UNCTAD’s latest policy brief identifies the rising productivity of capital in Africa as an important characteristic of recent growth and offers policy recommendations on how to sustain and improve upon the progress that has been made in this area.

As a result of Africa’s relatively good economic performance over the past two decades, there is the view that the continent has reached a turning point in its development history and is poised to play a more significant role in the world economy in the medium to long term. Yet not much is known about the nature and character of the continent’s recent growth.

This policy brief identifies the rising productivity of capital in Africa as an important characteristic of recent growth that has not been discussed in the literature and offers policy recommendations on how to sustain and improve upon the progress that has been made in this area.

Key points:

• Africa’s recent growth has gone hand in hand with a significant increase in the productivity of capital.

• The productivity of capital in Africa in the period 2000-2011 was much higher than those of developing countries in America and slightly higher than those of Asia.

• Although there has been an improvement in the efficiency of total investment, compared to the private sector the efficiency of public investment is still relatively low.

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The ideas and issues discussed in this policy brief are based on information in the UNCTAD Economic Development in Africa Report 2014: Catalysing Investment for Transformative Growth in Africa.