Towards a better socio-economic development approach for Africa’s renewal

Abstract

This paper contends that Africa remains behind other continents with regards to human development and other related measures of socio-economic development. It questions the celebrated economic growth in African countries and posits that there has actually not been much progress in Africa and that the continent might have regressed. The narrative that ‘Africa is rising’ ignores the ongoing global economic meltdown which has had a negative impact on the growth of African economies. Most importantly, the majority of those countries which managed to achieve higher growth levels suffer from high levels of socio-economic and political hardship, which is reflected in endemic poverty, struggles for daily existence, economic and social inequalities as well as various cleavages. The paper concludes that further improvements on the policy environment in the African continent would go a long way towards inclusive development. It recommends that African countries should ensure that growth is sustainable and could translate into welfare improvements, and that African countries should adapt the developmental state framework that could guarantee that African countries further develop socially and economically. The lasting solution to Africa’s socio-economic problems could, however, be found in a new or different socio-economic development approach/model – proposed in the paper – that is informed by an African economic renaissance paradigm.