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Public Information and Performance: The Role of Spatial Dependence in the Worldwide Governance Indicators among African Countries

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  • Ward, Hugh
  • Dorussen, Han

Abstract

The Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) provide transparent and comparable country statistics for different dimensions of governance linked to (under)development. Yet, does the public availability of governance data actually enhance performance? If investors, donor agencies, and citizens are made aware of relative governance performance, competition for inward investment, such as FDI and ODA, and domestic legitimacy become plausible mechanisms for diffusion of good governance. We test whether such mechanisms operate using the WGI for Africa, and find evidence for spatial diffusion of democracy, rule of law, and corruption control. There is no evidence for diffusion of regulatory quality and government effectiveness.

Suggested Citation

  • Ward, Hugh & Dorussen, Han, 2015. "Public Information and Performance: The Role of Spatial Dependence in the Worldwide Governance Indicators among African Countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 253-263.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:74:y:2015:i:c:p:253-263
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2015.05.002
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    3. Asongu, Simplice & Diop, Samba, 2021. "Human development and governance in Africa: do good fences make good neighbours?," MPRA Paper 110685, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Jiandang Liu & Jie Tang & Bo Zhou & Zhijun Liang, 2018. "The Effect of Governance Quality on Economic Growth: Based on China’s Provincial Panel Data," Economies, MDPI, vol. 6(4), pages 1-23, October.
    5. Xinya Yang & Liuna Geng, 2022. "An Integrated Analysis of Social, Economic, and Environmental Indicators’ Effects on Public Health and Health Inequality Globally: From the Perspective of Vulnerability," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 162(3), pages 1261-1279, August.
    6. Borsky, Stefan & Kalkschmied, Katja, 2019. "Corruption in space: A closer look at the world's subnations," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 400-422.
    7. Claudio Detotto & Sauveur Giannoni & Claire Goavec, 2017. "Does good governance attract tourists?," Working Papers 002, Laboratoire Lieux, Identités, eSpaces et Activités (LISA).
    8. Sherif, Mohamed & Chen, Jiaqi, 2019. "The quality of governance and momentum profits: International evidence," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(5).
    9. Yu Hao & Chun-Ping Chang & Zao Sun, 2018. "Women and corruption: evidence from multinational panel data," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 1447-1468, July.

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