Made in Africa: Learning to Compete in Industry

by Carol Newman, John Page, John Rand

Overview

"
The role of industry in low income countries is important. Industry is good for growth, job creation, and poverty reduction. All of these factors depend on the size and the rate of growth of industry. Africa doesn’t have enough industry to reach the Sustainable Development Goals for growth, job creation, and poverty reduction. Africa’s share of global manufacturing has fallen from about three percent in 1970 to less than two percent in 2010. Why is there so little industry in Africa?

Made in Africa: Learning to Compete in Industry outlines a new industrialization strategy to help Africa compete in global markets. This book draws on case study and qualitative research from Africa and emerging Asia to understand what drives firm-level productivity in low income countries. The results show that while traditional concerns such as infrastructure, skills, and the regulatory environment are important, they alone will not be sufficient for Africa to industrialize. The book also addresses how industrialization strategies will need to adapt to the region’s growing resource abundance.
"

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780815728153
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	02/23/2016
Pages:	306
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

"Carol Newman is an associate professor in the Department of Economics, Trinity College Dublin. Her main research and publications are in the microeconomics of development with a focus on both household and enterprise behavior.

John Page is senior fellow in the Global Economy and Development Program of the Brookings Institution, Washington, DC and nonresident senior fellow of UNU-WIDER. He was the World Bank’s chief economist for Africa until 2008 and has published widely on industrial development and industrial policy in Africa and Asia. He is the co-author of UNIDO’s Industrial Development Report, 2009.

John Rand is a professor in development microeconomics at the University of Copenhagen. He has published extensively on the economics of the firm in developing countries, and in 2001 and 2008 he was an economic advisor to leading think tanks in Vietnam and Mozambique.

Abebe Shemeles is acting director of the Research Department of the African Development Bank. His main research interests and publications are in poverty analysis and labor economics.

Måns Söderbom is professor of economics, University of Gothenburg. His research centers on development economics and applied econometrics. He has published widely on the decisions and performance of firms.

Finn Tarp is professor of economics, University of Copenhagen, and Director, UNU-WIDER. He is a leading international expert on development strategy and foreign aid. He has held senior posts and advisory positions in government and with donor organizations and is a member of a large number of international committees and advisory bodies."

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments ix

Part I Why Industry Matters for Africa

1 Why Industry Matters for Africa 3

Part II Realities and Opportunities

2 Industrialization Efforts and Outcomes 33

3 Can Africa Break In? 59

Part III Learning to Compete

4 Productivity, Exports, and Competition 85

5 Firm Capabilities 109

6 Industrial Clusters 133

Part IV How Africa Can Industrialize

7 A Strategy for Industrial Development 157

8 Dealing with Resource Abundance 183

9 An Agenda for Aid 205

Afterword: Leopards and Laggards 229

References 233

Index 255