regions in 1999
	Population Millions	Density per sq. km	GNP Billions of US$	GNP Average Annual Growth Rate	GNP Per Capita US$	GNP Per Capita Annual Growth Rate	GNP Per PPP US$
High Income	891	29	22,921.3	2.6	25.730	2.1	24.430
Low and Middle income	5,084	91	6,310.8	2.9	1.240	1.4	3.410
SSA	642	27	320.8	2.0	500	-0.3	1.450
East Asia and Pacific	1,837	115	1,832.6	7.2	1.000	6	3.500
South Asia	1,329	278	581.1	6.2	440	4.2	2.030
Europe and Central Asia	475	20	1,022.2	0.0	2.150	-01	5.580
Middle East and North Africa	291	26	599.3	-	2.060	-	4.600
Latin America and Caribbean	509	25	1,954.9	-0.9	3.840	-2.4	6.280
World	5,975	46	29,232.1	2.7	4.890	1.3	6.490
Source: Compiled From World Bank World Development Reports Since 1980

Sub-Saharan Africa's governments did carried out, since the beginning of the independence era in the 1960's, economic development schemes.

However, Mauritius, Botswana and the Seychelles are the only success stories. Other SSA countries - (except for South Africa; which is a particular case study) - are still struggling to survive - four decades after gaining independence. They have sluggish and shaky economies, high-level of unemployment - 20 to 60% of the populations are jobless

So, what is amiss? Why all these development schemes - including Structural Adjustment Programs - failed triggering a steady annual economic growth rate with the capacity to reducing poverty? That is the question.

GROWTH RATE BELOW 10% IS NOT ENOUGH

Even a huge influx of money injected into the economy - Ghana standing as example, which received 9 (nine) billions of US$ between 1989 and 1998 - did not have tangible leverage on jobs' creation and wealth's building. The annual evolution of both remained low and stagnant. This happened because the right economic development schemes were not devised and carried out.

Data listed in Table above -about the respective size of the economy in world's regions - revealed that SSA countries' per capita GNP's annual growth rate is negative (- 0.3) in year 1999 - see Column 7, Line 4. Further, it remained near zero for the past twenty years as by following figure, which shows that year 1999 is not an exception in bad performance.

Indeed, the per capita GNP in sub-Saharan African countries remained in average low and constant - around US$ 500 - over 20 years running.

World's Developing Regions' per Capita GNP - 1980-2000 - Source World Bank's Reports -

It is obvious a continued bad performance of the economy as above reported cannot help reducing poverty in any SSA country. In the contrary, political fights to controlling States' meager financial resources would increase to creating instability and conditions for civil wars - as already occurring in several SSA countries.

The only way to put a stop to the looming disaster is to start planning for and carrying out development schemes, which create jobs and build wealth on a steady manner.

For forty-five years, since the 1960's, economic development schemes performed in SSA countries - with or without Structural Adjustment Programs - failed to create jobs to cope with the annual increase of the populations. They also failed to build up wealth for all. Forty-five years of persistent "failure" allows one to draw the conclusion that 1% to 10% annual economic growth rate - achieved by SSA countries - is not enough for the take off. The reasons will be further discussed in next delivery.

"CONTRIBUTOR'S GUIDELINES" are available here. We invite you to contribute to AFRICABIZ ONLINE MONTHLY ISSUE - with articles related to "How Africa Could Bridge The Developing Gap".

Many thanks for subscribing to Africabiz. See you on December 15, 2003.

Dr. B.M. Quenum
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Business Opportunities

TROPICAL ROOTS AND TUBERS PART II: ROOTS AND TUBERS ARE ECONOMIC CATALYSTS

Rare are industrial concerns established in SSA countries that transform Cassava into value added products - as reported in the diagram available here.

On the online monthly page of AFRICABIZ are listed four processed cassava's products, which highlight the fact that cassava could be an important components - an Economic Catalyst - to the Integrated Economic Development Scheme

MORE ON ROOTS AND TUBERS
1- Roots & Tubers Market in Qatar 2- Roots & Tubers Market in Europe 3- Food Security: In Sub-Saharan Africa In Latin America and the Caribbean 4- Roots and Tubers: A Vegetable Cookbook by Kyle D. Fulwiler 5- Tuber Crops by N. M. Nayar	6- Roots, Tubers, Plantains and Bananas in Animal Feeding Proceedings of the Fao Expert Consultation Held in Ciat, Cali, Colombia 21-25 January 1991 7- Pest Management for Tropical Roots & Tubers Workshop on the Global Status of and Prospects 8- The Tropical Tuber Crops Yam, Cassava, Sweet Potato, and Cocoyams by I. Chukuma Onwueme

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