This paper assesses the role of knowledge economy (KE) in African business in 53 countries for the period 1996–2010. The four KE components of the World Bank are employed, notably: education, innovation, economic incentives and institutional regime, and information and communication technology. The business indicators are classified into starting, doing, and ending business. Principal component analysis and panel instrumental variable fixed effect approaches are employed as empirical strategies. The findings which are broadly consistent with intuition and the predictions of economic theory suggest that KE policies will substantially boost the starting and doing of business in Africa. This is relevant in fighting unemployment and improving African competitiveness in global value chains. Policy implications for the relevance of each specific KE dimension in African business are discussed with particular emphasis on the theoretical underpinnings of the study. The investigation is original in its contribution at the same time to the scarce literature on African KE and the growing challenges of improving the business climate of the continent by means of KE.

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The Role of Knowledge Economy in African Business

Africa’s overall knowledge index fell between 2000 and 2009. South Korea’s economic miracle is largely due to a knowledge-based development strategy that holds valuable lessons for African countries in their current pursuit towards knowledge economies. Using updated data (1996-2010), this paper presents fresh South Korean lessons to Africa by assessing the knowledge economy (KE) gaps, deriving policy syndromes and providing catch-up strategies. The 53 African frontier countries are decomposed into fundamental characteristics of wealth, legal origins, regional proximity, oil-exporting, political stability and landlockedness. The World Bank’s four KE components are used: education, innovation, information & communication technology (ICT) and economic incentives & institutional regime. Absolute beta and sigma convergence techniques are employed as empirical strategies. With the exception of ICT for which catch-up is not very apparent, in increasing order it is visible in: innovation, economic incentives, education and institutional regime. The speed of catch-up varies between 8.66% and 30.00% per annum with respective time to full or 100% catch-up of 34.64 years and 10 years. Based on the trends and dynamics in the KE gaps, policy syndromes and compelling catch-up strategies are discussed. Issues standing on the way to KE in Africa are dissected with great acuteness before South Korean relevant solutions are provided. The paper is original in its provision of practical policy initiatives drawn from the Korean experience to African countries embarking on a transition to KE.

/pdf/knowledge-economy-gaps-policy-syndromes-and-catch-up-4fnidjxz0d.pdf

Knowledge Economy Gaps, Policy Syndromes, and Catch-Up Strategies: Fresh South Korean Lessons to Africa

Using 25 policy variables, this study investigates determinants of mobile phone/banking in 49 sub-Saharan African countries with data for the year 2011. The determinants are classified into six policy categories, notably macroeconomic, business/bank, market-related, knowledge economy, external flows and human development. The empirical evidence is based on contemporary and non-contemporary quantile regressions. The following implications are relevant to the findings. First, mobile phone penetration is positively correlated with (i) education, domestic savings, regulation quality and patent applications, especially at low initial levels of mobile penetration; (ii) bank density; (iii) urban population density and (iv) internet penetration. Second, the use of the mobile to pay bills is positively linked with (i) trade and internet penetration, especially in contemporary specifications and (ii) remittances and patent applications, especially at low initial levels of the dependent variable. Third, using the mobile to send/receive money is positively correlated with internet penetration and human development, especially in the contemporary specifications. Fourth, mobile banking is positively linked with (i) trade in contemporary specifications, (ii) remittances and patent applications at low initial levels of the dependent variable and (iii) internet penetration and human development, with contemporary threshold evidence. The policy implications are articulated with incremental policy syndromes.

