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on Africa |
| By: | Blaise Gnimassoun; C. John Anyanwu |
| Abstract: | While the dominant collective belief asserts that brain drain is detrimental to the development of small economies, new studies hold the reverse view. This paper aims at studying the role of the African Diaspora in the economic development of Africa. It analyzes both the overall effect and the specific effect of emigration according to the level of education of emigrants. Then, through a deeper investigation, the paper analyzes the main channels through which the Diaspora influences economic development in Africa. The results show that the African Diaspora contributes positively, significantly and robustly to the improvement of real per capita income in Africa. These findings challenge the dominant collective belief since the higher the educational level of the emigrants, the greater the impact of the Diaspora on the level of economic development. Improvements in human capital, total factor productivity and democracy are effective transmission channels of this impact. Finally, the results show that while high-skilled emigrants have an overall greater impact on economic development and democracy, those with a low level of education contribute more to remittances to Africa. The establishment of an annual African Diaspora Summer School (ADSS) by the AfDB in partnership relevant international and regional stakeholders as a channel for the transfer of knowledge, technology and experience would further strengthen the role of the Diaspora in Africa’s economic development. |
| Keywords: | International migration, Economic development, Africa. |
| JEL: | F22 O55 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:drm:wpaper:2018-16&r=afr |
| By: | Gautam Bastian (World Bank); Iacopo Bianchi (World Bank); Markus Goldstein (World Bank); Joao Montalvao (World Bank) |
| Abstract: | This paper presents short-term results from an experiment randomizing the promotion and registration of a mobile savings account among women microentrepreneurs in Tanzania, with and without business training. Six months post-intervention, the results show that women save substantially more through the mobile account, and that the business training bolstered this effect. Women also obtain more microloans through the mobile account, an additional service provided by the product. The business training further led to an increase in the business practices of the women. We find no significant evidence that these impacts translate into greater investment, sales, and profits, but we see some evidence of increased business expansion through the creation of profitable secondary businesses, as well as improvements in women’s empowerment and subjective well-being. |
| Date: | 2018–03–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cgd:wpaper:478&r=afr |
| By: | Lowes, Sara Rachel; Montero, Eduardo |
| Abstract: | Between 1921 and 1956, French colonial governments organized medical campaigns to treat and prevent sleeping sickness. Villagers were forcibly examined and injected with medications with severe, sometimes fatal, side effects. We digitized thirty years of archival records to document the locations of campaign visits at a granular geographic level for five central African countries. We find that greater historical exposure to the campaigns reduces trust in medicine - measured by willingness to consent to a free, non-invasive blood test. The resulting mistrust is specific to the medical sector. We examine relevance for present day health initiatives; we find that World Bank projects in the health sector are less successful in areas with greater exposure to the campaigns. |
| Keywords: | Colonialism; Culture; health; medicine; Trust |
| JEL: | I15 I18 N37 O55 Z13 |
| Date: | 2018–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:12772&r=afr |
| By: | Wisdom Momodu (Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany) |
| Abstract: | Gender equality or non-discrimination has been recognized in a wide range of binding and none binding international human rights instruments, including declarations and other standards e.g. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women adopted in 1979 and came into force 3 Sept. 1981, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination of 1965, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights etc. International and national law chiefly regulates discrimination as it relates to gender equality when addressing cases of human rights. Equal treatment of men and women in the workplace around the globe including Nigeria is faced with several challenges. In recent time, women have made progress in the educational sector and despite their educational attainments; they are faced with discrimination at the workplace. The discrimination witnessed by women on a daily basis is not distant from the level of education or access to education as well as culture and religion, which equally regulate rights and duties of women in various backgrounds. This paper addresses human rights as it relates to gender and discrimination by appraising gender impacts on culture and religion, education and workplace under Nigerian perspective. State party’s obligation under international and or national law in human rights protection under civil and political rights as well as economic social and cultural rights will also be addressed. In conclusion, possible reforms are suggested, which includes adopting national human rights legislation dealing specifically on discrimination in the workplace. |
| Keywords: | Human rights, gender equality, discrimination, workplace, culture and religion |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:smo:npaper:004&r=afr |
| By: | Guillaume Delalande; Valérie Gaveau |
| Abstract: | This working paper presents the results of the first country pilot carried out in a recipient country in the context of the development of the new framework of total official support for sustainable development (TOSSD). The results of the pilot indicate that a global measurement framework such as TOSSD is very much needed in light of profound changes in the development finance landscape, particularly given the new role played by emerging economies and related flows. The pilot also highlights the critical role that TOSSD could play in supporting transparency of development finance flows, particularly in capturing information about different components of complex financing arrangements, which would enable countries to learn from other countries’ experience in leveraging finance. The paper sheds light on critical questions related to the TOSSD measure, including the inclusion of private amounts mobilised through public interventions in the framework or of investments in global programmes supporting development enablers and addressing global challenges. The pilot study also provides estimates of orders of magnitude of total official support for sustainable development to Senegal. |
| Keywords: | Development Finance, SDG, Senegal, TOSSD, Transparency |
| JEL: | C4 F3 |
| Date: | 2018–03–23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:dcdaaa:43-en&r=afr |
| By: | Harounan Kazianga; Zaki Wahhaj |
| Abstract: | We present findings from a pilot study exploring whether and how existing ties between urban migrants and rural farmers may be used to provide the latter improved access to formal insurance. Urban migrants in Ouagadougou (the capital of Burkina Faso) originating from nearby villages were offered, at the prevailing market price, a rainfall index insurance product that can potentially protect their rural relatives from adverse weather shocks. The product had an uptake of 22% during the two-week subscription window. Uptake rates were higher by 17-22 percentage points among urban migrants who were randomly offered an insurance policy that would make pay-outs directly to the intended beneficiary rather than the subscriber. We argue that rainfall index insurance can complement informal risk-sharing networks by mitigating problems of informational asymmetry and self-control issues. |
| Keywords: | Microinsurance markets; Indexed insurance; Rainfall; Migration; Informal insurance networks |
| JEL: | O15 O16 G21 |
| Date: | 2018–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ukc:ukcedp:1803&r=afr |