Africa Rebounding Almost in Line with World Recovery

• Author: Simon Willson
• Position: IMF Survey online

He said that for the decade before the global crisis, Africa's economies had been strengthened by good policies that had given Africa's governments the fiscal space to cope with the crisis.

The IMF chief is on a trip to Kenya, South Africa, and Zambia to meet political, business, and civil society leaders and assess the impact of the global economic and financial crisis on Africa.

Speaking March 9 at a town hall meeting in an auditorium at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, Strauss-Kahn said "Africa is back."

"The policies which have been implemented by African governments to cope with the crisis were appropriate and timely. They were able to help their own economies and support their own economies exactly in the same way as emerging markets did, using fiscal stimulus."

After summarizing the causes and effects of the global crisis, Strauss-Kahn outlined what the IMF had done to help counteract its effects, including calling for a global fiscal stimulus. He stressed what he termed the IMF's "unseen" support for its members through technical assistance, noting that by the end of 2010 the IMF would have five regional technical assistance centers operating in Africa.

He said the credit for Africa's improved performance in coping with global crisis belonged to Africa's governments. "Usually, when you have a crisis, African countries' recovery is a little late and lags far behind the recovery in the rest of the world. It's not true today," Strauss-Kahn stated. "Recovery is taking place in Africa almost at the same pace as in the rest of the world."

In remarks and a question-and-answer session in front of around 200 students, faculty, and community...