Growth, External Sector and Role of Non-traditional Exports in Sub-Saharan Africa
Project / Programme Summary
I. Basic data
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II. Project description
- Objectives
The main objectives of the project are:
(i) To draw on relevant East Asian and Latin American experiences in the development of rapid and more diversified export growth to inform today's African export policy disenssion, and
(ii) To analyse recent experience in "adjusting" African countries with a view to identifying key constraints on better non-traditional export performance and policy requirements to overcome them.
It may still be premature to offer definitive conclusions. Some themes, however, are emerging:
- There has already been quite significant expansion of non-traditional exports in many African adjusting countries; despite considerable pessimism about progress, some diversification is underway.
- The appropriate alignment and stability of the real exchange rate is fundamentally important to export success.
- The roles of short-term capital flows, and therefore domestic interest rates, in the management of the exchange rate are important to export success, and have not been adequately analysed.
- There is an important role for governmental encouragement of non-traditional exports and, contrary to experience in other parts of the world, it has typically not been well played in Africa.
- There are no cross-country uniformities as to the characteristics of African non-traditional exporting firms.
- Activities / contents
The project has been developed in a collaborative style in which all of those conducting the research were involved in its planning. There has been close cooperation with the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) based in Nairobi; its former Executive Director has now assumed joint directorship of the project. Papers were commissioned from Asian, Latin American and African authors. The African country-level research is undertaken by African economists familiar with their own countries' constraints and experience.
It is anticipated that the nine African papers, two to five of the Asian and Latin American papers, and three thematic papers will be brought together in a published volume, together with an introduction and conclusion written by the project director. It is possible that the material may be sufficient to justify the publication of two separate volumes.
Two project meetings have been held, one in Kampala, Uganda, June 16-18, 1997, and one in Addis Ababa, March 16-20, 1998. Both were held in conjunction with a project meeting of the UNU/WIDER project on the "Impact of liberalization on key markets in Africa", with which there has been fruitful interaction. A total of seventeen papers have been commissioned (three by UNCTAD and fourteen by UNU/WIDER). Drafts of all of the papers have been presented and discussed at the project meetings; they are now being revised for publication. - Expected outcomes / impacts
Where does the TICAD II Agenda for Action deal with Economic Development - Exports? Perhaps the Action Plan Section 2 on Economic Development.
III. Contact point:
Project Director:
Professor Gerald K. Helleiner
University of Toronto
(End)
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