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Cape Town - Africa has little room to change the one-dimensional nature of its trade ties and use its new-found growth to create jobs and alleviate poverty, according to the 2011 Africa Progress Report released on Thursday.
The emergence of non-European trade partners, notably China, has not changed the fact that the continent mainly exports raw materials and imports manufactured goods, it said.
"Africa's current economic growth is not all positive. It is generally not accompanied by much-needed structural transformation and diversification," said the report released at the World Economic Forum meeting.
"The problem is caused, driven and compounded by the poor quality of Africa's economic relationships, with both Africa and other countries.
"Despite the increasing prominence of non-European partners, and China in particular, the disadvantageous pattern of Africa exporting unprocessed commodities and importing manufactured goods persists.
"In fact it is becoming ever more entrenched as the resource thirst of emerging partners continues to grow."
The report said with the channelling of foreign direct investment mainly to mining, the Doha Development Round unresolved and protectionist measures unbroken, Africa "has little opportunity to resolve this pattern and drive much-needed economic transformation through trade diversification".
Moreover, intra-African trade continues to account for only 10% of exports and is too weak to be an incentive for changing trade patterns.
The lack of diversification in products and partners made African trade volatile and explained why the continent's gross domestic product growth did not translate into tangible improvement in people's lives.
"Driven by capital-intensive extractive sectors, the current type of economic growth has little positive impact on employment and income levels and virtually no effect on employment intensive sectors such as agriculture."
The emergence of non-European trade partners, notably China, has not changed the fact that the continent mainly exports raw materials and imports manufactured goods, it said.
"Africa's current economic growth is not all positive. It is generally not accompanied by much-needed structural transformation and diversification," said the report released at the World Economic Forum meeting.
"The problem is caused, driven and compounded by the poor quality of Africa's economic relationships, with both Africa and other countries.
"Despite the increasing prominence of non-European partners, and China in particular, the disadvantageous pattern of Africa exporting unprocessed commodities and importing manufactured goods persists.
"In fact it is becoming ever more entrenched as the resource thirst of emerging partners continues to grow."
The report said with the channelling of foreign direct investment mainly to mining, the Doha Development Round unresolved and protectionist measures unbroken, Africa "has little opportunity to resolve this pattern and drive much-needed economic transformation through trade diversification".
Moreover, intra-African trade continues to account for only 10% of exports and is too weak to be an incentive for changing trade patterns.
The lack of diversification in products and partners made African trade volatile and explained why the continent's gross domestic product growth did not translate into tangible improvement in people's lives.
"Driven by capital-intensive extractive sectors, the current type of economic growth has little positive impact on employment and income levels and virtually no effect on employment intensive sectors such as agriculture."
