Africa is on track for rapid economic growth, with 11 of the world’s 20 fastest-growing economies, including Ethiopia, but the continent faces a staggering USD 670 billion annual funding gap to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) warns.
A new policy brief by the ECA paints a mixed picture of Africa’s progress toward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. While the continent is making progress on 12 of the 17 SDGs, the current pace is insufficient to meet the targets by 2030. African countries are grappling with a complex global environment, including lingering impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing geopolitical conflicts, and escalating climate change risks.
Despite these challenges, Africa’s economic prospects remain positive. Real gross domestic product growth is projected at 3.5 percent in 2024 and 3.6 percent in 2025, outpacing global averages of 2.9 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively, according to the United Nations.
However, these gains are overshadowed by a growing “development distress” caused by high public debt and limited fiscal space. The ECA estimates that Africa’s annual financing gap to meet the SDGs ranges from $670 billion to $762 billion. The median public debt ratio across the continent exceeded 60 percent of GDP in 2023, and as of April 2024, 20 out of 38 low-income African countries were either in debt distress or at high risk.
This financial strain means that many countries are forced to direct significant portions of public resources toward debt servicing rather than development priorities. Between 2010 and 2021, African governments increased spending on interest payments by more than 130 percent, while investment in sectors such as health and education grew at much lower rates.
The ECA brief highlights that the disconnect between national development plans and actual budgets remains a major barrier. On average, only 56 percent of African development plans are aligned with the 2030 Agenda. Misalignment between planning and financing reduces the effectiveness of development initiatives, with about half of surveyed officials reporting that it strongly or very strongly affects planning outcomes.
Integrated planning and financing are seen as critical solutions.
“Aligning national development plans with financing strategies is critical if African countries are to meet the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals,” the ECA brief notes.
