Africa

Danish development activity in Africa is aimed at reducing poverty and creating employment for the youth generations that will be entering the labour market

Danish development activity in Africa is aimed at reducing poverty and creating employment for the youth generations that will be entering the labour market.

Reducing poverty is the basis of Danish engagement in Africa. This is firmly stated in the government’s 2007 Africa Strategy. The framework for achieving this goal is a more stable continent that to a greater extent can manage its own conflicts – also internally within the nations.

However, the goal of fewer numbers of poor cannot be achieved without ownership on the part of the African governments and organisations. To a high degree the means is ensuring that there is growth and employment, not least for the large youth cohorts that are surging and will surge onto the labour market in the coming 30 years or more.

Denmark wishes to support democracy, human rights and good governance and to contribute to fighting corruption. Denmark also wishes to support sustainable development and green growth in Africa.

Denmark is not alone in its endeavour. As part of the international community, Denmark has joined in creating some unique results:

• 90 % of all children in Africa attend school. Tanzania is a good example. In 2001 primary school education in Tanzania was made free of charge, and in the space of a mere five years the number of schoolchildren doubled. 98 % of children in the country were enrolled at a primary school in 2006.
• The number of poor Africans has fallen from 52% to 40 % on average. In Uganda poverty fell from 38 % in 2003 to 31 % in 2006.
• In 2011 Africa will get a new country, South Sudan, which  will become Africa’s 53rd country. Denmark has joined in supporting the peace process and the holding of the election as part of our efforts in fragile states.
  
  

A continent undergoing change

Africa is the continent of contrasts. A great number of countries are showing respectable economic progress, albeit from a low starting point. Africa is joining in globalisation, and this means both better opportunities for selling the continent’s products and increased demand for its raw materials. There is cautious mention of Africa’s lions, comprising countries such as South Africa, Kenya, Angola and Nigeria.
On the other hand, a large number of countries are plagued by conflicts, instability and fragility. Somalia, which has not had a central government for two decades, is probably the worst example of such a state.
The relatively positive development provides African governments with better possibilities of reducing poverty. The Danish government is deeply engaged in reducing poverty, and therefore we work through many channels such as the UN and the EU and together with like-minded countries.
Continent of youth
In 2040 every fourth person in the world will be African. Africa will have 2 billion inhabitants by then and more than half of them will be under 18. While population growth will have halted in Asia, it will still continue in Africa.
Africa is thinly populated today and population growth will help to create internal markets that demand goods. However, the bigger population will also put enormous pressure on the supply of services like education, health, clean water etc.
Many African countries grow by more than 1 million inhabitants a year, meaning that teachers, clinics, medicine and wells must be procured for a larger number of people. Every year. Africa will also change radically. Today most Africans live in rural districts. In 2030 half of them will be city dwellers.

Denmark in Africa

Denmark has diplomatic missions in 13 African countries:

• Benin
• Burkina Faso
• Ethiopia
• Ghana
• Kenya
• Mali
• Mozambique
• Niger
• South Africa
• Tanzania
• Zambia
• Zimbabwe
• Uganda

All of these countries are simultaneously partner countries, with the exception of South Africa. Sudan and Somalia are also partner countries for Danida. The partnerships with Benin and Zambia are being phased out.