The African Development Bank (AfDB) says Morocco has overtaken South Africa as Africa’s leading industrial economy.
Inaugurating the 2025 Africa Industrialisation Index (AII) in Brazzaville on the sidelines of its Annual Meetings alongside the inauguration of the Africa Industrial Investment Barometer report, the AfDB said that Morocco achieved the feat through sustained industrial upgrading, export diversification and strong industrial policies.
The AfDB report, however, stated that South Africa remained a major industrial powerhouse in spite of declining competitiveness.
It said that North and Southern Africa have continued to dominate industrial output and export sophistication across the continent.
The report added that East, West and Central Africa still lagged in industrial development and regional production linkages.
According to the report, intra-African trade remained low at 14.4 per cent of total trade, reflecting fragmented industrial ecosystems.
The report assessed industrial development across 54 African countries between 2010 and 2024 and stated that 41 countries improved their industrialisation scores, while overall continental performance rose by 6 per cent.
The AfDB’s Director for Industrial and Trade Development, Ousmane Fall, said that the report served as both a diagnosis and roadmap.
According to Fall, industrialisation at scale requires resilient infrastructure, value addition and finance mobilised on African terms.
He said that the report also called for stronger regional integration anchored on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
He stressed the need for reliable energy, industrial infrastructure, technical skills and harmonised standards to support Africa’s industrial transformation.
GIK/APA