9 (OneWorld.net) - two contrasting stories on the fragile economic development of Africa will face them heads of State gathering in Turkey for a critical United Nations Conference on "Less advanced countries of the world" which begins today.
At the Economic Forum on Africa that held in Cape Town, leading politicians and the development banks Friday painted a picture of the dynamic economic recovery, positioning of the continent as more exciting destination for investments of foreign companies.
Preparatory documents for the LDC Conference tell a very different story. Figures for poverty and hunger in Africa are rising rather than falling. And rich countries are accused of failing to control the unstable global economic and environmental conditions that inflict unfair setbacks on the most vulnerable economies.
These points of view remained in the World Economic Forum background where a study published by the African Development Bank said investors commercial potential in what they most wanted to hear. A new middle class is emerging in Africa.
The AfDB puts this figure "in the neighbourhood of 300 to 500 million people", a potential market for consumer goods which can not ignore the commercial interests. "Africa's emerging middle class includes approximately the size of the middle class in India or China," says the report, entitled "" in the middle of the pyramid: Dynamics of the middle class in Africa. ""
The World Bank has lent his authority to the conclusions. Interviewed by Overseas Development Institute of the United Kingdom, Chief Economist of the Bank Africa, Shanta Devarajan, said: "there is a feeling of optimism about Africa and the private sector at the Forum, with the delegates, referring to Africa as a destination of choice."
This photo of the investor-friendly is consistent with anecdotal of business travelers. The work of the major cities of Africa Environment begin to converge with global standards, while there is no shortage of young African business ready to do business.
A note of caution at the World Economic Forum event was sounded by the Africa Progress Panel, a high-level research and group chaired by former Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. Africa report published last week, annual of the group, described the recovery of the continent as "" low quality.... growth strongly dependent on the export of primary sources generally non-processed products. ""
The official entry of African Governments to the LDC Conference contains more explicit reservations, devoid of rhetoric of eldorado of the Cape. Their verdict which warned: "improving economic performance in the African LDCs has not contributed to earnings proportionate to the reduction of poverty."
African paper also notes that the State chaotic food world and of the energy markets, combined with the impact of climate change, is such that "hunger remains pervasive in many LDCs of Africa".
Held every ten years, the United Nations Conference on the least developed countries will review progress since the previous Brussels event in 2001. It also renewed commitment of the international community to the special needs of LDCs endeavour made to various conferences of the United Nations and summits in the course of recent years. Of the 48 countries falling within the classification of the LDC, 33 are in Africa.
According to this analysis by the Governments of the African LDC fresh optimism about an emerging middle class should be tempered by the rural economic realities. The majority of Africans live and work in the communities where agriculture remains taken trapped in a primitive State, with only 3% of land benefiting from agricultural irrigation.
Despite international commitments to the Millennium development goals, the number of people living in extreme poverty in Africa has increased over the Decade of 270 million to more than 300 million dollars. This was the conclusion of the 2011 of rural poverty report, published by the Fund International of the United Nations for agricultural development (IFAD).
The challenge for the economic development of Africa more inclusive is to break down the barriers between the embryonic urban consumers and poor agricultural communities. African leaders more articulate a vision of agriculture as a business proposition, attract investment and to persuade the young generation do step to migrate to the cities.
It is the vital question for the Minister of agriculture South Africa, Tina Joemat-Pettersson. "If they remain on the farm, the future of smallholder farmers be at the forefront of innovative, intensive agriculture of knowledge," she said in a debate on the report of IFAD in Cape Town.
The LDC Conference is likely to see a shift of emphasis away from potential private investment to the responsibilities of the richest Governments to honour their commitments to Africa. The story focused on the poverty of Africa's fortunes be important once more in Istanbul this week.
* More than information:
Africa Progress Panel highlights the economic recovery of the continent
OneWorld Global Poverty Guide
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