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Standard Chartered invests $10.7bn in Africa

By BusinessNews Staff on June 7, 2014

Standard Chartered Bank Plc says it has invested $10 in the sub-Saharan Africa, which is about to 1.2 per cent of region’s Gross Domestic Product.

The bank, which stated this in its 2014 African report, also said its support for sub-Saharan trade was worth $7.2bn.

It noted a new “confident African middle class is emerging, and trade is expanding rapidly, notably with Asia.”

The report stated, “Africa is leapfrogging old technologies and embracing the digital revolution, leading the world in innovation such as mobile payments.”

The independent report, which was commissioned by the bank, was put together by Professor Ethan Kapstein of Georgetown University, United States.

The founding Partner at Steward Redqueen, Dr. Rene Kim, presented the report in Lagos.

The report shows that although the dearth of infrastructure and barriers to intra-nation trade is hampering a much bigger trade, Africa has recorded consistent growth faster than the rest of the world in the last decade.

The report, which measured the impact of the bank’s operations in terms of economic value added and employment supported, also considered the lender’s impact on Africa’s trade.

The bank said it had deployed a global network spanning more than 68 countries and was the only international bank with a major presence across both Africa and Asia.

A statement by the bank said, “By measuring direct and indirect impact, the report shows that our operations and financing support some 1.9 million jobs in the markets where we operate in sub-Saharan Africa. The bulk of these jobs are in advanced, high value-added sectors – the fast-growing manufacturing and service industries that are changing the face of Africa’s economies.

“We contribute $10.7bn in economic value-added, equivalent to 1.2 per cent of sub-Saharan Africa’s Gross Domestic Product. The bank supports sub-Saharan trade worth $7.2bn.”

The statement quoted Kim as saying that Africa’s share of world trade amounted to five per cent but recorded only three per cent of intra-African trade.

“A number of reasons can be adduced for the lack of intra-African trade, part of which include lack of or dearth of infrastructure. There is also the issue of barriers which needed to be.”

[Punch]

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