2 - Post-colonial African Economic Development in Historical Perspective
Corresponding Author(s) : Alan Hirsch
Africa Development,
Vol. 45 No. 1 (2020): Africa Development
Abstract
Africa is frequently framed in a narrative that reduces or minimises its significance and achievements. We review geographical and historical perspectives of Africa and present data that provides Africa greater significance and allows us to consider post-colonial African economic achievements outside of a simplistic narrative. We argue that placing Africa in a fairer historical and geographical perspective allows for more coherent planning for Africa’s future development.
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- Arora, V. and Vamvakidis, A., 2005, ‘The implications of South African economic growth for the rest of Africa’, IMF Working Paper, WP/05/58. Available at: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2005/wp0558.pdf. Accessed December 2018.
- Arrighi, G., 2002, ‘The African crisis: world systemic and regional aspects’, New Left Review, Vol. II, No.15, May–June, Available at: http://newleftreview.org/II/15/giovanni-arrighi-the-african-crisis. Accessed December 2018.
- Atardi, E.V. and Saia-i-Martin, X., 2003, ‘The economic tragedy of the XXth century: growth in Africa’, NBER Working Paper No. 9865.
- Banya, K. and Elu, J., 2001, ‘The World Bank and financing higher education in sub-Saharan Africa’, Higher Education, Vol. 42, No. 1, pp. 1–34.
- Becker, F., 2014, ‘The bureaucratic performance of development in colonial and postcolonial Tanzania’, Canadian Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 35, No. 1,pp. 61–76.
- Bhorat, H., Cassim, A. and Hirsch, A., 2017, ‘Policy coordination and growth traps in a middle income country setting: the case of South Africa’, in J. Page and P. Tarp, eds, The Practice of Industrial Policy: Government Coordination in Africa and East Asia, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 211–33.
- Brautigam, D., 1997, ‘Institutions, economic reform and democratic consolidation in Mauritius’, Comparative Politics, Vol. 30, No. 1, pp. 45–62.
- Cheru, F., 2016, ‘Developing countries and the right to development: a retrospective and prospective African view’, Third World Quarterly, Vol. 37, No. 7, pp. 1268–83.
- CAFA (Committee for Academic Freedom in Africa), 1992, ‘The World Bank and education in Africa’, Race & Class, Vol. 34, No. 1, pp. 51–60.
- Easterly, W and Levine, R (1997) “Africa’s Growth Tragedy: Policies and Ethnic Divisions” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Volume 112, Issue 4, November 1997, Pages 1203–1250.
- Hauge J. and Irfan, M., 2016, ‘Why Ethiopia is on track to become Africa’s industrial powerhouse’, The Conversation, 22 June. Available at: https://theconversation.com/why-ethiopia-is-on-track-to-become-africas-industrial-powerhouse-57309. Accessed December 2018.
- Henderson, G. and Waterstone, M., eds, 2009, Geographic Thought: a Praxis Perspective,New York: Routledge.
- Johnson, S., Ostry J.D. and Submramanian, A., 2007, ‘The prospects for sustained growth in Africa: benchmarking the constraints’, NBER Working Paper No. 13120. Available at: http://www.nber.org/papers/w13120.
- Kagame, P., 2017, ‘The imperative to strengthen our Union’, Available at: http://www.gsdpp.uct.ac.za/sites/default/files/image_tool/images/78/News/FInal%20AU%20
- Reform%20Combined%20report_28012017.pdf. Accessed X December 2018.
- Knopf, D., 2017, ‘The story of Ethiopia’s incredible economic rise’, Quartz Africa, Available at:
- https://qz.com/1109739/ethiopia-is-one-of-the-fastest-growing-economies-in-the-world/. Accessed X December 2018.
- Lake, A., 1976, The ‘Tar Baby’ Option: American Policy Toward Southern Rhodesia, New York: Columbia University Press.
- Lopes, C., 2013, ‘Structural adjustment policies and Africa – a reply to Shantayanan Devarajan’, UNECA, 25 November, Available at: https://www.uneca.org/sites/default/files/LopesWritings/structural_adjustment_policies_and_africacarlos_ lopes_response.pdf.
- Accessed Decemer 2018.
- Lopes, C., Hamdok, A. and Elhiraika, A., eds, 2017, Macroeconomic Policy Framework for Africa’s Structural Transformation, Cham: Palgrave MacMillan
- Loxton, J 1985, ‘The Peters Phenomenon’, The Cartographic Journal, Volume 22, Issue 2.
