African Development Bank Articles

Women and Micro-credit - Click To Read Article
Since the establishment of the Grameen Bank as a micro-credit delivery model, many programmes have rushed to replicate the relative success and in doing so, a lot of attention has been given to female micro-credit borrowers. Women were specifically targeted because they make up the majority of the poorest of the poor in the rural areas and are responsible for the social and economic welfare of the family.

Variation within the continent: Africa’s human development - Click To Read Article
Although it can be useful to consider Africa as a whole, there is considerable variation in human and economic development within the continent.

Trends since 1960: Africa’s human development - Click To Read Article
The welfare of Africans rose in both the 1960s and 1970s, whether assessed solely by GDP per capita or by the wider HDI.

The role of human and physical capital in growth: The Effects of Human Capital on Economic Development - Click To Read Article
We begin by a consideration of the links by which investment may affect the growth of output. Both physical and human capital directly impact on the productive capacity of an economy. However such direct effects may not be the most important.

Targeting women: Tenets of Micro-credit for Poverty Reduction - Click To Read Article
Is this gender consciousness?

The concept of development: Africa’s human development - Click To Read Article
The concept of human development centres around the notion that human welfare depends on various dimensions, many of which are not well captured by conventional measures of economic income.

Savings Mobilisation: Tenets of Micro-credit for Poverty Reduction - Click To Read Article
One of the more common requirements of most MFIs is to encourage savings amongst the clients so that they develop an attitude of savings first and borrowing on that amount, and also to empower them, in the long term, to be independent of borrowing from external sources.

Removal of Barriers and Enhancement of Market Access: Barriers to African External Trade - Click To Read Article
It is now widely believed that a major challenge to the expansion of trade by African countries is that of increasing access to developed country markets.

Recommendations for future research - Factors Impeding the Poverty Reduction Capacity of Micro-credit: Some Field Observations from Malawi and Ethiopia - Click To Read Article
In light of the conclusions drawn above, there is a need for further policy and action oriented research and in-depth investigation. First and foremost, there is a need for extensive empirical evidence to verify and ascertain the capabilities of micro-credit in reducing the depth and scope of poverty.

Regionalism, Trade and Development in Africa - Click To Read Article
Regional co-operation, using regional trade groupings or regional economic communities (RECs), has been a dominant feature in the development of trade policy since the end of the Second World War.

Regional Economic Communities in Africa - Click To Read Article
Regional economic integration has a long history in Africa. The South African Customs Union (SACU) was established in 1910 while the East African Community (EAC) was set up in 1919. The East African Community collapsed in 1987 but is now being actively revived. Currently there are 14 regional economic communities in Africa.

Provisions of Agreement on Agriculture - Click To Read Article
The long-term objective of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture is to establish a fair and market-oriented agriculture trading system. It is also aimed at initiating a reform process through the negotiation of commitments on support and protection and through the establishment of strengthened and more operationally effective GATT rules and disciplines.

References: Enhancing Africa’s Trade: From Marginalization to an Export-Led Approach to Development - Click To Read Article
References

Rates of Return: The Effects of Human Capital on Economic Development - Click To Read Article
By what criterion should an investment policy be judged? One important criterion is the rate of return on investment. What is meant by the rate of return on the investment and why is such a figure important?

Rates of Return on Educational Investment from Micro Studies: The Effects of Human Capital on Economic Development - Click To Read Article
The conventional wisdom is that there is a high rate of return on primary schooling. This view is based largely on surveys of rate of return studies by Psacharopoulos.

References: Human Capital and Economic Development - Click To Read Article
References

Post-Annual Meetings Interview with AfDB Chief Economist: Africa needs a business-friendly environment - Click To Read Article
“African countries need to reduce the high administrative barriers and excessive regulations that result in substantial delays and high transactions costs to firms wishing to invest. Starting a business in most African countries is still relatively costly and getting a licence processed is time-consuming,” says AfDB Chief Economist, Louis Kasekende in an interview granted after the Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank Group, held in Shanghai from 16-17 May 2007.

Poverty Measurements and Relevance of Micro-credit - Click To Read Article
Some recent studies on poverty have attempted to put forth terms and classifications of the very poor in a way that will allow the reader to imagine the extreme helplessness, and a state of extreme destitute amongst the people under discussion.

Productivity effects of ill health and malnutrition: The Effects of Human Capital on Economic Development - Click To Read Article
Less research has been done on the returns to health and nutrition than on the returns to education. This is partly because the non-monetary aspects of these returns - greater longevity, reduced suffering and absence of disability - are arguably more central than in the case of education.

Poverty and Human Resources - Click To Read Article
Poverty can prevent households from making high return investments in the human capital of their children.

New Approaches to Trade Development in Africa - Click To Read Article
One of the new approaches that can be used to foster trade development in Africa is establishment of export processing zones (EPZs). EPZs or duty free zones are areas where domestic and foreign firms locate their production facilities for manufacture, assembly or processing of goods.

