Africa’s Economic Development - Africa’s Rise—Interrupted?
By Steven Radelet
Georgetown’s Steven Radelet notes:
“Is Africa’s surge
of progress over? During the past two decades, many countries across the
continent changed course and achieved significant gains in income, reductions
in poverty, and improvements in health and education. But the recent optimism
seems to have swiftly given way to a wave of pessimism. Commodity prices have
dropped, the world economy has slowed, and economic growth has stalled in
several sub-Saharan African countries. If high commodity prices alone drove
recent advances, the prospects for further gains seem dim.
But the reality is
more complex, and the outlook—especially over the long run—is more varied than
many now suggest. To be sure, many countries are confronting some of the most
difficult tests they have faced for a decade or more, and even with sound
management, progress is likely to slow in the next few years. But for
others—especially oil importers with more diversified export earnings—growth
remains fairly buoyant. At a deeper level, although high commodity prices
helped many countries, the development gains of the past two decades—where they
occurred—had their roots in more fundamental factors, including improved
governance, better policy management, and a new generation of skilled leaders
in government and business, which are likely to persist into the future.”
Related:
http://vivekjayakumar.blogspot.com/2015/11/africa-and-premature-deindustrialization.html