- Mandela, N and Langa M., 2017, Dare Not Linger: the Presidential Years, MacMillan McKinsey, 2016, Lions on The Move II: Realizing the Potential of Africa’s Economies,
- McKinsey Global Institute Meffe, D., 2013, ‘The distorted size of Africa’, Africa Review, 13 November, Available at:
- http://www.africareview.com/Special-Reports/The-distorted-size-of-Africa/-/979182/2071294/-/4x8ptsz/-/index.html.
- Nattrass, N. and Seekings, J., 2010, ‘State, business and growth in post-Apartheid South Africa’,
- IPPG Programme Discussion Paper Series 34, University of Manchester.
- Oxford Business Group, 2015, ‘The Report: Morocco 2015’, Available at: https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/overview/morocco-works-ensure-future-economic-growth.
- Perry, A., 2009, ‘Trevor Manuel: the veteran’, Time Magazine, 25 March. http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1887592,00.html
- Peters, A., 1983, The New Cartography, New York: Friendship.
- Prados, J., 2006, Safe for Democracy: The Secret Wars of the CIA, Chicago: Ivan R. Dee.
- Renwick, R., 2015, Mission to South Africa: Diary of a Revolution, Johannesburg and Cape Town: Jonathan Ball.
- Robinson, J., Acemoglu, D. and Johnson, S., 2003, ‘An African success story: Botswana’, in D. Rodrik, ed., Search of Prosperity: Analytical Narratives on Economic Growth, Princeton: Princeton University Press, pp. 80–119.
- Rodrik, D., 2016, ‘The return of public investment’, Project Syndicate, 13 January.
- Sylwester, K., 2005, ‘Decolonisation and economic growth: the case of Africa’, Journal of Economic Development, Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 87–102.
- UNECA, 2016a, Macroeconomic Policy and Structural Transformation of African Economies, Addis Ababa: UNECA.
- The Economist, 2000, ‘Hopeless Africa’, 11 May.
- The Economist, 2011, ‘The true true size of Africa’, 10 November. Available at:
- https://www.economist.com/blogs/dailychart/2010/11/cartography. Accessed December 2018.
- UNECA, 2016b, Transformative Industrial Policy for Africa, Addis Ababa: UNECA. World Economics, 2016. ‘Measuring GDP in Africa’, Available at: http://www.worldeconomics.com/Papers/Measuring%20GDP%20in%20Africa_2c4addf3-b795-44f2-8d30-23b9e22f284e.paper.
- Wrong, M., 2000, In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in the Congo, London: Fourth Estate.
References
Arora, V. and Vamvakidis, A., 2005, ‘The implications of South African economic growth for the rest of Africa’, IMF Working Paper, WP/05/58. Available at: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2005/wp0558.pdf. Accessed December 2018.
Arrighi, G., 2002, ‘The African crisis: world systemic and regional aspects’, New Left Review, Vol. II, No.15, May–June, Available at: http://newleftreview.org/II/15/giovanni-arrighi-the-african-crisis. Accessed December 2018.
Atardi, E.V. and Saia-i-Martin, X., 2003, ‘The economic tragedy of the XXth century: growth in Africa’, NBER Working Paper No. 9865.
Banya, K. and Elu, J., 2001, ‘The World Bank and financing higher education in sub-Saharan Africa’, Higher Education, Vol. 42, No. 1, pp. 1–34.
Becker, F., 2014, ‘The bureaucratic performance of development in colonial and postcolonial Tanzania’, Canadian Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 35, No. 1,pp. 61–76.
Bhorat, H., Cassim, A. and Hirsch, A., 2017, ‘Policy coordination and growth traps in a middle income country setting: the case of South Africa’, in J. Page and P. Tarp, eds, The Practice of Industrial Policy: Government Coordination in Africa and East Asia, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 211–33.
Brautigam, D., 1997, ‘Institutions, economic reform and democratic consolidation in Mauritius’, Comparative Politics, Vol. 30, No. 1, pp. 45–62.
Cheru, F., 2016, ‘Developing countries and the right to development: a retrospective and prospective African view’, Third World Quarterly, Vol. 37, No. 7, pp. 1268–83.
CAFA (Committee for Academic Freedom in Africa), 1992, ‘The World Bank and education in Africa’, Race & Class, Vol. 34, No. 1, pp. 51–60.
