The Role of the Service Sector in Africa’s Socio-Economic Development

The scientific conference “Service Sector in Africa: Current State and Development Prospects”, held in November, 2023, was organized by the Centre for Transition Economy Studies of the Institute for African Studies (Russian Academy of Sciences). The reports presented at the sessions were devoted to the problems of rapid increase in the service sector share in African countries’ economy, changes in its structure and increasing role in the formation of a modern model of socio-economic development. Speakers focused on 4 main areas: 1) the role of the service sector in the development of Africa’s economy; 2) tourist services; 3) information, consulting, management services; 4) services in the field of security, culture, healthcare, public administration. Particular reference was made to the changes taking place in the main forms of consumer access to services in the era of digitalization and the peculiarities of the informal services market in Africa. The possibilities of expanding Russian-African cooperation in the field of scientific, technological and educational services were considered as well.