Morocco has ranked first in Africa’s industrialisation index for the first time since the African Development Bank (AfDB) began publishing the rankings in 2010, narrowly overtaking South Africa in the latest continental assessment of industrial competitiveness.

According to the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) 2025 Africa Industrialisation Index, Morocco scored 0.8415 points, edging ahead of South Africa’s 0.8396 by just 0.0019 points.

The AfDB attributed Morocco’s rise to sustained industrial upgrading, export diversification and long-term industrial-policy implementation, particularly in sectors such as automotive manufacturing, aerospace, renewable energy and phosphate-related industries.

The report highlighted Morocco’s continued expansion as a manufacturing and export hub centred around industrial corridors including Tangier, which has become one of Africa’s leading automotive-export platforms.

South Africa, while still one of the continent’s largest and most diversified industrial economies, has experienced what the AfDB described as a gradual decline in industrial competitiveness over the longer term.

Its score fell from 0.8819 in 2010 to 0.8396 in 2024 amid persistent structural constraints including electricity shortages, logistics bottlenecks, rail inefficiencies and slower industrial investment growth.

The index evaluates economies across three broad dimensions: industrial performance; direct industrialisation drivers such as infrastructure, education, investment and access to finance; and indirect factors including governance, debt levels, inflation and the business environment.

North African economies dominated the latest rankings. Egypt placed third with a score of 0.7827, followed by Tunisia at 0.7760, while Algeria ranked sixth at 0.6661.

The AfDB described Morocco, South Africa, Egypt and Tunisia as Africa’s leading industrial quartet, maintaining a substantial lead over most other economies on the continent.

Mauritius ranked fifth, reflecting its hybrid manufacturing-services economic model and relatively advanced industrial and export infrastructure despite its small domestic market.

Eswatini, Senegal, Namibia and Ivory Coast completed the top 10 rankings.

According to the report, North Africa remained Africa’s most industrialised region in 2024 with an aggregate score of 0.6891, ahead of Southern Africa at 0.5850.

The AfDB said most North African economies scored above the continental average, with the exceptions of Libya and Mauritania.

Despite improvements recorded by many countries, the report said Africa’s broader industrialisation process remained uneven and relatively slow.

Forty-one of Africa’s 54 countries improved their industrialisation scores between 2010 and 2024, although only 24 countries improved their continental rankings during the same period.

The continental average industrialisation score rose from 0.5134 in 2010 to 0.5445 in 2024, representing growth of about 6%.

Africa’s manufacturing value added increased from $285bn in 2020 to $351bn in 2025, according to AfDB estimates, although the continent still accounts for less than 2% of global manufacturing output and only 1.4% of global manufactured exports.

Manufacturing value added per capita reached $226.7 in 2025, remaining below the 2014 peak of $254.9.

The AfDB linked weak industrial growth partly to fragmented markets, inadequate logistics infrastructure, unreliable electricity supply, regulatory fragmentation and underdeveloped regional value chains.

Intra-African trade accounted for just 14.4% of Africa’s total trade between 2022 and 2024, compared with around 60% in Asia and 57% in Europe.

The report argued that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) could become a major driver of industrialisation if African economies move from what it described as “integration for trade” toward “integration for production” through stronger infrastructure integration, industrial coordination and regional manufacturing supply chains.

The AfDB estimates that effective implementation of the AfCFTA could increase African incomes by about 7% by 2035 and generate up to $450bn in additional economic value.

The bank also projected that intra-African trade could increase by 60% in agricultural and food products, 48% in manufacturing and 34% in services by 2045.

Analysts say shifting global supply chains, rising geopolitical fragmentation and growing demand for green industrial products linked to electric vehicles, battery materials and renewable-energy infrastructure could create new industrial opportunities for African economies over the coming decade.