The 3 main reforms that Burundi needs to boost the economy according to World Bank's Dr. Albert G. Zeufack
RegionWeek Newsletter Vol V, Issue #185 | Wednesday, August 12, 2021
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Dear RegionWeek Readers,
In an Interview with Veronique Kabongo, head of World Bank operations in Burundi, the World Bank Chief Economist for the Africa Region, Dr. Albert Zeufack answered questions about Burundi's economic situation and the potential of the digital sector in terms of growth and creation of Jobs.
“I feel a wind of an important change, Burundi is in the midst of change and we must capitalize on this small window of opportunity to advance the type of economic reform that will allow the Burundian population to improve their standard of living and become more prosperous” said Albert Zeufack when he was asked on his impression about Burundi comparing to his last visit in 2014.
He further highlighted three main reforms that Burundi needs now to boost the economy:
1.The macroeconomic framework
According to Dr. Albert, a Cameroonian national, who joined the World Bank in 1997 as a research economist, it is crucial for Burundi to put in place all the possible efforts for a sounder macroeconomic management. “I think in particular all that is monetary and exchange rate policies which are extremely important for the growth, and especially the development of the private sector” he precised.
2.Economic diversification
The Chief Economist for the Africa Region pointed out that Burundi needs to embed itself in a process of adding more value to its products before exporting them. And this can be by creating jobs outside the agricultural sector, jobs that are more productive and which pay better, and can allow Burundians to have a higher standard of living and therefore diversification.
3.Digitization
According to this Expert who works at the intersection of global development, private investments and public policy, digitization is the "future", it is the future of the labor market. So Burundi must engage seriously in the digitization to increase its economic performance, but also to allow a more improved standard of living for the population.
The state must facilitate jobs
He noted the urgent need to change the paradigm when it comes to solving the employment problem, which is a bigger problem for African countries. Youth employment, there are at least 1 million young people entering the labor market every month for sub-Saharan African countries, it is far too important for governments to create jobs alone
“We have to move from the notion of job creation to the notion of facilitating employment. Because it is the private sector that creates jobs. In all countries of the world, the share of jobs created by the private sector is still high.” he insisted
So the state must position itself to facilitate the creation of jobs, not necessarily to create them itself.
The employment problem will be solved when the State facilitates entrepreneurship including digital entrepreneurship, which with access to good bandwidth young people can create jobs for themselves on the web and earn a lot of money by creating services they can sell while staying in Burundi, he explained.
The state cannot create jobs for everyone, it can facilitate the private sector to create jobs for everyone.
Messages to young Burundians.
According to Dr. Albert G. Zeufack Burundian youth are dynamic, they should seize the opportunity of digitization to capitalize on this dynamism and create jobs and ensure that they can bring the beauty of Burundi to the whole world.
The Bottom line
According to the Chief Economist for the Africa Region, the World Bank is pleased to with the work done by its team in Burundi which contributes to advancing the reform agenda in Burundi. He noted the importance to work together with the government to identify the points that can advance economic and social reforms for the prosperity of Burundi. “The World Bank is here to help” he concluded.
Thanks for reading
Fabrice Iranzi, Editor in Chief | RegionWeek.com
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