Africa is the fastest growing beer market in the world, thanks to urbanisation, rising incomes and a growing working-age population, according to a recent report. In its latest Global Beer Trends study, drinks researcher Canadean forecast 5% volume growth across the continent from 2015-2020, compared to 3% for Asia and 1% or less in Europe and N America. South Africa, Nigeria and Angola are expected to account for the greater part of the incremental increase of 3.7m/hectolitres over the five year period. While economic growth and a young population would be important pointers to growth anywhere, there is an additional factor at work in Africa where home-brewed beers have long been available. "The consumption growth in these markets will be stimulated by the consumer migration from home-brewed to more commercially brewed beers and consequently towards premium brands." said P Jayasena, an analyst at Canadean.