MITIGATING RISKS FOR AFRICA'S GROWTH BUSINESSES (SMEs) - Click To Read Article
PRESENTATION AT THE JAI/ADB 2ND ND AWIB TRAINING WORKSHOP SEPTEMBER 19-23, TUNIS, TUNISIA BY PETER KIBIRITI, CEO, CORPORATE AFRICA LTD CEO,NAIROBI, KENYA AUGUST 2005

Micro-finance Policy and Development Framework: Malawi - Click To Read Article
In Malawi poverty is more persistent in the rural areas at about 65.3% of the population. The recent poverty profile (National Economic Council, 2000) suggests that these poor are characterised by malnutrition, lack of income earning opportunities, and unfavourable production environment. Female-headed households, which are estimated to be about 35% nationally, are consistently poorer than male-headed households, and are mainly engaged in subsistence farming and petty trading activities.

Micro-finance Policy and Development Framework: Ethiopia - Click To Read Article
Ethiopia is the second most populous nation in sub-Saharan Africa with approximately 63 million people and almost 44% of the population being in the age of 15 years and below. Ethiopia ranks 158 out of 162 countries in the Human Development Index (UNDP, 2001a).

MFI structural inconsistencies and mismatch for poverty reduction: Tenets of Micro-credit for Poverty Reduction - Click To Read Article
Micro-credit for small economic activities, excluding actual agriculture production, can be considered as a ‘quick money making business’.

Market access: Provisions of Agreement on Agriculture - Click To Read Article
An often-mentioned problem of developing countries’ agricultural export has been the lack of access to developed countries' markets, due to the institution of a myriad of import controls and other restrictions. This has largely undermined the growth prospects of developing countries whose development strategy relied on agricultural exports.

Loan amounts and loan management: Tenets of Micro-credit for Poverty Reduction - Click To Read Article
The following paragraphs will discuss some of the features which have been identified as best practices from lessons learnt in micro-credit programmes over the last two decades. These features have been developed over the years to make micro-credit accessible and manageable for the ‘poorest of the poor’, specifically women. Furthermore, it is through these features that it is expected that women should be empowered.

Introduction - Abstract - Factors Impeding the Poverty Reduction Capacity of Micro-credit: Some Field Observations from Malawi and Ethiopia - Click To Read Article
Poverty reduction has been identified as the overarching long term goal for most of the development interventions in Africa, and more recently crystallised in the Millennium Development Goals and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). In Africa, more than 40% of its 750 million people live below the internationally recognized poverty line of $1 a day, and the evidence is even more worrying for sub-saharan Africa.

Institutional and Operational Arrangements of Micro-finance Institutions - Click To Read Article
A large number of MFIs have set-up networks in many African countries taking advantage of increased pressure on governments to deregulate the economy and the financial sector, encourage competition in all sectors, and create the conducive environment for increased production.

Interest Rates: Tenets of Micro-credit for Poverty Reduction - Click To Read Article
During the early phases of the ‘micro-credit movement’, one of the arguments for establishing special micro-credit delivery institutions aimed at addressing the needs of the poorest of the poor, was the issue of interest rates.

Introduction: Human Capital and Economic Development - Click To Read Article
Health and education are both components of human capital and contributors to human welfare. One index of human welfare, which incorporates income, education and health, shows that Africa’s level of ‘human development’ is the lowest of any region in the world.

Implications of the New Agreement for Africa’s Export Trade - Click To Read Article
Note that contracting parties of GATT 1947 wishing to become original members of the World Trade Organization are required to accept all 12 MTAs on goods incorporated into the Agreement, without exceptions or reservations.

Human and Physical Capital: The Effects of Human Capital on Economic Development - Click To Read Article
Human capital is a broad concept which identifies human characteristics which can be acquired and which increase income. It is commonly taken to include peoples’ knowledge and skills, acquired partly through education, but can also include their strength and vitality, which are dependent on their health and nutrition.

Group Mobilisation: Tenets of Micro-credit for Poverty Reduction - Click To Read Article
Another issue arising in the discussion of targeting clients is that of group dynamics and mobilisation. One of the other features of micro-credit for the poor is the alternatives developed to collateral, namely group guarantees.

Forms of Regional Integration - Click To Read Article
We may identify five main types or forms of regional integration, classifying them by a rising degree of intensity.

Export competition and export subsidies: Provisions of Agreement on Agriculture - Click To Read Article
Domestic support and export subsidy policies have been employed largely by developed economies to protect their agricultural sectors.

Export Subsidies by Developed Countries: Barriers to African External Trade - Click To Read Article
While advocates of liberalization in the economies of the developing countries have called for reduction in subsidies, the high levels of subsidies in developed countries have increased significantly especially in the OECD countries.

