Why is Africa Poor?

[Southern]

@MMMark

@liege

Why is Africa Poor?

I question the assumption: that “Africa is poor.” Some parts of Africa enjoy much greater wealth than others. Try approaching this differently. Take a relatively rich part of Africa, such as Cape Town, and ask “What would you do to make Cape Town as poor as, say, Djibouti?” or “Given governmental carte blanche and one year, how would you destroy most of Cape Town’s wealth?”

This would be a good approach. There are historical examples of exactly this. Rhodesia (aka Zimbabwe), imediately after independance was what botswana is today. Head and sholders above the rest of africa. But was to be short lived. Domestic and International pressure forced the minority european population to give up power. It did not take long for African rule to devestate the nation.

@MMMark

Consider this passage, from Wikipedia:

@Wikipedia

Geographically the country is flat and up to 70% of Botswana is covered by the Kalahari Desert…(and yet) Botswana is a regional leader in economic freedom. Competitiveness and flexibility are promoted by a sensible business regulatory environment, openness to foreign investment and trade, and relatively flexible employment regulations. The financial sector remains relatively well developed, with an independent central bank and little government intervention. The independent judiciary provides strong protection of property rights. Botswana was one of the most impoverished countries in Africa when it became independent in 1966. Today, it is home to a relatively stable political system and a rapidly developing market economy. Being closely tied with the economy of South Africa, the country’s economy is one of the most successful in Africa and is dominated by the fast-growing service sector, world-renowned diamond industry, tourism, and manufacturing. Botswana’s economic growth rate has outpaced the economic growth of even the Asian Tigers, and the World Bank cites Botswana as one of the world’s great development success stories.

Again there is no doubt that a more capitalist economic system is an important factor. But notice the use of “relative” throughout the passage. Botswana even with all of these great policies is one of the poorest nations of the planet. And if it were only institutional factors, then Botswana should be on par with S. Korea, Tiawan or even the highly controlled “capitalist” region of China. But they are still a very, very long way away from them.