ECAS 2013

Economic development is a mechanism of transformation of the economic structure: as the economy opens more widely to world markets, production becomes more modern and diversified, labor and capital migrates from traditional activities to industrial or service activities. In the recent literature on economic development, a consensus has emerged about the benefits of export and output diversification. It is generally claimed that diversification strategies can be a powerful way for those poor economies to shift to modern economies. Despite many developing countries appear to have slightly diversified their exportation and raised up forms of dynamic entrepreneurship, their productive structures do not seem to have evolved significantly. Building on that literature, my paper identifies several diversification patterns focused on the developing country's productive structure and discusses the relevance of those in what concerns African economies. A first section will review the existing literature on diversification and explain its role in the economic growth process. Since each country has its own set of comparative advantage, the main determinants of diversification will then be addressed in a second section. Various approaches of inter sectoral linkages will be described with the objective to define possible diversification patterns for poor economies. Finally, these theories will be compared in order to see if the different measures of the diversification are recovering or not the same logic. We will ask whether the omnipresence of comparative advantage can lead to diversification or rather durably stuck the economy into a rigid specialization. Illustrations from African economies will be used.

With the inevitable effects of global economic crisis, the significance for economic self-reliance of African countries has become vital. This is more crucial given the fact that majority of them are dependent on donor funds. The current economic challenges facing African countries call for a strategic need to search for effective models of integration that can cushion them from the adverse effects of international economic downturn and shrinking financial resources. For Southern African Development Community various models have been tried and these seem to have had little economic benefits as they are largely based on political stability rather than economic growth and development of the region. The critical question that has arisen is: which models of integration Southern African countries, should adopt at these times of economic hardships? In trying to answer this question, authors investigated two models, which have been adopted in the SADC region i.e Southern African Customs Union and Standardisation.

Africa South of the Sahara and particularly the Central African Sub-region has been lacking behind in various development indicators over the years. Issues relating to ethnicity, language, religion and ideology, combined with the global commons of the 1980s and 1990s have contributed to this economic stagnation couple with the unresolved difficulties of state formation. The Akerian concept of alternative to meanstream developmental thinking has equally not taken root into the clientilist and patronage system that is the hallmark of Central African economies. The paper examines some of these challenges and indicates how they have contributed to the slow pace of integration in the sub-region which is a sine quo non for development in the continent. The absent of the state in the developmental endeavours of these countries and the outright display of quasi-nationalist tendencies on the part of others have render the task of nation building difficult and in some cases impossible. Given the vulnerability of the countries of the subregion to coups and instability and a general dearth of development thinkers in the league of Sekou Toure, Nyerere or Nkrumah has render the task of development institutions much harder. The paper analyses Claude Ake's alternative developmental concept and contends how such a model can be applied in the subregion. It examines the challenges of the application of the Akerian concept and reflects on the challenges of crafting and implimenting development programmes on the continent.

In the wake of complex human security emergencies engendered by modern conflicts the role and contribution of regional organisations in preventing and resolving regional conflicts has become very important. This paper considers the emerging opportunities and challenges in complex peace support operations and concludes that peace support operations can achieve negative peace (i.e., cessation of direct and physical violence) and positive peace (i.e., the transformation of the inherent conflictual relationships and interactions) when the range of actors and strategies integrate and look 'beyond' the state to explore the potential of regional agency and cooperation as well as 'below' the state in recognition of community-based efforts. While recent studies increasingly acknowledge capacity dilemmas of regional organisations in becoming effective partners in peacekeeping less attention has been paid to their role in addressing critical factors alleviating destructive dynamics and creating momentum for social change.

The current debate about 'developmentalism' shows that the world is undergoing an imprecise phase about what to do next, because it seems that even in the richest contexts things are somehow worsening, and many people start thinking that the consumerism and free market are not as good as it seemed.

We see the mainstream institutions such as World Bank and IMF announcing that it is good to continue with economic growth and free market policies in poor countries, especially in Africa, while the number of poor rises. It seems that something is wrong. For those reasons, departing from insights of a research carried out among an INGO development project in a rural community in Mozambique, this paper discusses the idea that development cannot be anymore associated to growth. I will illustrate that more and more people and institutions are wondering how to replace capitalism because they are realizing that this infinite growth seems to be unsustainable: new technologies create new needs and problems; the economic growth and consumerism do not necessarily mean more happiness nor social development. As well, the world is facing energetic and environmental crisis. As a result, those who are criticizing this system are changing behavior and considering new principles. Most of them are disappointed with the unbalanced order and are pushing the raise of new forms of development, envisaging a different kind of globalization, preferably made through solidarity and cooperation, instead of competition, exclusion, and inequality, in a quest for a true democracy.

China and Africa are endowed with a rich plant and animal biodiversity and an even richer knowledge of its traditional use as medicine. Given that an estimated 67% of new medicines introduced globally from 1981 - 2002 were derived from natural resources it should follow that these countries invest in biodiversity and traditional medicine. However, Africa has not managed to harness this knowledge to the same extent as China. In this study, a comparative analysis of the development of traditional medical practises of two BRICS countries (China and South Africa) will be undertaken. China has developed Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) into a globally exportable commodity in the multipolar world of public health, whilst South Africa has made little progress in this regard. Can South Africa advance its public health offering to include traditional medicine by learning from the Chinese experience?

