For South Africa's new president the only way is up | Larry Elliott

Jacob Zuma scandals dragged down the economy. Now Cyril Ramaphosa has the chance to unleash a regional superpower

Timing matters a lot in determining political success. Gordon Brown could hardly have become prime minister at a worse time because in the summer of 2007 the UK economy had been growing for 15 years, the financial crisis was just around the corner and the only way was down.

For Cyril Ramaphosa, by contrast, the only way is up. The new South African president has taken over an economy that should be a regional superpower but has been seriously underperforming in recent years. The growth rate has been on a downward trend since the initial bounce back from the "great recession" and is close to zero. Unemployment is above 25% and the poverty rate is higher than in other large emerging market economies.