The End of the Third World?

For half-a-century, the idea of "The Third World" has lingered around ... an awkwardly enduring short-hand for poor countries in Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, along with South and East Asia.

But these days, World Bank President Robert Zoellick isn't the only one predicting the end of the Third World and the beginning of something better. Many economists now believe that Africa is on the verge of a breakthrough ... an economic transformation that could be the key to prosperity around the world. So, as part of our on-going series, Africa at 50, we wanted to put that idea to the test this morning.

We heard from vendors in Abidjan, the economic capital of Ivory Coast in West Africa. They're calling out for people to make calls, transfer money or charge their mobile phones. There are now nearly 260 million mobile phone subscribers in Africa. Network coverage extends to more than 60 per cent of the population. And that is changing the continent. The emergence of cell phones has created jobs, boosted investment and driven innovation and entrepreneurship. In many African countries, the telecommunication technology sector is now one of the top three sources of government revenue. And according to Timite Amadou, the local government official, it's changing the way people think. We aired a clip.

In Rwanda, coffee is driving a different kind of economic success story. For years, farmers didn't make much money from their coffee. Then, the government liberalized the coffee sector and gave them incentives to produce higher quality coffee.

Jean-Claude Kayisinga is a Rwandan who helped set up washing stations for coffee farmers to produce specialty coffee. We heard from him and other farmers in the town of Maraba in southern Rwanda. Maraba used to be a ghost town. But the increased revenue from the coffee sector has transformed it into a bustling city. Mukamugema Domithila is a coffee farmer there. We heard from him.

In other parts of Africa, tourism is driving economic expansion. On the of edge of the Senegalese Island of Gorée off Africa's West Coast, a boat waits to take passengers back to the mainland. The island has become a major tourist attraction. Between the 15th and 19th centuries, these shores were home to the largest slave-shipment point on African soil. And the house of slaves that once sat at the water's edge is now a museum.

Nearly a million tourists visit Senegal every year. That has helped create 100,000 jobs. And tourism now represents five per cent of Senegal's Gross Domestic Product.

So for a sense of the broader picture ... what the explosion of cell phone use, the liberalization of the agricultural sector and the growth of tourism mean for Africa's future, we're joined by Shanta Devarajan. He is the World Bank's Chief Economist for Africa and he was in Washington.

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