Adjustment in Africa: Reforms, results, and the road ahead
- ISSN: 00196061
- ISBN: 019520994X
- DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9701.1995.tb00241.x
- PubMed: 11521012
Abstract
To reverse the economic decline that began in the 1970s, many sub-Saharan African countries have undertaken structural adjustment programs. These programs are designed to pave the way for long-term development and prosperity by fundamentally restructuring African economies. Continent-wide growth of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita remains low, however, leading many to question the effectiveness of adjustment efforts. But is the poor performance the result of a failure to reform policies or a failure of those policies to restore growth? To address this question, this book examines the extent of policy reforms and their impact on growth and poverty in 29 sub-Saharan countries that were undergoing adjustment in the second half of the 1980s. This book marshals data to assess progress in improving the macroeconomic framework, liberalizing trade, deregulating markets and prices, privatizating public enterprises, and strengthening management of the financial and public sectors. Although adjustment can work in Africa, the report recognizes that it cannot work miracles. Achieving long-term, equitable growth also requires more investment in human capital and infrastructure, greater expansion of institutional capacity, and better governance. -from Publisher
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