Over the last ten years, sub-Saharan Africa has come across economic growth of coarsely five percent per year. Today, 21 African countries are considered “middle income”(Christiaensen and Devarajan). Regardless of strong growth, the impact on poverty is much less than hoped. Today, many countries in Africa add up among the world’s poorest. To tackle this poverty problem the collective prescription is economic development. Economic development refers to the continuous actions of policy makers and societies that encourage the standard of living and economic health of a precise area. It is policy involvement with aims of economic and social well being of people. “Economic development conveys a down-to-earth aspiration: to have clean water, decent schools, and health facilities; to produce larger harvests and more manufactured goods; to have access to the consumer goods which people elsewhere consider a normal part of life (Cooper).”
Africa has faced many internal and external limitations in attempting to improve poverty and promote development. During the 1940’s, development economists were wanted by African governments and aid agencies. The field gave logical nourishment to the idea that poor regions could think towards their future without defeating the global order. Before the new development economists had united their place in the institution, they were challenged by economists who used parallel scholarly tools to make a contradictory argument. That argument was that the international economy, made the rich richer and the poor poorer (Cooper). This mean that underprivileged countries were to distance themselves from global markets.
Government corruption was a big constraint that Africa faced. African regimes and nongovern...
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...ven to have performed better than others. This is due to the inequality in resources and economics. Emerging countries have pursued improvements in things like government and economic policies. African countries are poorly managed, which has huge effects on the continent. Implanting accountability would aid Africa to turn the opportunity of economic growth into more continuous decrease of poverty and inequality.
References:
CHRISTIAENSEN, LUC, and SHANTAYANAN DEVARAJAN. "Making the Most of Africa’s Growth." (n.d.): n. pag. Web. .
Cooper, Frederick. Africa since 1940: The past of the Present. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge UP, 2002. Print.
Radelet, Steven C. Emerging Africa: How 17 Countries Are Leading the Way. Baltimore, MD: Center for Global Development, 2010. Print.
Mazrui, Ali A. "The Re-Invention of Africa: Edward Said, V. Y. Mudimbe, and Beyond." Research in African Literatures 36, no. 3 (Autumn 2005): 68-82.
The impact of the Structural Adjustment Programs imposed by International Financial Intuitions (IFIs) such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund on the developing countries of Africa has led to the destruction of Africa’s social sectors and has handicapped Africa in its fight with poverty, the AIDS pandemic, and keeping children in school.
"The Scramble for Africa." The Economist. The Economist Newspaper, 25 Dec. 1999. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
In the modern day, Africa is seen by the world around it as a relatively underprivileged continent. Since its independence from colonial rule, Africa 's economic performance has been less than stellar and its advancement has been slow, which could be argued through a myriad of different ideologies. Nathan Nunn, the author of “Historical Legacies: A model linking Africa’s past to its current underdevelopment” believes that the slave trade and colonial rule, brought on by the Europeans in the past, is the reason for Africa’s economic hardships, that are still lingering to this day. What he sets out to answer in this academic paper is an interesting question, “Why do these events, which ended years ago, continue to matter today?” Through the
“Africa is failing to keep up with population growth not because it has exhausted its potential, but instead because too little has been invested in reaching that potential.” Paarlberg backs this claim with evidence that India’s food issue was solved with foreign assistance in development and offers that the solution to Africa’s food shortage is also development and farm modernization endorsed by foreign aid.
"News." Africa Continues to Grow Strongly but Poverty and Inequality Remain Persistently High. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2013.
It is thought-provoking, in the sense that Africa’s need for foreign created a race to the bottom, much like what Pietra Rivoli described in The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy. Due to some African states’ reliance on foreign aid in order to mine and profit on their resources, they allow business standards to be lowered and for Chinese firms to tip the contracts moresoever in the favor of Chinese firms. This lowers the potential earnings of African states by lowering royalty rates, for example. Additionally, Burgis’ research was thorough and transparent. When he did not receive a response or if his questions were dodged, he made it obvious to the readers. Sure, some could view this book as too anecdotal to be used as a credible source of Africa’s situation. However, this is due to the nature of the system Burgis is writing about; after all, they are shadow states for a reason. Some readers will be saddened by this text, others angry, most curious to learn more, but above all, everyone will be intellectually stimulated and
The "DBQ Project" What Is the Driving Force Behind European Imperialism in Africa? (2012): 257. pp. 177-177. Print.
In sub-Saharan Africa, the mean income is higher than that of India, however the amount extent of poverty and malnutrition is higher than that of India (Sen, pg.99). This mainly due to both legal and social injustice in Africa and justice in India, as Sen states Africa is “self sufficient in food”, but India is “self-sufficient
... Cambridge Encyclopedia of Africa. Ed. Roland Oliver. 1. New York: Trewin Copplestone Books Limited, 1984. Print.
How Europe Underdeveloped Africa by Walter Rodney, was one of the most controversial books in the world at the time of its release. The book seeks to argue that European exploitation and involvement in Africa throughout history. This is the cause of current African underdevelopment, and the true path to the development is for Africa to completely sever her ties with the international capitalist economy. Rodney describes his goal in writing the book in the preface: “this book derives from a concern with the contemporary African situation. It delves into the past only because otherwise it would be impossible to understand how the present came into being and what the trends are for the near future” (vii). Rodney writes from a distinctly Marxist perspective by arguing that the inequalities inherent in European capitalism and required exploitation of certain countries in order to sustain capitalism.
Growth in Africa is not enough for its people to grow, which is leading to poverty and hunger in Africa. Today Africa is one of the leading countries having poverty and economic problems. One half of the Africans live below the poverty line which leads to low human development in Africa. The main cause of poverty in Africa is a problem in its economic system and environmental factors. Because of poverty people of Africa remain hungry as they don’t have enough money to buy their food and their basic needs. Some of the African countries have less poverty rate than others due to good government and economic system in those countries. Most of the African is facing challenges to survive and keep their family healthy.
Hopkins, A. G. An Economic History of West Africa. New York: Columbia UP, 1973. Print.
The New Imperialism and the Scramble for Africa 1880-1914. Jeff Taylor, n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2014.
There is no doubt that European colonialism has left a grave impact on Africa. Many of Africa’s current and recent issues can trace their roots back to the poor decisions made during the European colonial era. Some good has resulted however, like modern medicine, education, and infrastructure. Africa’s history and culture have also been transformed. It will take many years for the scars left by colonization to fade, but some things may never truly disappear. The fate of the continent may be unclear, but its past provides us with information on why the present is the way it is.