Deputy Speaker, hon members, Africa is becoming a continent of more and more young people. Our continent's population will increase from 800 million in 2000, to 1,4 billion by 2030. Relatively high population growth, as you will know, swells the ranks of the youngest parts of the population. By 2025, therefore, 23% of the world's people aged between 0 and 25 will be living in sub-Saharan Africa. One in four babies born worldwide will be born in Africa.
It is a population that will live largely in poverty-stricken urban areas. Africa's urban population is also predicted to double by 2025, with 50 cities having populations of more than one million each. In 2005, 166 million people were living in urban slums, which will increase as the proportion living in urban areas crosses the 50% threshold by 2025.
Our challenge is jointly to lift Africa's population with its recognisably changing characteristics - a young and urban population out of poverty. That is our challenge.
To meet this challenge requires an economic growth rate of about 8% per year over a sustained period of time. This is a considerable challenge, Minister Patel. Achieving an 8% growth rate in Africa is a considerable challenge. The continent has done well, registering a 4,7% growth rate between 2000 and 2006 up from 2,5% some five years before while East Asia was running at 8,6% and South Asia at 7%, but to get to 8% will take some doing.
A model of what needs to be done is India. Good economic policies there produced good outcomes, for they were able to sustain a 6% growth rate over the course of a decade, lifting a staggering 100 million poor Indians out of poverty. How did this happen? This happened by having courageous and determined political leadership that followed some very clear principles.
First of all, to generate growth with employment the Indian leadership understood that their nation needed to become better organised, more efficient and more competitive than others. To become better organised means the local government must be much better geared to providing basic services to all, especially to young people, including institutional and corporate citizens, in order to attract the long-term foreign direct investment needed to generate sustainable jobs.
To become more efficient means, for example, to note that it takes, on average, 12 Brazilian days to bring a product to export, In Australia it takes 8 days, and in South Africa it takes 30 days. The speed of customs clearance in Africa lags way behind the world standard set, by Singapore or Rotterdam for example. To become more competitive one has to have a higher productivity level. If you look at the United States of America, they have the highest productivity levels in the world. Working hours are long, public holidays are few half of what ours are skills levels are high and technological innovation rates are fast. In China there is admirable discipline and personal integrity in the nation's commitment to hard work. These are the facts.
Growth happens when countries make things others want to buy selling into a market. Entrepreneurs and not the state drive growth. The unremitting and consistent determination to implement and not just voice policy is vital. Can I repeat that? It is vital to implement policy, and not just to talk about it.
The state provides a suitable enabling environment, including sound fundamentals, such as balanced budgets, low inflation, policy, and appropriate regulatory mechanisms. Do not strangle the economy free the economy! Do not depend on aid invest in infrastructure. Africa has a monumental infrastructure deficit. Greg Mills, in his fantastic book, writes:
A 2009 study on African infrastructure, involving a partnership of [a number of key institutions], estimated that Africa needed 93 bn in annual spending to address its infrastructure backlog. The cost of Africa's ``infrastructure services'' was estimated as being twice that of elsewhere, causing all manner of problems for economic growth and human development.
Nearly half of the estimated $93 billion figure was for power alone.
To make this happen requires that the rule of law exist in order to enforce contracts. Professionalism, self-discipline and selflessness are aspirational virtues worth pursuing. A leadership accountable to a demanding citizenry is essential to good performance.
Africa needs to put its people to work. Africa also needs to put its children into quality schooling. We would agree with Gordon Brown that our commitment to quality education translates into the need to appoint another million teachers in Africa. There is nothing more fundamental than putting excellent teachers in the front of classrooms. There is nothing more fundamental than doing that. Thank you very much. [Applause.]