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Governance and information technology for female labour force participation in the African Continental Free Trade Area

Author

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  • Simplice A. Asongu

    (Johannesburg, South Africa)

  • Juste Some

    (Université Norbert Zongo, Koudougou, Burkina Faso)

Abstract

The motivation of the present study is to complement the extant literature by assessing the relevance of governance and information technology in how African trade affects female labour force participation. The study focuses on 48 African countries using data for the period 1996 to 2021. An adopted empirical strategy is the fixed effects regressions that are designed to address concerns for simultaneity and the unobserved heterogeneity. The fractional probit model based on the pooled Bernoulli quasi-maximum likelihood method is also employed. The following main findings are established. First, governance moderates intra-African trade to engender positive synergies on female labour force participation. The positive synergies are apparent from the overall quality of institutions, government effectiveness and the rule of law. Second, information technology does not significantly moderate intra-African trade to affect female labour force participation. The established findings from fixed effects regressions are robust to fractional probit model estimations. The findings are relevant in informing policy makers on how governance can be used to moderate the influence of African trade in promoting female labour force participation. Policy implications are discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Simplice A. Asongu & Juste Some, 2024. "Governance and information technology for female labour force participation in the African Continental Free Trade Area," Working Papers of The Association for Promoting Women in Research and Development in Africa (ASPROWORDA). 24/013, The Association for Promoting Women in Research and Development in Africa (ASPROWORDA).
  • Handle: RePEc:aak:wpaper:24/013
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Simplice A. Asongu & Nicholas M. Odhiambo, 2019. "How enhancing information and communication technology has affected inequality in Africa for sustainable development: An empirical investigation," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(4), pages 647-656, July.
    2. Ofori, Isaac K. & Gbolonyo, Emmanuel & Ojong, Nathanael, 2022. "Towards Inclusive Green Growth in Africa: Critical energy efficiency synergies and governance thresholds," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 365, pages 1-48.
    3. Simplice A. Asongu & Nicholas M. Odhiambo, 2018. "ICT, Financial Access and Gender Inclusion in the Formal Economic Sector: Evidence from Africa," The African Finance Journal, Africagrowth Institute, vol. 20(2), pages 45-65.
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    15. Asongu, Simplice A. & Nounamo, Yann & Njangang, Henri & Tadadjeu, Sosson, 2021. "Gender inclusive intermediary education, financial stability and female employment in the industry in Sub-Saharan Africa," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 43(C).
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    ICT; Governance; Inclusion; Gender; Africa;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G20 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - General
    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • O40 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - General
    • O55 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Africa

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