Summary

Over the recent past, there has been a collapse in the factories and industries sectors in Africa leading to the loss of employment of hundreds of thousands. The loss in employment among the previously working Africans is a pointer to the problem of deindustrialization. What is more intriguing is the fact that despite the continent averaging at 5% annual growth rate, the factories and industries continue to fail and shut down. Ideally, with such a modest growth rate, the continent’s output should have doubled that of 15 years ago. The reality on the ground is different however and is in contrast with the reality in Asia.

The rapid industrialization in China and Asia at large is one of the drivers for the growth in Africa. However, with the boom in China on a decline, the demand for raw materials from Africa has fallen leading to lower production in the manufacturing sector. While the number of jobs in the manufacturing sector has been increasing in Asia, Africa’s is at a standstill and even continues to decline. Although deindustrialization is not happening in Africa alone, the continent is the worst hit. It appears that Africa’s rich resources are the major disadvantage as the high supply works against the continent’s interest. That notwithstanding, some countries such as Ethiopia and Rwanda have witnessed increased growth in the sector over time.

Critique

The article attempts to draw differences between the rate of growths in Africa and Asia by focusing on the manufacturing sector. The title is rather convenient for the article and goes along to show the fact that development is not an instant thing but is dependent on a strong foundation. Sadly though, Africa seems not to have established this foundation yet but that is not to say that there exists none. The world’s largest economies have been built on the backdrop of decades of hard work that formed the country’s foundations. While the topic is factual in its meaning, there are many discrepancies in its use as regards this topic. Comparing two continents on the same threshold yet their ‘ages’ are different is totally absurd. Most Africans countries have just marked their fifty years of independence since colonial rule and expecting them to have hit the levels of Asia is inconsiderate.

It is true that development in Africa is on a decline and it is only fair to equate it to a marathon. Nevertheless, the only difference between a marathon and a sprint is in the time that the winner takes to reach the final mark. That notwithstanding, both aspects share in the fact that there is always a winner. Africa will win on the issue of development but needs much more time to accomplish that. In fact, both continents are on a marathon. The only difference is that Asia is on the final lap and has embarked on sprinting. Africa on the other hand is on course and is still at the jogging stage but will sure reach the final stage. The most important thing is that both will finish the race.

The article is fallacious in stating that Africa is slow on the path of development when it started the race later than the other continents. I agree with the writers in stating that Africa has had an average of 5% annual economic growth over the last decade. It is true that the continent should have doubled the output having been on that rise for over ten years now. However, the other continents have an upper advantage and can be seen as having no regard for fair play. What is not true is that Africa is slow in development because of its own volition. The truth is that other continents started the race way before of time and are now bashing Africa for not being among the first. While such criticism is allowed for its ability to improve confidence, it should not be used in a demeaning way. In fact, the other continents, including Asia will soon finish their race and they are welcome to cheer Africa on.

The article errs in portraying the marathon as weaker form of development compared to the sprint. This is totally not true and cannot be used as the yardstick for real development. Moreover, the article uses just one aspect of the economy (manufacturing sector) to draw inferences on the entire African economy. The manufacturing sector has been on a decline but that is not the same for all other aspects of the economy. In fact, the article acknowledges that the reason for the decline in manufacturing sector growth is the integration of technology and the shift from labor intensive production. Surely this is a positive development because it means that factories are now more efficient in production. Most aspects of the continent’s economy have been on the rise including the service industry.

The article, despite having reliable statistics from reliable sources, cannot be swallowed hook and sinker because it uses very few African countries in making inferences. The article starts by portraying the scenario in Nigeria’s manufacturing sector and uses the same to generalize the situation in Africa. While Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa, the decline in the manufacturing industry cannot be used to evaluate Africa as a whole. Moreover, the article is short on the example of countries used in the study. The article is limited in scope and focuses on a handful of African countries to come up with the findings. Another shortfall is in the lack of predictive aspect in the article. Currently, most African countries are working to revive the ailing manufacturing sectors and including the textile ones. Particularly, East Africa is on stage to reviving its textile industry as shown in the article.

Even if one were to assume that the article is right in its inferences, the article would still be below par for not providing viable options to remedy the perceived slow growth. The article focuses on mainly reporting the findings and dedicates less than a paragraph on proposing viable solutions to help Africa catch up with Asian countries in terms of growth. The fact that it lacks any viable content on how to improve the situation makes the article weak in its presentation. Moreover, the article can be dismissed as just another article that is dependent on hearsay because of this shortcoming. The article fails to identify the reasons for this decline in growth of the manufacturing sector in Africa and does not provide the reasons for the growth in Asia either.

Overall, the article is well structured and addresses the issues in a free flowing manner. The transition of one idea to the other is impressive and the logical backing of assertions in the text is worth acknowledging. However, the praise just gets to that level alone and is limited to the semantics part of the article. The arguments in the article make sense to the layman but hold no water when analyzed deeply. The amount of evidence used to make the conclusions is lacking in content and the overgeneralization of aspects also makes it weak.

References

More a marathon than a sprint. (2015, November 7). Retrieved November 9, 2015, from http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21677633-there-long-road-ahead-africa-emulate-east-asia-more-marathon

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