Introduction: The Web of Goals in African Countries Still Prevent Concentration on Fundamental Final Goals

In March 2002, I was in an African country on mission under my employer, the African Development Bank (ADB). This country is one of the poorest countries in the world. There, the income per capita is about 250 US dollars per annum. Although according to official statistics the country experienced an annual average growth rate of 5 per cent from 1999–2002, I came to realize that the economic situation of the country continued to be marked by a high level of poverty. According to the same statistics, the primary sector, which is essentially agriculture, was the first economic sector of the country, both in terms of its contribution to the gross domestic product, which was about forty per cent, and its contribution to employment, given that it provided about eighty per cent of jobs in the economy. The country earned about ninety per cent of its revenue in foreign currency from the production and export of a limited number of primary agricultural products. The financial sector, which had experienced serious difficulties in the years preceding my visit, was gradually recovering after the government implemented a rehabilitation program.