It was well known that Nigeria could surpass South Africa as Africa’s largest economy once its gross domestic product rebasing exercise was completed. As it happened, the populous West African country turned out to be considerably larger than its Southern African counterpart. But South Africa still has much going for it, with well functioning legal and banking systems, a relatively diversified economy and solid, albeit stretched, physical infrastructure. The challenge for both countries is to use their relative economic strength to improve the quality of life for their citizens.