Special report | Closing arguments

To catch up economically, Africa must think big

But it would require a new surge of ambition 

Photograph: New York Times/Redux/eyevine

Hedge funds are paid to anticipate the way the world is heading. So it was notable that a few months ago Nir Bar Dea, the boss of Bridgewater, the world’s largest hedge fund, was in Abidjan, the commercial capital of Ivory Coast, to co-host a summit calling for more money for the World Bank. For Mr Bar Dea, Africa’s population explosion is one of those “long term trends that people don’t pay attention to.”

This article appeared in the Special report section of the print edition under the headline “Ambition needed”

From the January 11th 2025 edition

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