Changing International Trade Linkages in Sub-Saharan Africa: BRIC versus OECD Countries

This chapter uses country-level exports and imports data for 42 Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries to establish a link between changing international trade linkages in SSA and growth. The comparative analysis shows that the share of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) in SSA’s trade has been increasing significantly relative to that of OECD member countries. Further, the findings support the existence of a significant link between the higher growth rates recently observed in SSA and changing trade linkages.