Positioning Africa to Claim the Post-COVID 21st Century

In 2000, the World Bank published a landmark report, 'Can Africa Claim the 21st Century?' It proposed four areas of reform, and the priorities that were highlighted are even more pertinent today: improve governance and reduce conflict; invest in people; increase competitiveness and diversify economies; and reduce aid dependence and debt. It is time to reexamine, reconsider, and reimagine the pressures on and potential for the continent, as well as develop an inclusive growth model for this new era. This report, 'Positioning Africa to Claim the Post-COVID 21st Century', fleshes out the policy instruments that can help countries on a sustainable development path. The work revisits the priorities of the original report, analyzes how they have evolved, and reassesses the development trajectory, taking the current megatrends into account. Finally, this sequel report investigates the challenges and highlights opportunities for accelerating Africa's economic transformation, especially to create more and better jobs.