fuels), which hac already dropped by around 1 per cent in 1980,. fell f~rther by around 8.3 per cent in 1981. This was in line· with the recession eYperienced by most countries of the zone, especially the Ivory Coast ana Senegal, the biggest consumers. In Ghana there are no data for 1981, but imports of crude oil have been falling continuously since 1978, with a 7.2 per cent drop in 1980. Meanwhile, even though retail prices for petroleum products were increased three times in 1981, with a total rise of 17.1 per cent over the year, they are still too low because the cedi remains overvalued. In Kenya consumption of petroleum products fell by 5.4 per cent in 1981, and was expected to fall by a further 3.2 per cent in 1982. The country faces serious problems with petroleum supplies: import costs rose by 72 per cent in 1981. The Government cut oil imports by 10 per cent in A "t;.gust 1982. 74 E/ECA /CM. 9/5 7. Elect ri city 138. The latest complete data on electricity procuction refer to the year 1980, giving a total cf 91,800 GWh for developing Africa, of of which 63.5 per cent were from hydropower. Since that date there are only partial data on the most important producers. As table IV.C.3 shows, the 11 countries for which data are available for 1980 ana 1981 produced a total of more than 6,000 GWh per month, compare~ with the average monthly production for developing Africa of 7,650 GWh in 1980. The countries selected are therefore a very good sample as far as electricity production is concerned. As can be seen, production increased by 9.4 per cent in 1981; (the average rate of growth for developing Africa as a whole in the peri oc 1976-1980 was 9.4 per cent) but most of the growth occurred in cil-proeucing 
**Analysis**
The text primarily discusses the economic situation in several African countries, focusing on the decline of fuel consumption and production, as well as the challenges faced by countries in maintaining their electricity supplies. The text also touches on the impact of economic recession on the region. These themes suggest that the text is more relevant to economic development and natural resources and environment.

**Category**
Economic development, Natural resources and environment