Economic growth in Nigeria, Angola, Ethiopia, Zambia  others gain momentum despite global uncertainty—WBG

World Bank has said that “despite a challenging global environment, economic activity in Sub-Saharan Africa continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience, with growth forecasts upgraded for nearly three-quarters of countries in the region, including Angola, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Zambia. 

“Economic activity in Sub-Saharan Africa continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience, with growth forecasts upgraded for nearly three-quarters of countries in the region,” said Andrew Dabalen, the World Bank’s chief economist for Africa.

Nigeria, Zambia, Ethiopia and Angola all saw an upgrade to their growth forecast, the bank said, attributing gains to years of economic reforms and better economic management starting to pay off.

“These gains reflect years of reforms and improved economic management. The next challenge is turning growth into more jobs and better opportunities. 

“By investing in the foundations of an AI-ready economy, African countries can unlock productivity gains, spur innovation, and accelerate the structural transformation needed to raise living standards and reduce poverty.”

Andrew Dabalen, World Bank Chief Economist for the Africa Region
said “the report projects median inflation rate in Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to rise from 3.7% in 2025 to 5.5% in 2026, as higher global fuel, fertilizer, and food prices reverse some recent gains. 

“Public debt has broadly stabilized at around 57% of GDP, but high debt-service costs continue to limit spending on health, education, and infrastructure. With development assistance declining, countries face growing pressure to mobilize domestic resource mobilization, deepen local capital markets, and secure more sustainable financing.

“Risks remain tilted to the downside. Further geopolitical tensions could trigger additional increases in commodity prices, intensify inflation, and weaken external and fiscal balances. Climate-related shocks, including the effects of a potential El Niño event, could disrupt agricultural production and worsen food insecurity, while tighter financing conditions would further constrain fiscal space.

“This edition’s special focus examines how artificial intelligence can raise productivity, improve services, and create jobs. Most countries are still at an early stage of AI adoption, with activity concentrated in a small number of economies, notably Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa. 

“The region’s greatest opportunity lies in affordable, locally adapted small AI applications, meaning low bandwidth tools for education, agriculture, health, finance, logistics, and public administration, rather than frontier AI systems.

“Realizing these benefits will require investments in reliable electricity, affordable connectivity, digital skills, quality data, compute infrastructure, and effective governance. Strong institutions, technical capacity, implementation, and regional cooperation, including through the African Union’s Continental AI Strategy and the African Continental Free Trade Area, can help scale AI-enabled solutions and support more and better jobs”.

The World Bank raised Africa’s 2026 economic growth forecast to 4.3%, citing ‌stronger performance across the region, and urged governments to embrace artificial intelligence to boost productivity and create jobs.

The region has weathered a tough global environment, the lender said in its Africa Economic Update report on Tuesday, marked by higher energy prices due to the impact of the Iran war on supply chains. The new growth forecast is up from the 4.1% expected in April. In 2025, the region’s economy grew by 4.1%.

The upgrade shows growing confidence that reforms in some of Africa’s biggest economies are paying off even as the Iran war roils global energy markets. But these gains have yet to make a dent in poverty, with per capita income growth still trailing broader economic growth across much of the continent.

According to the Bank “Sub-Saharan Africa’s economy remains resilient despite geopolitical tensions, climate shocks, declining development assistance, and fiscal pressures. Growth in the region is projected to rise from 4.1% in 2025 to 4.3% in 2026, 0.3 percentage points above the April 2026 forecast, according to the latest edition of the Africa Economic Update, the World. 

“The outlook is supported by improved macroeconomic resilience, stronger domestic demand, and investments linked to the global energy transition and digital technologies. 

“However, conflict in the Middle East, trade policy uncertainty, tighter financial conditions, natural disasters, disease outbreaks, and insecurity continue to affect economic activity across several countries. Growth also remains insufficient to substantially reduce extreme poverty or create enough jobs for the region’s rapidly growing labor force.