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While the developed world creaks under the burden of debt and the threat of recession, there still remain countries with high growth prospects. Africa on a whole is braced for slowing growth for 2011/12, but a belt of sub-Saharan economies are set to buck the trend. Gold-rich Ghana is forecast to grow this year by 16.3 per cent � the fastest in the world, according to Standard Bank Research. In its latest report on the region, the South African bank, which has a subsidiary in Ghana (Stanbic Bank) noted a �brighter horizon for middle-Africa, in particular for Ghana. Admittedly, Ghana�s growth is predicted to slow sharply in 2012 � but even at a predicted 8.25 per cent it will be doing very well by global standards, the report stated. �The relative isolation of sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa) to global markets and trade flows will serve it well, limiting macroeconomic instability,� Stephen Bailey-Smith, head of Africa research has noted. Out of 20 African countries covered by the analysis, almost half should expect at least six per cent growth in 2011, according to Bailey-Smith. These include Nigeria where growth is expected to hit 7.1 per cent thanks to buoyant global demand for oil. However, South Africa�s economy is expected to slow this year with the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth forecast to be between 3.3 and 3.5 per cent. The countries analyzed were: Angola, Botswana, Cote d�Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda and Zambia.