Small businesses key to economic growth in Africa

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an adverse economic impact on Africa, with sub-Saharan Africa experiencing its first recession in 25 years. The continent’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to decline from about 3% in 2019 to -2% to -5% in 2020, with the region’s major sources of revenue declining. To give a few concrete examples, commodity exports and remittances declined by 17% and over 23% respectively, and the tourism sector has lost up to $120 billion in revenue.