African Economic Development

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This book reviews the performance of low-income African countries and highlights the challenges posed by measurement and methodological problems. It also discusses some of the more significant myths that have arisen, as well as the way that economic models can often be useful for understanding the situation of low-income African countries.

Myths have long plagued the understanding of Africa. Today, the myths continue but are very different and certainly are more sophisticated, taking the form of economic models of behavior or statistical analyses, sometimes based on faulty data or interpretations of it. It is not surprising, as a result, that they lead to very different policy conclusions.

This book reviews the performance of low-income African countries and highlights the challenges posed by measurement and methodological problems. It also discusses some of the more significant myths that have arisen, as well as the way that economic models - which themselves are also myths - if carefully structured, can often be useful for understanding, if not carefully describing, the situation of many low-income African countries. Structured in three parts, the book first critiques historical and narrative-driven myths, then investigates model-based myths around convergence and growth; and the final section synthesizes eight dominant myths that continue to shape policy. The book addresses key themes such as poverty traps, economic growth, and urbanization, providing an examination of the complexities surrounding these issues in low-income African countries. It brings together current development issues in one place in a way that builds upon new and improved data sources. Insights from various fields are integrated into the book, providing a holistic understanding of the development landscape in low-income Africa.

This book will appeal to academics, researchers, and advanced students, as well as policymakers and development practitioners, concerned with poverty and development issues, especially in Africa.

Obsah

Preface.1. Introduction Section I: Perspectives in Search of Theory 2. Economic Growth in Low-Income Africa: Through the Prism of Improved and More Recent Data 3. Foreign Aid: Finance Versus Fiscal Assistance 4. Africa is not On Time Section II: Theory in Search of Evidence 5. Convergence: Not in Low-Income Africa 6. Obstacles to Convergence: Thought Experiments and Divergence Clubs 7. The Bottom Half of the Bottom Billion: Changes Over Time Section III: Conclusion 8. Myths and their Implications