History has shown that in most regions of the world where a take-off in economic growth and development occurred, the “green revolution” preceded such a takeoff. This is true of China, India and even the USA. I therefore believe that the African economic take-off will be accelerated by an expansion of agricultural output.
In fact, the agricultural sector is where Africa’s comparative advantage lies, provided that the WTO negotiations regarding the elimination of farm subsidy by advanced countries are successfully concluded. Africa will then need to scale up its investment in the agriculture sector. For example, African farmers need training, they need fertilizers at reasonable prices, and they need market outlets. All these require significant investment.