South Africa is set to overtake Nigeria and Egypt as the continent’s largest economy, International Monetary Fund forecasts show.
The World Economic Outlook of the International Monetary Fund says Nigeria is expected to remain in fourth place in coming years while Egypt could reclaim the top position by 2027. But it expects the South African economy to benefit from improvements to its energy supply and plans to tackle logistical bottlenecks.
A nearly 30-year high inflation rate of 33%, a weakening currency, and the effects of government economic reforms are some of the problems it is contending with. Nigeria faces dollar shortages needed for imports which the country heavily relies on for most of what it consumes.