p The establishment and consolidation of the African countries’ national economies call for comprehensive industrial development, provided, of course, necessary conditions are available for this. In some cases, a development of agricultural production and farm produce processing industries would be preferable.

p At the time most African countries became independent, industry was most developed in North Africa. By the early 1960s, in addition to light industry enterprises, there were small metallurgical, chemical and oil-refining plants in the countries of the region. Egypt accounted for the biggest share of industrial output in North Africa (almost 50 per cent).  [176•1 

p In the countries of Tropical Africa, industry was underdeveloped, with the exception of a few fairly big mines and non-ferrous metal plants owned by foreign capital. Mostly there were small handicraft workshops that produced cloth, pottery, leather goods and other articles by “traditional” production techniques and for local consumption.

p Consumer demand was chiefly met by imports, which ate up a considerable part of the meagre hard currency earnings.

p During the first development decade, African manufacturing grew at an average rate of 6.5 per cent a year. 177 Between 1960 and 1970, the value added in the manufacturing of 41 independent African countries grew from j>2,285 billion to ji4,856 billion. Yet there were no fundamental changes in the sectoral structure of African industry. The food and tobacco industries remained the most important branches of manufacturing in developing Africa during the 1960s, accounting for 24 per cent of industrial employment, 41 per cent of gross output and 38 per cent of the value added in manufacturing as a whole. Over 33 per cent of Africa’s industrial enterprises were concentrated in these two industries. Next in importance came the textile and clothing industries, which accounted for 20 per cent of gross industrial output and 33 per cent of the labour force employed in the manufacturing sector. By the late 1960s, light industries (including the food, drinks, tobacco, textile, clothing, wood-working, furniture- making, paper-and-pulp, and printing industries) accounted for some 70 per cent of the total number of manufacturing units and nearly 65 per cent of both the value added and the gross output of the manufacturing sector.

p By the early 1970s, the share of industrial output in the GNPs of some African countries topped 25 per cent, which was mainly a result of the growth of raw materials production. These countries included Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Liberia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Gabon, Zaire, Zambia, Mauritius, and Swaziland.

p Industry and power engineering developed most rapidly in North Africa. Between 1960 and 1970, their share in the GNP increased from 18 to 30 per cent. The mining industry, too, expanded rapidly in the North as well as in the West of Africa.

p Despite certain achievements, the level of industrial development in many independent African countries remains low. The problem of their further industrialisation has been repeatedly considered by many international organisations. The EGA, for instance, has drawn up Africa’s Strategy for Development in the 1970s, which is a fundamental document setting forth the goals and tasks of the continent’s industrial development and ways for achieving it. It notes, among other things, that the industrial policies of the African countries "must fulfil the role of transforming the structure of rural production and linking the 178 rural and urban sectors to provide a foundation for a modern economy".  [178•2 

p A further detailed analysis of the opportunities for industrial development in Africa is contained in a declaration entitled "Industrialisation in Africa: Principles and Guidelines for Go-operation and Development”. This was adopted by the 23rd Session of the OAU Council of Ministers in June 1974. The Declaration reaffirmed the "role of industrialisation as a dynamic instrument of growth in the strategy of development of African countries".  [178•3 

p The document notes that the African countries must give priority to a clearly formulated strategy and plans for long-term industrialisation, the specifics of the policy and measures for implementing them; to closer ties between industry and agriculture; to the introduction of a policy for developing African enterprise; and to the establishment and development of the corresponding industries that might be an effective instrument for consolidating and integrating the national economies of individual countries.

p The elaboration and, above all, realisation of the concepts of economic development in the African countries involve serious difficulties stemming from their colonial past. Yet their wish to overcome their age-old backwardness at whatever price is clearly in evidence. Moreover, most African countries believe the development of industry, both mining and manufacturing, to be one of their primary tasks.

p The ways and means for fulfilling this task are, of course, different and depend, among other things, on the level of development attained by individual countries and regions. In the countries of North Africa, where the material basis for the development of heavy industry has been or is being created, the number of iron and steel, engineering, oi - refining, chemical and other heavy industry enterprises can be increased. In the countries of Tropical Africa, in addition to the construction of individual heavy industry enterprises, small plants (for processing farm produce, for instance) may also be of great importance for their industrialisation 179 programmes. For some of these countries such enterprises are their national industry pilot projects and centres for training the national industrial labour force.

p Analysis of the implementation of industrialisation programmes permits certain other features stemming from Afrita’s specific economic development to be singled out in the work of industrial enterprises. For example, the cost of production in manufacturing enterprises in Africa is, in most cases, higher than in the industrial countries, or even in the developing countries of other continents. EGA experts believe that this is because of the low productivity of labour, less intensive use of modern machinery following on the low skills of local engineers and technicians, and the general technical ignorance of the local labour, which draws its reserves from the village population.

p Industrialisation is also hampered by some factors that raise the building costs of industrial projects. These include: high transportation costs, particularly for the haulage of materials inside the continent; high salaries for Western technical personnel supervising the assembly and running of equipment, and the like.

p Industrialisation in Africa encounters many serious difficulties, so the assistance rendered by the Soviet Union and other socialist countries acquires special significance for the development of national industry. Some 70 per cent of the total volume of Soviet economic and technological assistance to independent African countries is industrial aid. Most industrial projects are being built in North Africa. Cooperation agreements covered the construction of 80 industrial projects in North and 57 in Tropical Africa by early 1977. The structure of cooperation differs somewhat, depending on the region: 50 per cent of the total sum of credits in Tropical Africa and over 70 per cent in North Africa are earmarked for building industrial and power engineering projects. Industrialisation is also assisted through the reconstruction and expansion of existing enterprises.

Cooperation with the USSR is growing in importance for the strategy of industrial development in Africa. It facilitates economic growth, develops productive forces, increases the number of workers, engineers and technicians and raises their skills, and heightens the partner-countries’ overall technical level.