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App Newsletter 7, Riccardo Pelizzo Oct 2015

App Newsletter 7, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

The seventh issue of the APP newsletter, with contributions by Michele Croce, founder and President of Verona Pulita, and Abel Kinyondo, Senior Researcher at REPOA.


Notes On The Seminar On African Economic Outlook 2015, Held On The 8th Of October 2015 At The House Of The Estates Of Finland, J. G. A. Saviranta Oct 2015

Notes On The Seminar On African Economic Outlook 2015, Held On The 8th Of October 2015 At The House Of The Estates Of Finland, J. G. A. Saviranta

Akseli Saviranta

The following document presents summarised key notes from the United Nations University – World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER) seminar titled “African Economic Outlook 2015 – Unlocking the potential of local economies for inclusive growth”. The seminar presented the 2015 report titled “African Economic Outlook 2015 – Regional Development and Spatial Inclusion”, produced by the African Development Bank, the OECD Development Centre, and the United Nations Development Programme. The African Development Bank, UNU-WIDER, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland were the co-organisers of the Seminar.


Development Aid: Africa's Dead End And Africa Beyond The End, Ibrahim Babatunde Anoba Oct 2015

Development Aid: Africa's Dead End And Africa Beyond The End, Ibrahim Babatunde Anoba

Ibrahim Babatunde Anoba

No abstract provided.


App Newsletter 5, Riccardo Pelizzo Jul 2015

App Newsletter 5, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

Fifth issue of APP Newsletter


App Newsletter 4, Riccardo Pelizzo Jun 2015

App Newsletter 4, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

fourthe issue of the APP Newsletter


Are Large Informal Firms More Productive Than The Small Informal Firms? Evidence From Firm-Level Surveys In Africa, Mohammad Amin, Asif Islam May 2015

Are Large Informal Firms More Productive Than The Small Informal Firms? Evidence From Firm-Level Surveys In Africa, Mohammad Amin, Asif Islam

Mohammad Amin

Using data for over 500 informal or unregistered firms in seven countries in Africa, this study explores how labor productivity varies between small and large informal firms. We find robust evidence that small informal firms have higher labor productivity than large informal firms. Thus, even though poor performance of informal firms is typically attributed to their small size vis-à-vis registered or formal sector firms, incremental increases in the size of informal firms does not necessarily imply a narrowing of the formal-informal firm productivity gap.


App Newsletter 2, Riccardo Pelizzo Apr 2015

App Newsletter 2, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

This is the second issue of the newsletter of African Politics and Policy. In this issue our collaborators discuss the uneasy relationship between democracy and development, Tourism in Tanzania, elections in Togo, and Chinese Investments in Africa.


Newsletter, Riccardo Pelizzo Mar 2015

Newsletter, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

first issue of the African Politics and Policy Newsletter


Governance, Business Environment, And Foreign Direct Investments, Riccardo Pelizzo, Omer F. Baris Mar 2015

Governance, Business Environment, And Foreign Direct Investments, Riccardo Pelizzo, Omer F. Baris

riccardo pelizzo

In this paper we investigate the relationship between the quality of governance, the business environment and foreign direct investments. Looking at 49 countries in Africa, we present evidence supporting the claim that the quality of governance does affect the stability of policies and the quality of the business environment. However, our data analysis also reveals that neither the quality of governance nor the quality of the business environment have any impact, at least in Sub-Saharan Africa on the level of FDI.


Varieties Of Resource Nationalism In Sub-Saharan Africa's Energy And Minerals Markets, Stefan Andreasson Jan 2015

Varieties Of Resource Nationalism In Sub-Saharan Africa's Energy And Minerals Markets, Stefan Andreasson

Stefan Andreasson

This article examines resource nationalism in sub-Saharan Africa’s energy and minerals markets. It does so by exploring economic and political developments in three cases: Nigeria as an example of a petro-state established by means of expropriation in the wake of decolonisation; South Africa, a mature mining industry shaped by its settler colonial history; and Mozambique, a new and therefore highly-dependent entrant into the league of significant natural gas producers. Extractive industries have played a controversial role in sub-Saharan Africa due in particular to the prevalence of the resource curse. Nevertheless, energy exports will continue to play an important role in …


Africa In The Age Of Globalization: Perceptions, Misperceptions And Realities, Edward Shizha, Lamine Diallo Jan 2015

Africa In The Age Of Globalization: Perceptions, Misperceptions And Realities, Edward Shizha, Lamine Diallo

Edward Shizha

This is a collection of bold and visionary scholarship that reveals an insightful exposition of re-visioning African development from African perspectives. It provides educators, policy makers, social workers, non-governmental agencies, and development agencies with an interdisciplinary conceptual base that can effectively guide them in planning and implementing programs for socio-economic development in Africa. The book provides up-to-date scholarly research on continental trends on various subjects and concerns of paramount importance to globalisation and development in Africa (politics, democracy, education, gender, technology, global relationships and the role of non-governmental organisations). The authors challenge the familiar paradigms in order to show how …


The African Origins Of International Law: Myth Or Reality?, Jeremy I. Levitt Dr. Jan 2015

The African Origins Of International Law: Myth Or Reality?, Jeremy I. Levitt Dr.

