The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that frank access to vaccines is hurting economic recovery in sub-Saharan Africa and that the region will lag years behind developed nations.

The IMF report forecasts that this region of the continent will grow by 3.7% this year and 3.8% in 2022, Reuters reports. The Fund noted that rising commodity prices and favorable harvests have benefited some countries, although the overall picture is perilous.

The projected 2021 growth rates for sub-Saharan Africa mean that the region has already experienced the "slowest recovery in the world."

"The outlook remains extremely uncertain and the risks tend toward the downside," it reads. The document warns that much still depends on the course of the pandemic and vaccines. What's more, disruptions in global activity and financial markets could also make the longed-for recovery unfeasible.

The paper forecasts that South Africa should grow at 5.0% this year before a slowdown to 2.2% in 2022. Higher oil prices should help Nigeria's expansion at 2.6% this year, with rates remaining at that level for the foreseeable future.

The Angolan economy will contract by 0.7% in 2021, but its six-year recession should stagnate next year, when it will return to growth of 2.4%, although it will be slower than previously forecast due to falling investment and technical problems in the oil sector.

The IMF report concludes that "the divergent recovery paths of sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the world could turn into permanent failures, jeopardizing decades of hard-won progress," looking at the fact that the region has no external technical and financial assistance.