Income Distribution Implications of Globalization and Liberalization in Africa

This paper surveys the main income distribution implications of greater openness in the African context. It considers trade, capital flows, technology, risk, and the ethnic dimension. It argues that the central policy dilemma for African policy makers is how to take advantage ofthe undoubted opportunities that integration into the world economy affords for rapid growth, while managing the attendant risks for domestic income distribution in its different dimensions. It proposes a research and policy agenda to further illuminate the options and tradeoffs they face.