A Critical Analysis of African Development in the New Millennium
Going Beyond the "Good Governance" Debate
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31973/dtztg193Keywords:
Africa, Governance, Development, Economic Growth, Economic Transformation, NeopatrimonialismAbstract
Africa is a continent undergoing rapid change. However, a lot of people continue to be ignorant of it due to myths and misinformation. In many ways, Africa is a marginalized continent. Still, there is no denying that things are shifting and will probably change much more quickly. This paper examines the claims made for and against "good governance" in terms of its actual contributions to development. In three areas—the consequences for Africa's economic development, the evidence-based approach to the "good governance" objective, and its impact on the continent—it offers a concise synopsis of the research and evidence. The following sections cover the following subjects: The second section looks at the history of the debate over African governance from the 1970s to the 1990s; the third section looks at the arguments and rebuttals that have dominated academic discourse since 2000; the fourth section applies the findings to the issue of moving Africa from economic growth to economic transformation; and the fifth section concludes that comprehensive governance reform is not always necessary for developing Africa to advance economically.
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