Jeremy I. Levitt Dr.

This Article reconsiders the prevalent ahistorical assumption that international law began with the Treaty of Westphalia. It gathers together considerable historical evidence to conclude that the ancient world, particularly the New Kingdom period in Egypt or Kemet from 1570-1070 BCE, deployed all three of what today we would call sources of international law. African states predating the modern European nation state by nearly 6000 years engaged in treaty relations (the Treaty of Kadesh), and applied rules of custom (the MA'AT) and general principles of law (as enumerated in the Egyptian Bill of Rights). While Egyptologists and a few international lawyers …


The African Origins Of International Law: Myth Or Reality?, Jeremy I. Levitt Dr. Jan 2015

The African Origins Of International Law: Myth Or Reality?, Jeremy I. Levitt Dr.

Jeremy I. Levitt Dr.

No abstract provided.


The Relevance Of Firm-Size In The Informal Sector: Evidence From Developing Countries, Mohammad Amin May 2014

The Relevance Of Firm-Size In The Informal Sector: Evidence From Developing Countries, Mohammad Amin

Mohammad Amin

Using newly collected on informal firms in 11 countries in Africa, we explore whether firm-size matters at all for the structure, conduct and performance of the firms. While firm-size is known to be an important attribute of the firms in the formal sector, it is not obvious what the relevance of firm-size is for the informal sector. Informal firms are small, many of them run alone by the owner, and have limited variation in size. Notwithstanding the limited variation in firm-size, our results show that firm-size is highly correlated with a number of firm characteristics such as job growth, labor …


Public Accounts Committees In Eastern And Southern Africa. A Comparative Analysis, Riccardo Pelizzo, Abel Kinyondo Mar 2014

Public Accounts Committees In Eastern And Southern Africa. A Comparative Analysis, Riccardo Pelizzo, Abel Kinyondo

riccardo pelizzo

This article provides the first and most comprehensive analysis of Public Accounts Committees (PACs) from Eastern and Southern Africa building on the work of McGee, Jacobs, Stapenhurst, and Staddon. By analyzing an original set of data, this article shows that PACs in these two regions are bigger, have more staff members, and are more likely to be chaired by opposition Members of Parliament than they have in other countries and regions. Furthermore, the data show that Eastern and Southern African PACs are more active than their counterparts elsewhere. However, lack of political will and limits to the range of powers …


Public Accounts Committees In Eastern Africa. A Comparative Analysis, Riccardo Pelizzo, Abel Kinyondo Mar 2014

Public Accounts Committees In Eastern Africa. A Comparative Analysis, Riccardo Pelizzo, Abel Kinyondo

riccardo pelizzo

The paper presents a comparative analysis of the organization, the powers, the functioning of public accounts committees in Eastern Africa. The paper highlights the exceptionalism Eastern African PACs. The paper in fact discovers and reports an inverse relationship between the amount of activities performed and the range of powers with which Eastern African PACs are endowed


Report On The Public Accounts Committee In Tanzania, Riccardo Pelizzo Mar 2014

Report On The Public Accounts Committee In Tanzania, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

the report analyzes the organization, the powers, the functioning and the activities performed by the public accounts committee from Tanzania


Report On The Public Accounts Committee In Uganda, Riccardo Pelizzo Mar 2014

Report On The Public Accounts Committee In Uganda, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

the report analyzes the structural characteristics, the powers, the organization, the functioning and the activities of the PAC from Uganda


Structured Transformation And Natural Resources Management In Africa, William G. Moseley Jan 2014

Structured Transformation And Natural Resources Management In Africa, William G. Moseley

William G Moseley

This chapter examines recent trends in African resource-based economies, explores the risks of an economy overly focused on primary production, reviews the theoretical literature on the reasons countries get stuck as peripheral producers, and interrogates past approaches that have been undertaken to pursue economic diversification (failed and successful). In sum, the chapter seeks to answer a few fundamental questions. Given the recent commodity boom, and soaring economic growth rates in many African countries, why should there be cause for concern? How fragile is economic growth based on primary production? Do natural resources intrinsically impede economic diversification? Under what conditions can …


The Relevance Of Firm-Size For The Informal Sector, Mohammad Amin Jun 2013

The Relevance Of Firm-Size For The Informal Sector, Mohammad Amin

Mohammad Amin

Using newly collected on informal firms in 11 countries in Africa, we explore whether firm-size matters at all for the structure, conduct and performance of the firms. While firm-size is known to be an important attribute of the firms in the formal sector, it is not obvious what the relevance of firm-size is for the informal sector. Informal firms are small, many of them run alone by the owner, and have limited variation in size. Notwithstanding the limited variation in firm-size, our results show that firm-size is highly correlated with a number of firm characteristics such as job growth, labor …


