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on Africa |
| By: | Grace Nsomba; Thando Vilakazi |
| Abstract: | Effective competition in the Southern and East African regions requires independent rivals competing across borders and within domestic markets through innovation and effort, investment, product quality, and prices. To understand the constraints to more dynamic rivalry between firms within the region, this paper considers the obstacles to integration from the perspective of fostering the development of domestic firms with strong capabilities. |
| Keywords: | African multinational corporations, Competition, Regional integration, Barriers to entry |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2021-143&r= |
| By: | Ahmed, Shamira |
| Abstract: | The use of artificial intelligence (AI) based systems complements the time-sensitive and data intensive nature of many activities in the financial services industry (FSI)-Specifically, in FinTech Ecosystems (FEs) that have disrupted many financial services landscapes in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However, FEs have distinct interrelated supply-side and demand-side dynamics that perpetuate gender disparity. As evidenced in many wealthier economies with more AI maturity, technology is not neutral, AI in particular is inherently biased and magnifies pervasive gender and racial discrimination that exist in the ecosystems where it is deployed. This raises questions regarding the manner in which AI can exacerbate or alleviate current dynamics in inequitable and unfair ecosystems. With the aforementioned in mind, this paper adopts a gender lens to examine the potential impact of using AI based systems in the FEs of four SSA countries-South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana. |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:itsb21:238002&r= |
| By: | Martinez Flores, Fernanda; Milusheva, Sveta; Reichert, Arndt R. |
| Abstract: | Migration is one of the channels West African populations can use to adjust to the negative impacts of climate change. Using novel geo-referenced and high-frequency data, this study investigates the extent to which soil moisture anomalies drive international migration decisions within the region and toward Europe. The findings show that drier soil conditions decrease (rather than increase) the probability to migrate. A standard deviation decrease in soil moisture leads to a 2 percentage point drop in the probability to migrate, equivalent to a 25 percent decrease in the number of migrants. This effect is concentrated during the crop-growing season, and likely driven by financial constraints. The effect is only seen for areas that are in the middle of the income distribution, with no impact on the poorest or richest areas of a country, suggesting that the former were constrained to start and the latter can address those financial constraints. |
| Keywords: | West Africa,climate change,migration,agriculture |
| JEL: | F22 O13 O15 Q54 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:910&r= |
| By: | Muriuki, James M.; Hudson, Michael D. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural and Food Policy, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, International Development |
| Date: | 2021–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea21:313387&r= |
| By: | Binkert, Eva; Flaig, Merlin; Frucht, Lukas; Grävingholt, Jörn; König, Jannis; Kuhnt, Jana; Lendle, Philipp; Muhumad, Abdirahman A.; Potinius, Katharina |
| Abstract: | Ethiopia is the second largest refugee-hosting country in Africa; it accommodates around 700,000 refugees, mostly from neighbouring countries. Humanitarian and development actors are increasingly highlighting the local integration of refugees as a durable solution to protracted refugee situations. Hosting states are called upon to include refugees in their national public services, rather than to sustain a parallel (humanitarian) system, and to empower refugees to secure their own livelihoods as part of the local community. The international community has endorsed this idea by adopting the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) and vowing financial support. Ethiopia is one of the pilot countries implementing this framework. However, the execution of the ambitious approach faces many challenges. This paper focusses on the role of local governments within the CRRF implementation process; they have not yet been the focus of attention even though sustainable solutions largely depend on them. Results show that the CRRF implementation process has slowed down considerably in the past years, mostly remaining on a project base. Shifting political priorities, a lack of leadership and coordination at the national level as well as the unclear role and low capacities of local governments are major barriers to the local integration of refugees. |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:diedps:212021&r= |