_The Creative Wealth of Nations_ _A Look at Africa_<sup>_114_</sup> First, it is helpful to recognize that Africa has had an impressive economic performance in recent years. “During the period from 1995 to 2013,” according to the World Bank, “the region performed strongly, with an average annual GDP growth rate of 4.5%.”<sup>115</sup> This growth, however, has been accompanied by persistent inequality.<sup>116</sup> “Too many governments continue to view extractive industries solely as a source of growth and a magnet for foreign investment,” as Kofi Annan notes. “Insufficient attention has been directed towards ensuring that the benefits of growth are distributed fairly across society.”<sup>117</sup> And so, meaningful poverty reduction remains compromised. The WBG strategy elaborates,

- Many countries, mainly in Africa, are moving rapidly up the income ladder as they exploit their natural resources. However, some of Africa’s richer countries are similar to poor-performing lower-income countries in terms of inequality, employment challenges, undiversified economies, low human development outcomes, and weak institutions.<sup>118</sup>

As for country branding, many African nations suffer from a bad image. Hence the abysmal scores in the annual Country Brand Index (CBI).<sup>119</sup> Since Africa’s geography is often misunderstood, whatever uninviting news appears in country X is often associated with the entire continent. “ ‘Bad impressions and bad stereotypes,’ ” as Daniel Kahneman cites, “ ‘are quicker to form and more resistant to disconfirmation than good ones.’ ”<sup>120</sup> Africa’s negative perception, often fed by issues ranging from disease to wars, translates into poor nation brands. This is what William Easterly may call the ‘tyranny of negative bias.’ As we just saw in addition to compromising “domestic confidence and social unity,”<sup>121</sup> such negativity can diminish a nation’s attractiveness for investment and tourism.<sup>122</sup> The “asymmetric intensity of the motives to avoid losses and to achieve gains shows up almost everywhere,” according Kahneman.<sup>123</sup> This makes business investments in places like Africa more expensive, 114 “Throughout CBI’s eight-year history, almost every African country brand has underperformed, indicating lingering, poor perceptions of this largely under-developed continent.” — FutureBrand, _2012-2013 Country Brand Index_ , accessed February 8, 2013, - <u>http://www.futurebrand.com/images/uploads/studies/cbi/CBI_2012 Final.pdf.</u> 115 Africa Overview, The World Bank, accessed May 2, 2014, <u>http://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/overview.</u> 116 “Africa’s Ample Resources Provide an Opportunity for Inclusive Growth,” The World Bank Group, October 7, 2013, accessed May 2, 2014, http://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/publication/africa-s-ample- <u>resources-provide-an-opportunity-for-inclusive-growth.</u>

- 117Kofi Annan, Forward to _Equity in Extractives: Stewarding Africa’s natural resources for all_ , accessed

- May 10, 2014, http://africaprogresspanel.org/publications/policy-papers/africa-progress-report-2013/.

118 The World Bank Group. 2014. _The World Bank Group Strategy_ .

> 119 FutureBrand, _2011-2012 Country Brand Index_ , accessed February 8, 2013,

<u>http://www.futurebrand.com/images/uploads/studies/cbi/2011-2012_FutureBrand_CBI_ENG.pdf..</u>

> 120 Daniel Kahneman, _Thinking, Fast and Slow_ (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011), 302.

If development experts or others have such weak perceptions on certain countries in which they work, it is easy to see why they may have patronizing attitudes toward these countries. This could be true even as these practitioners have good intensions.

121 On domestic confidence: It could be argued that the lack of confidence in the economic future of their countries is a major reason why, for example, many Africans have risked their lives to cross the Mediterranean for greener pastures in Europe. While Europe might provide better opportunities, life is not as easy there as portrayed (or branded) in the media.

122 FutureBrand, _2011-2012 Country Brand Index_ .

- 123 Daniel Kahneman, _Thinking, Fast and Slow_ , 304.

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