The World Bank has said the new discoveries of oil, gas, and other minerals in African countries will generate a wave of significant mineral wealth to the countries, and that the economic importance of natural resources is likely to continue in the medium term, the bank said in a statement released on Oct. 4.

"Resource-rich African countries have to make the conscious choice to invest in better health, education, and jobs, and less poverty for their people because it will not happen automatically when countries strike it rich," said Shantayanan Devarajan, the World Bank's Chief Economist for Africa.

Devarajan said given the huge size of the reserves, it is likely that the dependence on oil resources in African countries is likely to continue in the near to medium term. "Production in new mineral countries such as Ghana, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Uganda could last for a substantial number of years as well," he said.