Credit rating agency, Moody’s has warned that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa can have “significant economic ramifications” for the region.The agency forecasts a potential jeopardy on economic growth across the region owing to pressures on government budgets and increased spending on treating and containing the outbreak. The report raised particular concerns over Nigeria which has already declared a state of emergency because of its significant status as the largest oil producer on the continent.
Senior Credit Officer at Moody’s London Office, Matt Robinson, warned specifically that should a significant outbreak emerge in the Nigerian city of Lagos, the consequences for the West African Oil & Gas industry “would be considerable”. Any material decline in production would quickly translate into economic and fiscal deterioration.”
The report also predicts a negative impact on revenue generation in the West African region and expects that commercial and transport disruptions in the region will last for another month, at least.[eap_ad_2]
The three West African countries currently plagued by the epidemic are already witnessing chronic economic disruptions. The World Bank and IMF are predicting a full percentage point drop in Guinea’s GDP growth from 4.5 percent to 3.5 percent as a result of the epidemic, Moody’s predicts Sierra Leone’s GDP growth to fall from the 16 percent recorded in 2013 and the Liberian government says it has spent $12 million in the second quarter alone on ebola‐related issues.
Kenya, although in East Africa, has been tagged by the World Bank as a “high‐risk” country for the spread of the disease because of its transport links with West Africa.
This has further rubberstamped the current embargo on traveling to the affected regions.
African governments continue to battle with containment as a key strategy for curbing the menace while collaborating with the international community. (VENTURES AFRICA)[eap_ad_3]
Loading...
