Ideas of participatory development and empowerment have become central to contemporary development discourse. This article identifies two axes of tension within this discourse. First is the disturbing thought that by empowering a ‘community’ a development project can <italic>disempower</italic> groups or...

This contribution summarises research conducted by the Africa Power and Politics Programme, which finds that contrary to standard policy advice, neo-patrimonial governance can under certain conditions be compatible with a growth-enhancing investment climate.