projected for the next year or two remain insufficient to engineer a serious reduction in poverty as well as the other social or economic ills that typically accompany it, such as crime, malnutrition and illiteracy. the strong growth over 20002014 did help to alleviate both the incidence and the depth of poverty. for example, statistics compiled by the world bank show that the percentage of people living below us $ 1. 9 a day fell from 58 % in 1999 to 42 % in 2013, the latest year for which data are available. nonetheless, this indicator has not declined near as fast anywhere else, and remains well above the similar indices for latin america, south asia and east asia – even though, in the last - mentioned, poverty incidence was higher than in sub - saharan africa back in 1990. this unfavourable comparison highlights the urgent need for sub - saharan africa to restart the ‘ high growth spells ’ which had characterised the pre - 2015 period – yet which, according to imf research, tended to be shorter in duration and more vulnerable to an eventual crash than in other regions. 3 according to that same research, both exogenous and internal factors influence the shift to a higher growth 3 see the article titled ‘ restarting sub - saharan africa ’ s growth engine ’ in the imf ’ s regional economic outlook published in may 2017 ( chapter 2 ). page 4 of 11 path and the duration of these growth spells. these factors include global financial conditions, changes in the terms of trade, low inflation, flexible exchange rates, and policy stability, including prudent fiscal management and well - managed debt dynamics. i would therefore like to dwell for a moment on the external environment that subsaharan africa is likely to face in the coming years, as well as on the role that domestic policies can play in fostering renewed development. however, before i move on to these topics, allow me to highlight the importance of economic growth for african cities – for this is, after all, the subject of this conference, and the economic implications of and for urbanisation need to be better understood. many economists point out the long - term benefits of urbanisation for economic growth : by living in a large city, individuals can access the type of job opportunities, and can participate in such business networks, that are not available in a rural setting, or much less so. economies of scale are also generally understood to be larger in urban areas. hence, it may not come as a

monetarypolicy decisions – including, in recent times, the publication of the sarb ’ s macroeconomic projections – has increased policy predictability. a more stable monetary environment has also contributed to the soundness of the banking system, the liquidity of financial markets, and the ability of government to lengthen the maturity of its liabilities. conclusions to conclude, let me say that the challenges being faced by the continent, and in particular by its cities, are real – and that policy answers cannot be deferred. africa ’ s population is growing, and within the next few decades, a growing share of that population will be migrating towards its already - large urban areas. infrastructure, education and network development needs will continue to grow. the answer to these inevitable challenges does not just lie in betting on a strong global environment, even if africa ’ s increased integration into the world economy will bring benefits. the answer also lies in an appropriate policy environment underpinned by strong political will. and, perhaps more than ever, sound fiscal and monetary policies form a crucial part of that framework. thank you. page 11 of 11