Growth And Institutions In African Development

Recent years have seen a sustained research effort exploring the African development experience. The extant literature has offered a large set of explanations as to why the African development record has lagged behind that of other regions of the developing world. This new volume brings international contributors together to focus on the role of growth and institutions. First, it provides brief evidence on the growth and institutional records, as well as on development outcomes, during the post-independence period. Second, it targets certain growth determinants, including industrial embeddedness, innovation, exchange rate regimes, and environmental quality. Third, it sheds light on the dynamics and distribution of growth, and on growth-enhancing sectors of the economy. Finally, it investigates several issues of institutional development, as well as institutions generating development outcomes. Though focused on these two key areas, the coverage strives to achieve a comprehensive analysis of how Africa’s development may have been enhanced or undermined and to offer lessons for the future. This volume is essential reading for all scholars of development economics and development studies.

African countries are pursuing a number of development agendas toward achieving economic growth that is inclusive, pro-poor, and sustainable, particularly the type that can unleash the potential of women and booming youthful populations. However, available evidence shows that many African countries have experienced economic hardships and have performed more poorly than other developing and emerging countries in the global south. The Handbook of Research on Institution Development for Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Growth in Africa is an essential research publication that provides comprehensive research on the processes of building viable institutions in Africa that will serve as the fulcrum for utilizing and managing resources as well as promoting economic growth that is inclusive and sustainable. Featuring topics such as climate change, financial development, and poverty, this book is ideal for researchers, policymakers, developers, economic professionals, academicians, government officials, business professionals, and students.

A significant contribution to the debate on poverty alleviation in Africa, Professor Mbaku offers practical policies for economic growth. He argues that the most important contributor to poverty and deprivation in Africa is the absense of institutional structures that enhance indigenous entrepreneurship and wealth creation. He explains that these are so vital that living standards will continue to deteriorate unless these building blocks are put in place.

This volume reflects the highlights of their deliberations.

In a sweeping survey of African economies, leading scholars offer the latest research into the biggest current influences on African growth and development, taking account of relevant institutional contexts as well as significant or unique problems that have slowed Africa’s progress.

In recent years, Africa has undergone the longest period of sustained economic growth in the continent’s history, drawing the attention of the international media and academics alike. This book analyses the Africa Rising narrative from multidisciplinary perspectives, offering a critical assessment of the explanations given for the poor economic growth and development performance in Africa prior to the millennium and the dramatic shift towards the new Africa. Bringing in perspectives from African intellectuals and scholars, many of whom have previously been overlooked in this debate, the book examines the construction of Africa’s economic growth and development portraits over the years. It looks at two institutions that play a vital role in African development, providing a detailed explanation of how the World Bank and the IMF have interpreted and dealt with the African challenges and experiences. The insightful analysis reveals that if Africa is rising, only 20-30 per cent of Africans are aboard the rising ship, and the main challenge facing the continent today is to bring on board the majority of Africans who have been excluded from growth. This book makes the complex, and sometimes confusing debates on Africa’s economic growth experience more accessible to a wide range of readers interested in the Africa story. It is essential reading for students and researchers in African Studies, and will be of great interest to scholars in Development Studies, Political Economy, and Development Economics.

What qualifies an economy as “emerging”? The answers provided in this book lead to a fresh conception of the diversity of the African continent. Thus, growth dynamics cannot simply be measured in economic terms. Indicators must also include ...

In the ongoing battle against global poverty, the countries of Africa continue to present the greatest challenge. African Development offers a comprehensive introduction to the issues, actors, and institutions interacting across the diverse continent. Each issue chapter is organized around three fundamental questions: Where are we now? How did we get to this point? What are the current debates? Interspersed throughout are vivid sidebars acquainting the student with ten well-known big men and ten equally important but lesser known African actors. The text also includes the ABCs of development jargon.