Regional dimensions of structural adjustment in West Africa

Perspective | Regional Security Policy in West Africa

Structural adjustment: the wrong prescription for Africa?

The medical and social consequences and the wide effects of the African structural adjustment program (SAP), specifically for women and children, and examples of the impact in Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Senegal, are discussed. Structural adjustment is defined and the history of its inception is provided. Significant economic and social welfare improvement occurred during the 1960s and 1970s, and c...

Regional Financial and Economic Integration in West Africa

Previous studies of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have evaluated the union’s success in comparison to other integration initiatives and according to traditional theory on the optimum currency area, which calls for high intraregional trade and correlated business cycles. This study seeks to determine the prospects for further integration in West Africa given the region’s...

Economic Crisis , Structural Adjustment , and Health in Africa

Thc Policy, Research. and Extemal Affaus Complex distnbutes PRI. Working Papers todisseminatethe findings of work in progress and to encourage the exchange of ideas among Bank staff and all others interested in development issues. These papers carry the names of the authors, reflect only their views, and should be used and cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions ai he ...

Lessons from Structural Adjustment Programmes and their Effects in Africa

After independence around 1960, African countries started with high hopes for rapid growth and development. Whereas the initial performance was remarkable, economic development slowed in the 1970s and stagnated in the 1980s. In response, the states’ attempts to reinvigorate economic growth through state-led investments and import substitution industrialisation strategies were unsuccessful. The ...