Easterly, W and Levine, R (1997) “Africa’s Growth Tragedy: Policies and Ethnic Divisions” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Volume 112, Issue 4, November 1997, Pages 1203–1250.
Hauge J. and Irfan, M., 2016, ‘Why Ethiopia is on track to become Africa’s industrial powerhouse’, The Conversation, 22 June. Available at: https://theconversation.com/why-ethiopia-is-on-track-to-become-africas-industrial-powerhouse-57309. Accessed December 2018.
Henderson, G. and Waterstone, M., eds, 2009, Geographic Thought: a Praxis Perspective,New York: Routledge.
Johnson, S., Ostry J.D. and Submramanian, A., 2007, ‘The prospects for sustained growth in Africa: benchmarking the constraints’, NBER Working Paper No. 13120. Available at: http://www.nber.org/papers/w13120.
Kagame, P., 2017, ‘The imperative to strengthen our Union’, Available at: http://www.gsdpp.uct.ac.za/sites/default/files/image_tool/images/78/News/FInal%20AU%20
Reform%20Combined%20report_28012017.pdf. Accessed X December 2018.
Knopf, D., 2017, ‘The story of Ethiopia’s incredible economic rise’, Quartz Africa, Available at:
https://qz.com/1109739/ethiopia-is-one-of-the-fastest-growing-economies-in-the-world/. Accessed X December 2018.
Lake, A., 1976, The ‘Tar Baby’ Option: American Policy Toward Southern Rhodesia, New York: Columbia University Press.
Lopes, C., 2013, ‘Structural adjustment policies and Africa – a reply to Shantayanan Devarajan’, UNECA, 25 November, Available at: https://www.uneca.org/sites/default/files/LopesWritings/structural_adjustment_policies_and_africacarlos_ lopes_response.pdf.
Accessed Decemer 2018.
Lopes, C., Hamdok, A. and Elhiraika, A., eds, 2017, Macroeconomic Policy Framework for Africa’s Structural Transformation, Cham: Palgrave MacMillan
Loxton, J 1985, ‘The Peters Phenomenon’, The Cartographic Journal, Volume 22, Issue 2.
Mandela, N and Langa M., 2017, Dare Not Linger: the Presidential Years, MacMillan McKinsey, 2016, Lions on The Move II: Realizing the Potential of Africa’s Economies,
McKinsey Global Institute Meffe, D., 2013, ‘The distorted size of Africa’, Africa Review, 13 November, Available at:
Nattrass, N. and Seekings, J., 2010, ‘State, business and growth in post-Apartheid South Africa’,
IPPG Programme Discussion Paper Series 34, University of Manchester.
Oxford Business Group, 2015, ‘The Report: Morocco 2015’, Available at: https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/overview/morocco-works-ensure-future-economic-growth.
Perry, A., 2009, ‘Trevor Manuel: the veteran’, Time Magazine, 25 March. http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1887592,00.html
Peters, A., 1983, The New Cartography, New York: Friendship.
Prados, J., 2006, Safe for Democracy: The Secret Wars of the CIA, Chicago: Ivan R. Dee.
Renwick, R., 2015, Mission to South Africa: Diary of a Revolution, Johannesburg and Cape Town: Jonathan Ball.
Robinson, J., Acemoglu, D. and Johnson, S., 2003, ‘An African success story: Botswana’, in D. Rodrik, ed., Search of Prosperity: Analytical Narratives on Economic Growth, Princeton: Princeton University Press, pp. 80–119.
Rodrik, D., 2016, ‘The return of public investment’, Project Syndicate, 13 January.
Sylwester, K., 2005, ‘Decolonisation and economic growth: the case of Africa’, Journal of Economic Development, Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 87–102.
UNECA, 2016a, Macroeconomic Policy and Structural Transformation of African Economies, Addis Ababa: UNECA.
The Economist, 2000, ‘Hopeless Africa’, 11 May.
The Economist, 2011, ‘The true true size of Africa’, 10 November. Available at:
https://www.economist.com/blogs/dailychart/2010/11/cartography. Accessed December 2018.
UNECA, 2016b, Transformative Industrial Policy for Africa, Addis Ababa: UNECA. World Economics, 2016. ‘Measuring GDP in Africa’, Available at: http://www.worldeconomics.com/Papers/Measuring%20GDP%20in%20Africa_2c4addf3-b795-44f2-8d30-23b9e22f284e.paper.
Wrong, M., 2000, In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in the Congo, London: Fourth Estate.