Book
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.

Table of contents
  1. Growth and Institutions in African Development
    Augustin Kwasi Fosu
  2. Determinants of Industrial Embeddedness :: Evidence from Manufacturing Firms in an African Economy
    Abdelrasaq Na-Allah
    More Working Paper | Determinants of Industrial Embeddedness
  3. Does Lack of Innovation and Absorptive Capacity Retard Economic Growth in Africa?
    Steve Onyeiwu
    More Working Paper | Does Lack of Innovation and Absorptive Capacity Retard Economic Growth in Africa?
  4. Exchange Rate Regimes and Trade: Is Africa Different?
    Mahvash Saeed Qureshi, Charalambos G. Tsangarides
    More Working Paper | Exchange Rate Regimes and Trade
  5. Interrelationships among Health, Environmental Quality, and Economic Activity: What Consequences for Economic Convergence?
    Alassane Drabo
    More Working Paper | Interrelationships among Health, Environment Quality, and Economic Activity
  6. Emerging Evidence on the Relative Importance of Sectoral Sources of Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa
    Eric Kehinde Ogunleye
    More Working Paper | Emerging Evidence on the Relative Importance of Sectoral Sources of Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa
  7. Tourism and Economic Growth: African Evidence from Panel Vector Autoregressive Framework
    Boopen Seetanah, Kesseven Padachi, Sawkut Rojid
    More Working Paper | Tourism and Economic Growth
  8. Hunting for Leopards: Long-Run Country Income Dynamics in Africa
    Jorge Saba Arbache, John Page
    More Working Paper | Hunting for Leopards
  9. Growth and Distributional Aspects of Poverty Reduction in South Africa
    Fiona Tregenna
    More Working Paper | Halving Poverty in South Africa
  10. Outfits: Narrowly Tailored Laws that Harm Instead of Help: A Case Study of Liberia’s Telecommunication Laws
    Rosalia de la Cruz Gitau
    More Working Paper | Outfits: Narrowly Tailored Laws that Harm Instead of Help
  11. Does Foreign Aid Support Democracy Development?: Aid, Democracy, and Instability from Trade
    Thierry Kangoye
    More Working Paper | Does Foreign Aid Promote Democracy?
  12. Who’s the Alien?: Xenophobia in post-Apartheid South Africa
    Marguerite Duponchel
    More Working Paper | Who’s the Alien?
  13. How Does Colonial Origin Matter for Economic Performance in Sub-Saharan Africa?
    Julius A. Agbor
    More Working Paper | How Does Colonial Origin Matter for Economic Performance in Sub-Saharan Africa?
  14. Institutional Reforms, Private Sector, and Economic Growth in Africa
    Mawussé K. N. Okey
    More Working Paper | Institutional Reforms, Private Sector, and Economic Growth in Africa
  15. Women’s Labour Supply and Household Insurance in Africa
    Marcela Umaña-Aponte, Sonia Bhalotra
    More Working Paper | Women’s Labour Supply and Household Insurance in Africa
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Endorsements

'This volume throws new light on the factors that have contributed to the relatively inclusive growth pattern presently prevailing in Africa. The resurgence of growth in the last fifteen years, following a long period of stagnation, appears to be linked to major improvements in governance and economic freedom. In particular, the role of institutions is crucial to the current growth and development phase. A contribution of this book is to provide specific examples of successful developmental institutions in different African countries.' Erik Thorbecke, Professor of Economics at Cornell University, College of Human Ecology, USA.

'This volume contributes to a much better and broader understanding of growth and development in Africa. It gives a key role to institutions, but also pays attention to bottlenecks—such as lack of absorptive capacity and innovation and to issues as health and poverty.' Rick van der Ploeg, Professor of Economics at the University of Oxford, UK.