The COVID-19 pandemic has widely tested the resilience of Africaneconomies and has severely impacted some of the continent’s fastest-growing economies.

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The pandemic has seen African governments prioritize emergency responses to the global health crisis, including lockdown measures, which have detracted from the pursuit of robust, inclusive, and sustainable growth strategies across all regions.

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As economic activities have resumed in most parts of the continent, growth is forecast to rebound, supported by expected improved performance in exports, commodity prices, and private consumption.

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Regional economic outlooks:

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• West Africa’s GDP growth dropped from 3.5% in 2019 to -0.7% in 2020, largely from the economic slowdown in Nigeria, a decline in commodity prices, reduced financial flows, and aslower recovery from the 2015/16 recession. In 2020, West Africa was the second-best performing region after East Africa, recording the smallest growth contraction in Africa in 2020. Growth in the region is expected to rebound to 3.5% in 2021.

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• North Africa’s GDP growth declined from 3.7% in 2019 to -1.8% in 2020. The region is projected to have a strong rebound in 2021 to 7.3%, with growth reducing to 1.5% in 2022. Morocco entered a recession in 2020, economic growth saw a sharp decline from 2.5% in 2019 to -7.0% in 2020, but is expected to recover to 4.5% in 2021.

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•East Africa’s economic growth has been largely driven by strong public spending on infrastructure, and incentives for industrial development. The economic disruption resulting from theCOVID-19 pandemic has seen the region’s expected growth for 2020 drop to 1.8%,down from 7.2% in 2019, making it the only African region to record positive growth in 2020.

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