re: What will it take for African countries to experience the same growth as China?

Mediterranean Africa does and and will continue to do mostly alright. The problem there is usually just militant Islam.

Subsaharan though becomes a mess. You got the doing okays like Kenya and Ghana. Then you got South Africa's huge backslide and a bunch of failed states like Somalia and the interior countries spilling over their warlords really needing a cultural revolution to get anywhere.

Warlords and tribalism hand in hand stall progress and have for centuries. Happened with the Indians here in North America too.

The countries that get anywhere in non Mediterranean Africa have an identity beyond the tribe. They've moved on to if not patriotism, then at least a national pride.

And that stability helps in everything.