Use BBC.com or the new BBC App to listen to BBC podcasts, Radio 4 and the World Service outside the UK.

Find out how to listen to other BBC stations

Episode details

World Service,21 Mar 2025,26 mins

Africa's economic future: growth or uncertainty?

World Business Report

Available for over a year

Some forecasts place Africa as the world’s second-fastest-growing region in 2025, trailing only East Asia. But with uncertainty clouding the global economic outlook, Ed Butler explores whether the continent can maintain its growth momentum with Sim Tshabalala, CEO of Standard Bank, Africa's largest commercial lender. Meanwhile, Ethiopia’s parliament has introduced a new tax on workers and businesses aimed at bridging the funding gap left by the suspension of USAID support. And at London's Heathrow Airport, questions are being asked about its resilience, after a fire at a nearby electrical substation forced Europe’s busiest airport to shut down, leaving hundreds of thousands of passengers stranded.

Programme Website
More episodes