The ranking assesses 145 countries based on the diversity and sophistication of their inputs and technologies essential to the global energy transition. Countries that only produce raw critical minerals are thus significantly penalized.

Tunisia and Morocco are the most competitive African nations in global green value chains, according to the new Greenplexity Index released on Wednesday, Nov. 5, by The Growth Lab, a think tank affiliated with Harvard Kennedy School.

The index assesses the breadth and complexity of 145 countries’ participation in green value chains, the technologies, minerals, and inputs central to the global energy transition, based on 2023 data. The methodology applies the principles of the Growth Lab’s economic complexity index, which evaluates the diversity and sophistication of a country’s production capabilities, specifically to industries crucial for the energy transition.

The Greenplexity Index measures a country’s competitive presence by evaluating both breadth (the number and diversity of green products the country is competitive in) and depth (the complexity of those green products, suggesting a higher degree of technological sophistication and know-how). Consequently, countries that only produce raw critical minerals without the capacity for processing and manufacturing finished or semi-finished products rank lower. Globally, countries can boost their score by manufacturing a greater number of more complex, diversified products that feed the global decarbonization race.

African Rankings

Tunisia ranks highest in Africa and 33rd globally. Its strong showing is attributed to the competitiveness of its industrial clusters specializing in electrical equipment and control systems, including insulated electric cables, transformers, fiberglass, power converters, industrial motors, technical polymers, synthetic fibers, and semi-finished metals such as aluminum plates and nickel bars.

Morocco (58th globally) ranks second in Africa, leading a competitive group that includes Egypt (64th), Mauritius (67th), South Africa (69th), Eswatini (76th), Togo (78th), Benin (79th), and Burkina Faso (87th). Chad (89th) rounds out the African Top 10.

Ricardo Hausmann, Director of the Growth Lab and a professor at Harvard Kennedy School, said the index indicates which countries are positioned to capitalize on the shift to green energy.

“Countries with a complex and diversified presence in green value chains have the capacity to grow in a decarbonizing world,” Hausmann explained. “The Greenplexity Index shows who is ready to lead—and who must act fast to catch up if they want to participate in this growth opportunity.”

Globally, Japan has the most extensive and complex participation in green value chains, followed by Germany, the Czech Republic, France, and China.

Walid Kéfi

Ranking of the Most Competitive African Countries in Green Value Chains