It's Per Capita Growth that Matters for Well-Being

The NYT had a piece telling readers that growth in Africa has not been able to reduce the number of people in poverty. By not taking population growth into account, it wrongly implied that the continent is seeing rapid growth. It told readers:

"The continent is indeed posting gains — in 2013, sub-Saharan Africa’s growth rate is projected at 4.9 percent, a figure that would be the envy of any Western government."

Actually, the 4.9 percent figure is not especially strong. Africa's population gr...