/pdf/conditional-determinants-of-mobile-phones-penetration-and-4dgf3muce2.pdf

Conditional Determinants of Mobile Phones Penetration and Mobile Banking in Sub-Saharan Africa

https://isiarticles.com/bundles/Article/pre/pdf/14236.pdf

Effects of financial liberalization on financial market development and economic performance of the SSA region: An empirical assessment

Knowledge Economy Gaps, Policy Syndromes and Catch-up Strategies: Fresh South Korean Lessons to Africa

This paper qualitatively and quantitatively assesses the degree of resilience in the financial intermediary sector of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central African States (CEMAC) to macroeconomic shocks and discusses the relevant policy implications. Using GMM and a battery of estimations techniques, the panel-based investigations broadly show that the sub-region is vulnerable to macroeconomic shocks. Lower bank provisions result on the one hand from shortages or decreases in long-term financing, real exchange and GDP per capita growth rate on the other hand from increases of interest rates. Whereas the change in interest rate increases net income commission, the effect is negative from lower levels of short-term financing. The incidence of changes in interest rates on the interest rate margin of banks is ambiguous. The findings broadly confirm the need to incorporate macroeconomic shocks in financial policy decision making. The paper contributes at the same to the knowledge on stock management in monetary zones and the need to: (1) timely intervene to mitigate potential shocks and; (2) increase control to sustain the credibility of the banking system.

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm?abstractid=2515976

On the Sensitivity of Banking Activity Shocks: Evidence from CEMAC Sub-Region

This article aims to investigate the implication of financial deepening dynamics for financial policy coordination in the WAEMU sub-region. For this purpose we adopted a hypothetical-deductive theoretical approach and an empirical investigation in both static and dynamic panel data econometrics that has allowed us to identify some stylized facts on this issue and have led to the following global recommendations based on our empirical investigation: The converging dynamics is evident in the sub-region and implies that after five years, financial policies harmonization would have an optimal impact; This highlights the feasibility of common effectiveness monetary policy targeting indirectly financial depth in the sub-region; However member states should work within five years towards harmonizing cross-country differences in structural and institutional characteristics that hamper the effectiveness of financial policies. Especially they should implement a financial policy whose mainly aim to increase the level of savings rate, GDP per capita growth rate and density and reduce the level of reserves in the sub-region.

Financial Deepening Dynamics and Implication for Financial Policy Coordination in a Monetary Union: The Case of WAEMU

Large-scale agricultural land acquisitions have been covered substantially in recent literature. Despite the wealth of theoretical and empirical studies on this subject, there is no study that has reviewed existing literature in light of concerns over sustainable and equitable management. This study fills the gap by analyzing and synthesizing available literature to put some structure on existing knowledge. The paper has a threefold contribution to the literature. First, it takes stock of what we know so far about the determinants of land grab. Second, it presents a picture of sustainable and equitable development of the foreign land acquisitions. Third, policy syndromes are examined and policy implications discussed. Based on the accounts, the issues are not about whether agricultural investments are needed, but on how they can be sustainably and equitably managed to make positive contributions to food security and domestic development.

https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/123613/1/agdi-wp14-001.pdf

Equitable and Sustainable Development of Foreign Land Acquisitions: what have we learnt on policy syndromes and implications?

On the Sensitivity of Banking Activity Shocks: Evidence from the CEMAC Sub-region

Large-scale agricultural land acquisitions have been covered substantially in recent literature. Despite the wealth of theoretical and empirical studies on this subject, there is no study that has reviewed existing literature in light of concerns over sustainable and equitable management. This chapter fills the gap by analyzing and synthesizing available literature to put some structure on existing knowledge. The paper has a threefold contribution to the literature. First, it takes stock of what we know so far about the determinants of land grab. Second, it presents a picture of sustainable and equitable development of the foreign land acquisitions. Third, policy syndromes are examined and policy implications discussed. Based on the accounts, the issues are not about whether agricultural investments are needed, but on how they can be sustainably and equitably managed to make positive contributions to food security and domestic development.

Christian Lambert Nguena

Papers

On the Sensitivity of Banking Activity Shocks: Evidence from CEMAC Sub-Region

Financial Deepening Dynamics and Implication for Financial Policy Coordination in a Monetary Union: The Case of WAEMU

Equitable and Sustainable Development of Foreign Land Acquisitions: what have we learnt on policy syndromes and implications?

On the Sensitivity of Banking Activity Shocks: Evidence from the CEMAC Sub-region

Equitable and Sustainable Development of Foreign Land Acquisitions: Lessons, Policies and Implications