Africa’s burgeoning youth population creates opportunities in stationery supply

Huge increase in school-going children, office jobs

By 2050, Africa’s total population is projected to reach 2.5billion.

Half of this population will be aged below 25 years old, according to UN projections, and of that 50% of the population, a large percentage will be in different levels of education or just starting out in the job market.

That is set to create a huge demand for stationery goods on the continent, which will affect world markets, according to a report.

An Africa Stationery Market report by market information advisory, 6Wresearch, projects that the continent’s stationery consumption will reach a value of more than $5bn (R73.52bn) by 2027.

According to the report, the fast-growing education sector in Africa as well as upscale commercial sector investment will push up demand for writing materials cut paper, writing implements, envelopes, continuous form paper and other office supplies like printers and computers.

“Education represents 60% of overall sector demand in Africa and, though the Covid19 pandemic has slowed demand with schools being forced to close,” the report believes the sector will rebound by the end of this year.

In 2018, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) put primary school enrolment in Africa at over 80%, with this number expected to escalate in the race to achieve education for all by 2030. Kenya, for instance, is ramping up efforts to ensure 100% transition rates from primary to secondary schools.

The Africa Stationery Market report also shows that the rise in commercial office spaces will drive demand for the wide stationery basket that also contain markers, staplers, sticky notes, highlighters and sticky tapes.

“Office space in South Africa has been increasing over the past few years on the back of government initiatives to drive the real estate and corporate industries,” says the report.

SA, where office inventory is set to reach 14.83-million square metres by the end of the year, as well as Egypt and Nigeria, the report says, will account for the lion’s share of the stationery and office supplies demand.

“Due to the increasing office sector outlook, new potential opportunities for deployment and use of video conferencing solutions in the corporate sector are expected to increase,” according to the report.

The spiralling demand for paper-based stationery is also set to offer brisk business for Africa’s paper-producing markets.

SA, Egypt, Tunisia, Kenya, Algeria and Morocco are among key players in this segment. Countries like Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Ghana, though small producers, also stand to gain through increased production capacities of their mills.

‘The spiralling demand for paper-based stationery is also set to offer brisk business for Africa’s paper-producing markets’