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AFRICAN TRANSITIONS AND THE RESOURCE CURSE: AN ALTERNATIVE PERSPECTIVE
Author(s) -
Heller Thomas C.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
economic affairs
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.24
H-Index - 18
eISSN - 1468-0270
pISSN - 0265-0665
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-0270.2006.00665.x
Subject(s) - resource curse , economic rent , commodity , economics , democracy , resource (disambiguation) , curse , politics , corporate governance , perspective (graphical) , economic system , state (computer science) , market economy , natural resource , development economics , political economy , political science , sociology , finance , computer network , algorithm , artificial intelligence , computer science , anthropology , law
Despite periodic rises in commodity prices, resource‐rich African countries have been characterised by state failure and low long‐term economic growth. Competing explanations for the resource curse are examined with a particular focus on political institutions. The effective privatisation of states is considered within an alternative theoretical framework of non‐democratic governance and non‐market economics. Given the nature of many African governments, international initiatives to encourage the development of effective markets and democracy may be inadequate to prevent increased resource rents from consolidating existing elites and their patronage regimes.