The World Bank has projected that Sub-Saharan Africa’s economy will remain resilient, with growth expected to reach 3.8 per cent in 2025, rising from 3.5 per cent in 2024.
In a statement released on Wednesday in Abuja, the Bank said the growth outlook reflected easing inflationary pressures and a modest recovery in investment, despite ongoing global economic uncertainties.
It noted that the number of countries experiencing double-digit inflation had dropped significantly—from 23 in October 2022 to 10 in July 2025—indicating progress in stabilising prices. However, it warned that risks such as global trade policy uncertainty, declining investor confidence, and reduced access to external financing, including official development assistance, still posed challenges to economic stability.
According to the statement, external debt service in the region has more than doubled over the past decade, reaching two per cent of GDP in 2024, while the number of countries in or at high risk of debt distress has nearly tripled—from eight in 2014 to 23 in 2025—representing almost half of the region.
The World Bank cautioned that while growth is improving, it remains insufficient to significantly reduce extreme poverty or create enough quality jobs for the region’s rapidly expanding labour force.
The report highlighted that Africa is undergoing the world’s largest and fastest demographic shift and emphasised the need for policies that promote high-quality job creation to harness this population growth effectively.
This message was central to the 32nd edition of Africa’s Pulse, the Bank’s biannual economic update for the region, themed “Pathways to Job Creation in Africa.”
To stimulate large-scale job creation, the World Bank outlined several policy priorities, including reducing the cost of doing business, improving infrastructure such as energy, transport, and digital networks, and investing in human capital development. It also called for stronger institutions and governance to ensure stability, curb corruption, and attract private sector investment.
It further encouraged the development of key sectors like agribusiness, mining, tourism, healthcare, and housing, noting that every job created in tourism generates about 1.5 additional jobs in related sectors.
“With the right reforms and investments, Sub-Saharan Africa can unlock its vast employment potential and chart a path toward inclusive and sustainable growth,” the report stated.
The Bank’s Chief Economist for the Africa Region, Andrew Dabalen, added that the region’s working-age population is expected to grow by more than 600 million people over the next 25 years.
“The key challenge will be matching this expanding population with quality jobs, given that only about 24 per cent of new workers currently secure wage-paying employment,” Dabalen said.
He stressed that a structural shift toward supporting more medium and large firms is essential to generate wage jobs at scale and drive long-term economic transformation in the region.