Success Stories from a Dynamic Continent

Although Africa’s medium- and long-term development challenges remain large and complex, the progress underway is remarkable and undeniable.

AFRICA'S DEVELOPMENT SUCCESSES

Analysis Sheds Light on Policies behind Africa’s Development Successes

This study gives insight into what worked and why, drawing from 26 cases studies, of which 20 are national in scope, while six involve multiple countries. The case studies cut across themes, programs, and sectors. They include well-known success stories – such as visionary investments in human capital and economic diversification in Mauritius and Botswana – as well as those that are less famous – for example, Somaliland’s quiet emergence as a reliable trading post along the Gulf of Aden.

Key Findings

Overall, the case studies show that success was driven by collective action, usually but not always led by government, to either overcome or avoid the failures of the past. They fit largely into the following categories:

• Rebuilding a Government This category encompasses three national case studies of post-conflict reconstruction— economic governance reform in Liberia, decentralization in Sierra Leone, and the empowerment of traditional structures for conflict deterrence in Somaliland.
  
• Reforming Distortionary Policies Case studies under this category relate to instances where governments successfully reformed existing policies that had become an impediment to growth. Notable examples include the revival of the cocoa industry in Ghana after near collapse in the 1980s, as well as efforts to overcome bad policies in the power sector through independent power producers after a long legacy of publicly financed utilities.
  

• Rationalizing Government Involvement In Markets Case studies under this category highlight the catalytic role that the state can play in spurring economic growth and job creation. The book surveys Lesotho’s capture of the lion’s share in African exports of clothing to the United States.
  
• Listening to the People This category chronicles examples of bottom-up participatory approaches that proved effective in policy interventions. A prime example is how Ethiopia resorted to a community-based health system to address a shortage of doctors and nurses to care for its population of 80 million people.
  

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