From this page, you can learn more about the AICD findings specific to each sector. The AICD findings offer resources and cutting edge knowledge on each individual sector that can help evaluate past performance and guide future investments.
Africa has seen strong growth in air traffic in recent years, but regional disparities are immense. A poor safety record is the largest challenge plaguing the sector today. Air traffic control and surveillance facilities require substantial upgrading.
Since the mid-1990s, Africa has seen dramatic growth in access to telecom services. Most of that growth can be chalked up to the wireless revolution. Broadband Internet is not yet widely available, and regional cooperation is needed to expand bandwidth.
Africa is an agricultural continent, but its agricultural productivity is the lowest in the world. The 5 percent of Africa’s cultivated land that is irrigated accounts for 20 percent of agricultural production, pointing the way to greater food security.
Cargo volumes in Africa’s ports have tripled over the past decade. Further growth will require additional investments. Many ports are poorly equipped and inefficiently operated. Wider adoption of the landlord port model would improve performance.
About 30 African countries face chronic power problems that seriously hamper growth and productivity. Fixing the problem requires investments of about $41 billion a year. More regional trade and greater operational efficiency are key parts of the solution.
The economic significance of African railroads has declined over the last 30 years with economic liberalization and improvements in highway infrastructure. Concessioning has improved rail performance but not enough to pay for needed rehabilitation.
Tremendous progress has been made in establishing institutions to manage and maintain roads, but still only one in three rural Africans has access to an all-season road. Unable to reach urban markets, millions are trapped in subsistence agriculture.
More than 60 percent of Africa’s population lacks access to modern sanitation, such as improved latriines. The challenges are varied across countries and across rural and urban landscapes, requiring different policy responses.
Africa suffers from transport bottlenecks that raise costs, slow freight, and hinder the development of logistics systems critical to successful competition in global markets. Transportation costs increase the prices of African goods by some 75 percent.
The already challenging African hydrology could worsen hydro-climate variability due to climate change. Water resources in Africa are underutilized and conflicts between water uses abound. Additional water storage is necessary and water management institutions need to be strengthened.
Universal access to safe water remains elusive in Africa. Underpricing, wasteful subsidies, and operating losses starve utilities of revenue while failing to bring water to the poor. Institutional changes and low-cost technologies offer a way forward.
