Africa has huge potential to increase bulk exports if it can overcome its logistics challenges.The continent holds about 12% of the world’s oil reserves, 42% of its gold, 80%–90% of chromium and platinum group metals, and 60% of arable land.“Freight transport in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) faces many infrastructural and social challenges such as low intra-African collaboration/trade, bottlenecked port operations, expensive yet poor inland road quality, inadequate rail capacity, political and security instability, slow development in transportation and trade technology, and cultural differences,” write Damilola Kuteyi and Herwig Winkler of the Brandenburg University of Te c h n olo g y.Volumes are also affected by global demand for bulk commodities. According to the S&P GSCI Commodities index, there has been a 25% rise in global commodities over the past 12 months.Africa does not need to be so reliant on bulk minerals.According to a US Department of Agriculture report, agricultural trade in bulk commodities in Africa has been increasing due to local and international population growth and rapid urbanisation.The continent imports basic foodstuffs: starches, proteins, grains and cooking oils. Exports are dominated by cash crops: maize, cocoa, nuts, coffee, tea and sesame seeds.There is a deficit. Between 1999 and 2019, the value of agricultural imports in Africa grew at an average annual rate of 7.4% compared with a 6% growth rate for agricultural exports.The main bulk imports are wheat, maize, rice, and soybeans.African countries are being urged to add value to all bulk commodities, including agricultural exports.The African Development Bank Strategy for Agricultural Transformation in Africa 2016-2025 points out agribusiness activities outside of farming account for 78% of total value added in all agricultural value chains globally, yet this figure falls to approximately 38% in Africa.It cites cocoa as an example. Africa supplies 69% of the world’s raw cocoa beans, but only 16% of ground cocoa, which is typically worth two to three times more per ton than raw cocoa.Several studies have found that this is changing, which will see bulk agricultural exports decline over time.“The added value of African agriculture has nearly tripled over the past two decades, from about $140 billion in 2000 to $400bn in 2019. “Not only did the value increase, but African farming also accounted for a growing share of global agricultural output – from 8% to 12% over the same period,” according to an International Trade Centre study.