Export Promotion Policies in African Countries: New Approaches to Trade Development in Africa - Click To Read Article
Export promotion is a wide-ranging policy initiative that has many components and dimensions.

Export Promotion Strategies for Primary Products: New Approaches to Trade Development in Africa - Click To Read Article
Many believe that agricultural exports can be made to once again contribute substantially to export earnings.

Export Promotion Strategies for Manufactured Goods: New Approaches to Trade Development in Africa - Click To Read Article
It is well known that the gains from export of processed and manufactured goods are greater than those from exporting primary commodities largely because of the higher value added. Therefore most developing countries aim at supplementing the exportation of primary products with the export of manufactures, and eventually, like the Asian Tigers, concentrating on processed and manufactured exports.

Enhancing Africa’s Trade: From Marginalization to an Export-Led Approach to Development - Click To Read Article
This paper reviews Africa’s role in the global trading system and discusses the constraints and options for Africa to move from its current marginalization to an exportled approach to economic development.

Effects of health on child schooling and cognitive development: The Indirect Effects of Investment in Human Capital - Click To Read Article
In sections 2 and 3 education and health were treated as separate components of human capital. Here the possible linkages between them are discussed. Expenditures on education may affect health and parental education may benefit children. Health expenditures may themselves affect the value of education. These links are important for understanding the potential range of benefits which accrue to expenditures on human capital.

Effects of education upon health and nutrition: The Indirect Effects of Investment in Human Capital - Click To Read Article
One indirect effect of expenditure on education may be its effects on health. Within developing countries, the children of educated parents face lower risks of premature death.

Effects of education upon fertility: The Indirect Effects of Investment in Human Capital - Click To Read Article
Whether and how government policy should affect fertility is a controversial ethical issue. However, the UN International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo in September 1994 highlighted the importance of enhancing female education as part of a successful population policy.

Effects of education upon child schooling and cognitive development: The Indirect Effects of Investment in Human Capital - Click To Read Article
Children are typically more likely to go to school if their parents are educated. They also tend to perform better in school and in some cases may earn higher incomes in adulthood.

Domestic farm support programs in developed countries: Provisions of Agreement on Agriculture - Click To Read Article
A basic source of distortion in the world market for agricultural commodities and primary products has been the differential level of domestic support that developed and developing countries can give to the production of these commodities. This has tended to reduce the price competitiveness of developing countries.

Concluding Remarks - Factors Impeding the Poverty Reduction Capacity of Micro-credit: Some Field Observations from Malawi and Ethiopia - Click To Read Article
One of the most important outcome of the analysis in this paper has been that while most MFI programmes aim to reduce poverty and empower women through their programme, there is usually no clear implementation mechanism to fulfil these aims; they continue to be programmes with the same requirements and characteristics.

Concluding Remarks: Enhancing Africa’s Trade: From Marginalization to an Export-Led Approach to Development - Click To Read Article
In the 19th and 20th centuries, trade has by and large been an engine of economic growth for the global economy. It has also acted as an engine of growth for particular national economies -- in the 19th century, Canada and Australia and in the 20th century, Japan. In recent years, trade has acted as an engine of growth for the newly industrializing countries of Southeast Asia, the so-called "Gang of Four", namely, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Comparison with other developing countries: Africa’s human development - Click To Read Article
Table 1 sets out the HDI and its components by region for 1994. Life expectancy in Africa is 53 years, compared to 61 in South Asia. Much of the lower life expectancy in Africa reflects higher child mortality.

Conclusion: Human Capital and Economic Development - Click To Read Article
Africa has made large strides in raising literacy and school enrolments and improving health. However, in the case of both education and health these gains are lower than those in other developing countries.

Benefits of Regional Economic Integration - Click To Read Article
Regional economic communities are formed because of the expected benefits from them. An important feature of the higher levels of integration is free trade among members.

Assessment of Impact of the WTO Provisions on Africa's Agricultural Exports - Click To Read Article
Bold as the 1994 Uruguay Round initiatives were, scholars are not convinced that the real motive behind them is actually the revitalization of the developing countries' agricultural export trade. Most

Barriers to African External Trade - Click To Read Article
Attempts to expand Africa’s trade have been hampered by both internal and external constraints or barriers.

Abstract - Factors Impeding the Poverty Reduction Capacity of Micro-credit: Some Field Observations from Malawi and Ethiopia - Click To Read Article
In most African countries women tend to account for an average 51% of the population, and make up about 65% of the rural labour force. Thus, many rural based micro-finance programmes have attempted to address the women specific need for micro-credit. This paper analyses the effectiveness of micro-credit as a means to reducing poverty, with particular focus on women, and demonstrates, through the critical analysis of some country-specific examples, that the use and supply of micro-credit does not always lead to a sustainable impact on household or female poverty reduction. Analysis of findings are done based on field data, interviews, and observations from Malawi and Ethiopia.

Africa and the WTO Regime - Click To Read Article
GATT and WTO


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