While Africa’s economy continued to show high resilience to global economic turbulence, the growth momentum had eased in countries with strong links to global markets, according to the African Development Bank’s African Economic Outlook report released today.

South Africa, Egypt, Sudan and Swaziland are among the 10 slowest-growing countries in Africa, the bank said,  according to a report in BusinessDayLive. Sierra Leone, Angola, Zambia and Mozambique are among the fastest-growing African countries.

Mining strikes and the European recession adversely affected economic growth in South Africa, said Mthuli Ncube, bank chief economist and vice-president. A gradual recovery is expected for 2013 and 2014, he added.

Southern African gross domestic product is expected to grow 4.1 percent in 2013 and 4.6 percent in 2014.

Zimbabwe, which just emerged from a national election won by President Robert Mugabe, shows growth rates above 5 percent, Ncube said.

The bank is confident of continued growth in Africa, led by forecasts for strong growth in Western African countries and support from spending by a growing middle class.

The continent’s average GDP growth is likely to be 4.8 percent in 2013 and 5.3 percent in 2014, the report forecasts.

“Domestic demand was often boosted through private consumption and investment, both public and private,” the report said. “Higher earnings in domestic sectors, record inflows of remittances and expanding consumer credits backed private consumption.”