Policy Responses to the Economic Crisis in Africa

Africa is the developing region most at risk from the global economic crisis. Its recent strong growth has been interrupted. Already home to the largest number of low-income countries in the world, the region is now likely to experience higher unemployment and poverty; increases in infant mortality; and difficulty coping with longer-lasting effects such as higher school drop-out rates, reductions in health care, environmental degradation and a rise in conflict. Africa therefore needs to recover as quickly as possible. In this policy brief we draw on a number of recent UNU-WIDER studies to discuss the policy options for recovery.