Despite the repeated unsustainable attempts at development, African leaders still strive to work out solutions to African problems with a unified stand. On the continental level, ingenious infrastructural initiatives are taking place. Despite the instability in the North and the Arab Spring, trade to and with Africa has so much potential. Investment is booming for the continent as large quantities of mineral discoveries are made in a considerable number of countries. Is Africa undergoing a renewal? If so, are Africans driving this renewal? Can the continuous and encouraging quantities of minerals bless Africa and its development or will they be the curse of it? This paper seeks to highlight and discuss Africa's attempts to govern its mineral resources from a continental and regional perspective. The paper seeks to interrogate existing African legal and regulatory frameworks that are intended to regulate international trade, investment and extraction, whilst managing Africa's wealth and environment. The aim is to determine whether these frameworks are adequate, and whether they can be utilised to contribute to sustainable development of Africa.

In contemporary Africa, the concept of brain drain is fast becoming a misnomer given the observed circularity of migration with attendant benefits of homeward remittances and brain gain. Emigrants usually move to countries of destination about which they have some information pertaining to settlement, adjustment, employmentprospects and social networks formed by chain migration involving close relatives and friends.These African migrants have recently become more organised and often devote their resources-financial, social capital, ideas etc to their communities of origin.In this paper, their opportunities and challenges are examined through an empirical study of Nigerian diasporas in Ghana; with the subsequent conclusion that inter-African multilateral and bilateral institutions should develop pro-diaspora policies for national and regional development.

The paper observes that although the world is multipolar in nature, ideas that influence development processes on the global scale is Western-inspired. Given the fact that Africa lacks a clearly discernible strategy for fostering socio-economic transformations, the reliance on exogenous ideas becomes compelling. African states in line with the ideas encapsulated in the Washington consensus have been called upon to liberalize and deregulate their economies. This among other things has resulted in the ousting of the state from making decisions on economic affairs thereby making states in Africa idle especially in social provisioning. Indeed, because the decision-making apparatuses of the state is located outside the continent, it becomes difficult for African states to provide the citizenry with basic necessities of life. The paper further argues that since African states can no longer initiate and implement policies that are capable of lifting the poor, they are in a dilemma. this is because non-performamnce by the state robs its legitimacy and loyalty of the citizens.The paper calls for among other things, a cautious integration to the global economy and a rejection of some of the alien development ideas.

Civil Society organisations are becoming innovative development partners in meeting the needs of people living in poverty, and yet civil society is also constrained in this endeavour by a disabling political and economic environment by working with public authorities and the private sector. This paper examines the role, of umbrella associations of non-governmental organisations and civil society in Zimbabwe and Mauritius as they grapple with the dilemmas and challenges of development within shifting socio-political and economic environments. It focuses on the National Association of Nongovernmental Organisations (NANGO) in Zimbabwe and the Mauritius Council of Social Services (MACOSS). These two umbrella organisations are coordinating, facilitating, and sustaining partnerships with both the state and the private sector in a complex and increasingly globalised world. They are able to foster communication, collaboration, and networking between nongovernmental organisations, the private sector and government in instances where the role and legitimacy of civil society in sustainable development is becoming increasingly questioned.

Trends in the energy sector have shown a growing demand for electricity in Africa, with an estimated 585 million people having no access to electricity. Given the paucity for economic development in the continent, pressures that tend to increase energy consumption will remain strong with projections indicating a significant rise to 652 million people by 2030. Apart from the need to meet the Millennium Development Goals, scaling up renewable energy in Africa is inevitable given the combined effects of climate change, the continued volatility of fuel prices, and the rampant food crisis. Therefore the view of following a sustainable path of economic development is a key policy for protecting the environment while raising economic standards. This paper presents a critical review of the trends, existing policies, plans and programmes for increasing energy access in Africa with a focus on renewable energy. In particular the paper unleashes Africa's attractiveness, the investment trends, and the expectations in bio-fuels and solar which are regarded as key renewable energy options. The paper also discusses the role of multilateral organisations such as the African Union in policy formulation, and future implementation of policies on renewable energy.

This paper provides a critical analysis of Africa's current development trajectory. It unpacks the complexities associated with African developmental efforts in an increasingly globalising world. The paper departs from a premise that, sustained economic growth recorded recently in many African countries reveals the continent's sense of urgency and its growing stature as an important global player. It bears testimony to its potential to be at the frontier of economic growth and ultimately, to be one of the poles of global development. However, with a business as usual approach and failure to address endemic structural, economical and political policy and governance challenges, the newly found courage, optimism and inspiration in the continent might fade away. The continent might miss the opportunity to achieve the development vision espoused in the African Union Constitutive Act and the internationally agreed Millennium Development Goals. It might just retain its Western moniker as a 'development laggard'- one that is marred by hopelessness.