Walmart's entry into Africa through the purchase of a majority stake in Massmart reflects a significant change in the attitude of global investors to the continent. African nations are being recognised as consumers -- modest consumers in the global context, but consumers nonetheless
As World Cup and vuvuzela euphoria gripped the globe in mid-2010, investment bank Goldman Sachs released a report on the potential of the continent. It compared Africa's potential growth with those of the Bric nations -- Brazil, Russia, India and China -- and the Next 11 (N-11), the most populous emerging countries after the Brics.
While not outstripping the performance of the Bric countries individually, the top 11 countries in Africa -- both in population and GDP -- could together become larger than both Brazil and Russia by 2050, the report found.
