It is clear that a lot remains to be learnt about the role of the financial sector in African growth and development process. All three papers in this volume focus on the existing consensus in the literature that there seems to be a positive relationship between financial development and...

It is broadly recognised that vigorous agricultural growth is essential for African development, both in support of aggregate economic growth and a structural transformation of the economy towards industrialisation, and of poverty reduction and improved food security. For the first, this is...

Evidence abounds to support the view that while health, measured by life expectancy, had improved, and converged in the world, the income or economic prosperity did not. Recent literature tried to show that poor health and endemic diseases in Africa may constitute a barrier to growth. However,...

Evidence abounds to support the view that economy of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has been growing in recent times, but there is considerable concern that the growth has not been accompanied by economic transformation. The lack of economic transformation is traceable to low level of investment in...

In this issue, geography, market integration and institutions are identified as the fundamental constraints on Africa's future prosperity. It is pointed out that, in line with the recommendations of The Report of the Commission for Africa, African governments and international partners can...

Between January 2006 and April 2008 the real price of food traded on world markets rose by around 80%. The factors behind this dramatic surge are varied and, to an extent, remain contested, although fundamental shifts in patterns of demand, the effects of climate change, and the greater use of...