Report On The Public Account Commmittee In South Sudan, Riccardo Pelizzo May 2013

Report On The Public Account Commmittee In South Sudan, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

this reports drafted on the basis of original data collected by the Author provides some key findings on the organization, structure, mandate, and activities performed by the Public Account Committee from South Sudan


Report On The Public Account Commmittee In Zambia, Riccardo Pelizzo May 2013

Report On The Public Account Commmittee In Zambia, Riccardo Pelizzo

riccardo pelizzo

this report presents original data on the public account committee from Zambia


Elusive Agency: Africa's Persistently Peripheral Role In International Relations, Stefan Andreasson Jan 2013

Elusive Agency: Africa's Persistently Peripheral Role In International Relations, Stefan Andreasson

Stefan Andreasson

No abstract provided.


Smart Power For Hard Problems: The Role Of Special Operation Forces Strengthening The Rule Of Law And Human Rights In Africa, Kevin H. Govern Jan 2013

Smart Power For Hard Problems: The Role Of Special Operation Forces Strengthening The Rule Of Law And Human Rights In Africa, Kevin H. Govern

Kevin H. Govern

This article will assess the roles and responsibilities of Special Operations Forces (SOF) within the newly created U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) as an active proponent of a so-called “smart power” national security strategy. In particular, it will outline the economic, political, and military challenges faced in Africa; specifically, how and why SOCAFRICA is the U.S. force of choice for promoting human rights and rule of law in Africa. With the goals of the U.S. military in mind, questions will necessarily arise as to “what success looks like” for both the U.S. and African nations, and the roles of each in …


Liberation Of, Through, Or From Work? Postcolonial Africa And The Problem With “Job Creation” In The Global Crisis, Franco Barchiesi Nov 2012

Liberation Of, Through, Or From Work? Postcolonial Africa And The Problem With “Job Creation” In The Global Crisis, Franco Barchiesi

Franco Barchiesi

The precarity of employment in an age of globally financialized capital cannot be reduced to the sociological problems of erosion of stable jobs with benefits and proliferation of insecure occupations. It is rather a political issue that interrogates the ability of state and capital to turn multitudes into governable and productive subjects. As such it is underscored by attempts by financial capital to “capture” living labor beyond the confines of production and across the social spectrum. It is also characterized by the widening gaps between official norms that center social inclusion around work ethic and economic activity and material realities …


A Critical Examination Of The Relationship Between The Use Of Gatekeepers, Trust, And Organisation Knowledge-Sharing, Deogratias Harorimana Dr Oct 2012

A Critical Examination Of The Relationship Between The Use Of Gatekeepers, Trust, And Organisation Knowledge-Sharing, Deogratias Harorimana Dr

Dr Deogratias Harorimana

This thesis critically examines the relationship between gatekeepers, trust, and an organisation’s knowledge sharing. The research applied mixed methods with the case study approach. In this research the concept ‘gatekeeper’ is widely used to represent a class of those who are part of a knowledge management strategy; they collect information and knowledge and contextualise this before they can share it with the rest of the members of the organisation’s knowledge networks - within the formal and informal organisation. In this study, it was found that there was a strong relationship between the openness of a given firm, as regards its …


Famine Myths: Five Misunderstandings Related To The 2011 Hunger Crisis In The Horn Of Africa, William G. Moseley Mar 2012

Famine Myths: Five Misunderstandings Related To The 2011 Hunger Crisis In The Horn Of Africa, William G. Moseley

William G Moseley

The 2011 famine received relatively little attention in the U.S. media and much of the coverage that did occur was biased, ahistorical, or perpetuated long-held misunderstandings about the nature and causes of famine. This article addresses “famine myths”—five key misunderstandings related to the famine in the Horn of Africa.


Africa, Mark J. Calaguas Jan 2012

Africa, Mark J. Calaguas

Mark J Calaguas

The Africa Committee's contribution to the 2011 Year-in-Review issue of the American Bar Association Section of International Law's quarterly journal, The International Lawyer.


African Economic Blocs And Trade: Case Study Of Comesa And Sudan, Issam A.W. Mohamed Professor Aug 2011

African Economic Blocs And Trade: Case Study Of Comesa And Sudan, Issam A.W. Mohamed Professor

Professor Issam A.W. Mohamed

Comprehensively, Economic Trade Partnerships and Blocs are important to a member country. However, with the continuing global financial distresses it is useful to evaluate them to maximize possible benefit. The question of joining, continue membership with the Comesa is vital to the Sudanese economy that presently stands in a very decisive time. The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa is a free trade area with nineteen member states stretching from Libya to Zimbabwe. COMESA formed in December 1994, replacing a Preferential Trade Area which had existed since 1981. Nine of the member states formed a free trade area in …


Africa, Mark J. Calaguas Jan 2011

Africa, Mark J. Calaguas

Mark J Calaguas

The Africa Committee's contribution to the 2010 Year-in-Review issue of the American Bar Association Section of International Law's quarterly journal, The International Lawyer.