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Botswana as a Role Model for Country Success

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  • James Robinson

Abstract

I argue that the economic success of Botswana can be explained by the historical development of its institutions which is related to the trajectory of the Tswana states over the past 200 years. These institutions created a much more stable and accountable government than elsewhere in Africa after independence with the desire and incentive to adopt good economic policies. There are two main lessons from this experience. The first is how successful an African economy can become using simple orthodox well-understood policies.

Suggested Citation

  • James Robinson, 2009. "Botswana as a Role Model for Country Success," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2009-40, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:rp2009-40
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    File URL: https://www.wider.unu.edu/sites/default/files/RP2009-40.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Kaufmann, Daniel & Kraay, Aart & Zoido-Lobaton, Pablo, 1999. "Governance matters," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2196, The World Bank.
    2. Daron Acemoglu & Simon Johnson & James A. Robinson, 2001. "The Colonial Origins of Comparative Development: An Empirical Investigation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(5), pages 1369-1401, December.
    3. Philippe Aghion, 2005. "Growth and Institutions," Empirica, Springer;Austrian Institute for Economic Research;Austrian Economic Association, vol. 32(1), pages 3-18, March.
    4. Daron Acemoglu & Simon Johnson & James A. Robinson & Pierre Yared, 2008. "Income and Democracy," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(3), pages 808-842, June.
    5. James A. Robinson & Q. Neil Parsons, 2006. "State Formation and Governance in Botswana," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 15(1), pages 100-140, April.
    6. Acemoglu,Daron & Robinson,James A., 2009. "Economic Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521671422, January.
    7. World Bank, 2007. "World Development Indicators 2007," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 8150.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sylvain Dessy & Stéphane Pallage & Désiré Vencatachellum, 2012. "The Political Economy of Social Inclusion," Cahiers de recherche 1202, CIRPEE.
    2. Abdullahi Ahmed & Andrew Hulten, 2014. "Financial Globalization in Botswana and Nigeria: A Critique of the Thresholds Paradigm," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 41(2), pages 177-203, June.
    3. Seidler, Valentin, 2011. "Colonial legacy and institutional development: The cases of Botswana and Nigeria," ÖFSE-Forum, Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE), volume 52, number 52.
    4. Augustin Kwasi Fosu, 2011. "Terms of Trade and Growth of Resource Economies: A Tale of Two Countries," CSAE Working Paper Series 2011-09, Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford.
    5. Jonathan Munemo, 2022. "Do African resource rents promote rent-seeking at the expense of entrepreneurship?," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 58(3), pages 1647-1660, March.
    6. Naudé, Wim, 2010. "Development Progress in sub-Saharan Africa: Lessons from Botswana, Ghana, Mauritius and South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 007, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    7. Wim Naudé, 2010. "Development Progress in sub-Saharan Africa: Lessons from Botswana, Ghana, Mauritius and South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2010-007, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).

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    Keywords

    Economic development; Economic policy; Government accountability; Public administration;
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