GB502 Week 1 Responses

Evelyn Baxter

Define Sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is located south of the Saharan Desert and comprised of around 46 countries. The population is growing and is estimated to reach 2 billion by 2050. The area is diverse in climate and culture, there are multiple ecosystems such as the savanna and the tropical rainforest. The population of Sub-Saharan Africa speak over 1,000 languages. (Pariona, 2017) Identify the top five economic performers in the SSA region using the following key measures.

public institutions clear property rights strong judicial independence infrastructure education/innovation efficient government. The top five economic countries in SSA are Angola, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, and Tanzania. (Focus Economics, 2021) Angola has a literacy rate of 71.1% with most over the age of 15 can read and write. Angola has had a high urbanization rate with a GDP of $97B. A large portion of their GDP comes from oil and diamonds. (The World Factbook, 2021)

Ethiopia is the second largest populated country in Africa with most of its GDP coming from agriculture such as coffee. The growth of Ethiopia's economy was due to investment in infrastructure. (The World Factbook, 2021)

Ghana has a literacy rate of around 77% higher then most African countries but has a GDP of $65B. Ghana like most African countries is plagued by government corruption due to trade in diamonds and gold. (The World Factbook, 2021)

Kenya has a three part government system, Executive, Legislative, and Judicial. While Kenya has dealt with government corruption it has put into place an independent organization to reduce such actions. Kenya has a $95B GDP with most coming from the service industry however, Kenya has a 40% unemployment rate. (The World Factbook, 2021)

Tanzania is the largest most populated country in East Africa with a GDP of $71B. The Fair Competition Commission has process in place to protect intellectual property yet counterfeiters are amassed in Africa. Foreign companies need to register their trademarks, property, and patents through local laws, protection is not guaranteed. (Tanzania country commercial guide, 2021)   Now that you have researched the key measures, take on the role of a consultant. The SSA economy managers have asked you which of the key measures can be improved. Identify two key measures that can be improved. Infrastructure and education are two of the biggest issues in SSA. Education has been shown to increase creativity and therefore production process. Infrastructure such as buildings and roads make travel easier which translates to cargo getting to from point A to point B more efficiently increasing economic gain. Provide at least one persuasive recommendation for each key measure. By increasing funds to education, the population will be better prepared in various careers and with an increase in population the workforce will be large. Better educated individuals who have high paying jobs poor money into the economy. An increase in the economy will allow the government to push for better infrastructure which will return investments to the population hence these issues should be tackled first. References Focus Economics. (2021). Economic snapshot for Sub-Saharan Africa. Retrieved from  https://www.focus-economics.com/regions/sub-saharan-africa (Links to an external site.) Pariona, A. (2017). Where is Sub-Saharan Africa? Retrieved from  https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/where-is-sub-saharan-africa.html (Links to an external site.)

Tanzania country commercial guide. (2021). Retrieved from https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/tanzania-protecting-intellectual-property

The World Factbook. (2021). Angola. Retrieved from  https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/angola/