African Successes

Literature

Research Papers in Economics (RePEC): http://repec.org/

·         Several search engines for economics journal and working papers

·         Also has a list for STATA ado files

United Nations Official Document System: http://documents.un.org/

·         Full text of United Nations Official Records (including resolutions and decisions) as well as other UN parliamentary documents

Relevant Working Papers

"Is Africa's Recent Growth Robust?"

Africa Region Working Paper Series - World Bank

JORGE SABA ARBACHE, World Bank, Africa Region - Office of the Chief Economist
Email: jorgearbache@hotmail.com
JOHN PAGE, World Bank
Email: jpage@worldbank.org

Sub-Saharan Africa has grown at record figures since the mid-1990s, generating optimism that the continent has finally turned the corner on the path to sustained growth. But growth has been largely driven by high international demand for commodities in general, and hydrocarbons and other minerals in particular, and it is unclear how the region will cope if and when the global demand for raw materials slows down. To answer this question we first investigate whether growth has accelerated since 1995, and second whether the economic fundamentals that drive long run growth have improved during the acceleration. We use the methodology developed by Arbache and Page (2007a) and find evidence that Africa has indeed been experiencing record growth acceleration since 1995. But we find that in general growth accelerations have not been accompanied by improved economic fundamentals such as investment rates, current accounts, fiscal accounts, and inflation, thus suggesting that so far there is little indication that the region is experiencing a robust growth period.

Relevant Organizations/Associations

African Development Bank (AfDB): http://www.afdb.org/

African Economic Research Consortium (AERC): http://www.aercafrica.org/home/index.asp

African Finance & Economics Association (AFEA): http://www.afea.org/

·         Founded in 1988, AFEA is a professional association for academicians and practitioners of finance and economics with scholarly or professional interests in the development of Africa

·         Sponsors the Journal of African Finance and Economic Development (JAFED)

OECD Development Centre (including “Africa at the Centre”): http://www.oecd.org/about/0,3347,en_2649_33731_1_1_1_1_1,00.html

European Commission: Development and relations with African, Caribbean, and Pacific States: http://ec.europa.eu/development/index_en.cfm

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA): http://www.uneca.org/

West African Research Association (WARA): http://www.africa.ufl.edu/WARA/index.htm

African Studies Association (ASA) resources page: http://www.africanstudies.org/?page=links_page

·         African studies programs and scholarly associations

·         Online directories of researchers

·         General Africa-related websites

·         Funding agencies and fellowship sources

African Studies Resources

Excellent lists maintained by Columbia University: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/indiv/africa/cuvl/index.html

·         Electronic journals and newspapers on Africa

·         International directory of African studies scholars

·         Archives, libraries, bibliographies, book dealers, publishers

·         African studies resources by region and country

·         African studies resources by organization

·         African studies resources by topic

·         Other resource collections (websites)

African Studies Programs, Research Centers, Universities

Comprehensive worldwide list by Columbia University: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/indiv/africa/cuvl/afstprog.html

MSU: African Studies Centers around the world by MSU:http://africa.msu.edu/ascs.htm

·         Includes descriptions of each center

Travel Resources

Oanda currency converter to dollars and back – convenient cheatsheet to carry in your wallet: http://www.oanda.com/convert/cheatsheet

This page is a work in progress. Suggestions of links to add are very welcome. Please send them to epepe AT nber.org.