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Rethinking the Relationship between Neo‐patrimonialism and Economic Development in Africa

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  • Tim Kelsall

Abstract

Is it possible to work with the grain of neo‐patrimonial politics to boost investment and growth in Africa? Current donor orthodoxy is that neo‐patrimonialism is irredeemably bad for economic development, but evidence from other regions, together with a re‐examination of the African record itself, suggests that this may not be true. We present evidence from case studies of Kenya, Côte d'Ivoire, Malawi and Rwanda to show that provided mechanisms can be found to centralise economic rents and manage them with a view to the long term, neo‐patrimonialism can be harnessed for developmental ends.

Suggested Citation

  • Tim Kelsall, 2011. "Rethinking the Relationship between Neo‐patrimonialism and Economic Development in Africa," IDS Bulletin, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 42(2), pages 76-87, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:wly:idsxxx:v:42:y:2011:i:2:p:76-87
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/idsb.2011.42.issue-2
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    Cited by:

    1. Kimani, Danson & Ullah, Subhan & Kodwani, Devendra & Akhtar, Pervaiz, 2021. "Analysing corporate governance and accountability practices from an African neo-patrimonialism perspective: Insights from Kenya," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    2. Lassou, Philippe Jacques Codjo & Hopper, Trevor, 2016. "Government accounting reform in an ex-French African colony: The political economy of neocolonialism," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 39-57.
    3. Addo, Atta A., 2016. "Explaining 'irrationalities' of IT-enabled change in a developing country bureaucracy: the case of Ghana's Tradenet," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 69471, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Roel Dom, 2017. "Semi-Autonomous Revenue Authorities in Sub-Saharan Africa: Silver Bullet or White Elephant," Discussion Papers 2017-01, University of Nottingham, CREDIT.
    5. Luca J. Uberti, 2016. "The ‘sociological turn’ in corruption studies: Why fighting graft in the developing world is often unnecessary, and sometimes counterproductive," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 16(3), pages 261-277, July.
    6. Susan Johnson & Richard Williams, 2016. "The political economy of financial inclusion: tailoring donor policy to fit," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 34(5), pages 721-743, September.
    7. Michael A. Abebe & Yamlaksira S. Getachew & Sarah Kimakwa, 2022. "Entrepreneurs’ Ethnic and Political Identity Alignment as Determinants of Access to Government Support in Africa: A Conceptual Framework," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 46(2), pages 449-476, March.

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