Growth and Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa

499 Pages·2016·4.23 MB·English

by  Channing Arndt

Growth and Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa
United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research
(UNU-WIDER) was established by the United Nations University as its first research
andtrainingcentreandstartedworkinHelsinki,Finland,in1985.Themandateofthe
institute is to undertake applied research and policy analysis on structural changes
affectingdevelopingandtransitionaleconomies,toprovideaforumfortheadvocacy
ofpoliciesleadingtorobust,equitable,andenvironmentallysustainablegrowth,andto
promote capacity strengthening and training in the field of economic and social
policymaking. Its work is carried out by staff researchers and visiting scholars in
Helsinkiandvianetworksofcollaboratingscholarsandinstitutionsaroundtheworld.
UnitedNationsUniversityWorldInstituteforDevelopmentEconomicsResearch
(UNU-WIDER)
Katajanokanlaituri6B,00160Helsinki,Finland
www.wider.unu.edu
Growth and Poverty in
Sub-Saharan Africa
Edited by
Channing Arndt, Andy McKay, and Finn Tarp
AstudypreparedbytheUnitedNationsUniversityWorldInstitute
forDevelopmentEconomicsResearch(UNU-WIDER)
1
OUPCORRECTEDPROOF–FINAL,10/2/2016,SPi
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Foreword
Despite decades of research and advances in data and methodologies, meas-
uring poverty and reconciling this with patterns of economic growth is a
disputatious issue. This contentiousness and the fact that poverty remains
widespread in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) charged UNU-WIDER to launch in
2011 a major research project—the Growth and Poverty Project (GAPP)—to
re-examine SSA’s growth, poverty, and inequality trends with three main
goals in mind. First, develop new tools to measure monetary poverty in
consistentandcomparableways,andmakethesetoolsaccessibletoscholars
andanalystsinAfrica,otherdevelopingregions,andbeyond.Second,under-
takedetailed case studiesof sixteenof the twenty-four mostpopulouscoun-
triesinSSA(coveringnolessthan73.8percentofthepopulationinSSA)to
measurepovertytrends,and‘triangulate’thesewithotherdevelopmentindi-
cators. Third, develop a macro–micro analytical framework to conduct
detailed research in countries where poverty and economic growth trends
appeartobeinconsistent.
This book holds the essential country-level harvest of this large, multi-
country, multi-discipline research project brought to the reader in a con-
densed form together with a comprehensive synthesisto explore the depths
oftheunfoldingstoryofthegrowth–povertynexusinSSAandtoabsorbthe
policy implications. The project team consisted of leading international
expertsandUNU-WIDERresearchersalongwithsomeoftheAfricancontin-
ent’sbestresearchersanddataanalysts.Iherebysincerelyexpressmyappre-
ciationandadmirationoftheacademicandanalyticalskillsofthisteamand
the detailed knowledge of the case countries brought out so clearly in this
volume.Ourprofessiondoesindeedhavesomethingsensibletocontribute—
both in recognizing that growth is in many cases translated into poverty
reductioninAfricancountriesandinhelpingtounderstandwhythislinkis
sometimesnotasrobustasdesirable.
UNU-WIDERgratefullyacknowledgestheSpecialProgrammeContribution
(SPC) by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland for this project and the
regularcorefinancialcontributionsmadetoitsresearchprogrammefromthe
governmentsofDenmark,Finland,Sweden,andtheUnitedKingdom.
FinnTarp
Helsinki,January2016

Acknowledgements
UNU-WIDER’sGrowthandPovertyProject(GAPP)wasimplementedbetween
2012 and 2014 and brought together a highly qualified team of more than
fortyresearchersfromAfricaandbeyond.Withouttheirdedicationandpro-
fessional competence, this book would not have been possible. We wish to
express our sincere appreciation to these country teams who produced the
casestudiesinthisbook.Puttingtogetheravolumesuchasthisoneisnoeasy
undertaking;andwewishtoexpressourappreciationforallofthehigh-level
academic input, together with the copious goodwill and patience—which
weremuchneededwhendoingtheoriginalgroundworkfollowedbynumer-
ousrevisionsandupdatesoftheindividualchapters.
A series of intensive planning meetings, involving many of the authors,
helped shape the project; and results were presented at several UNU-WIDER
developmentconferencesandmanyotheroccasionsacrossAfricancountries.
We are grateful to all of those who offered critique and most helpful com-
ments. They include Oxford University Press’s Economics Commissioning
Editor Adam Swallow and his team, as well as three anonymous referees.
Your efforts were essential in helping to sharpen our research questions and
approachtoaddressingoneofthemostintricatechallengesfacingthedevel-
opmentprofession,theAfricangrowthrenaissanceanditsimpactonpoverty
reduction.
UNU-WIDER and its dedicated staff provided steady support, including
researchassistance,whichgoesfarbeyondthenormalcallofduty.Particular
thanks go to Dominik Etienne for excellent programming; Anne Ruohonen
forconsistentprojectassistance;LorraineTelfer-Taivainenforallofthecareful
publicationsupport,includingthemanycontactswithOUP;andLisaWinkler
andthegroupofcopy-editorsforhelpingtoputoutthemanyUNU-WIDER
workingpapersproducedduringthecourseoftheproject.
Theresearchproject—ReconcilingAfrica’sGrowth,Poverty,andInequality
Trends—wasgenerouslysupportedbythegovernmentsofDenmark,Finland,
Sweden, and the United Kingdom, with a special project contribution add-
itionally provided by the Finnish government. UNU-WIDER gratefully
acknowledgesthisvitalresearchfunding.Itisourhopethatthevolumewill
beofrelevancetoallofthosestrugglingtoendpovertyinAfrica.
ChanningArndt,AndyMcKay,andFinnTarp
Helsinki,January2016

Contents
ListofFigures xi
ListofTables xv
ListofBoxes xxi
ListofAbbreviations xxiii
NotesonContributors xxvii
1. GrowthandPovertyinSub-SaharanAfrica 1
ChanningArndt,AndyMcKay,andFinnTarp
2. Synthesis:TwoCheersfortheAfricanGrowthRenaissance
(butnotThree) 11
ChanningArndt,AndyMcKay,andFinnTarp
Part1.RapidGrowthandRapidPovertyReduction
3. PovertyinEthiopia,2000–11:WelfareImprovementsina
ChangingEconomicLandscape 43
DavidStifelandTassewWoldehanna
4. Ghana:PovertyReductionoverThirtyYears 69
AndyMcKay,JukkaPirttilä,andFinnTarp
5. DidRapidSmallholder-LedAgriculturalGrowthFailtoReduce
RuralPoverty?MakingSenseofMalawi’sPovertyPuzzle 89
KarlPauw,UlrikBeck,andRichardMussa
6. Growth,PovertyReduction,andInequalityinRwanda 112
AndyMcKayandMarijkeVerpoorten
7. PovertyanditsDynamicsinUganda:ExplorationsUsing
aNewSetofPovertyLines 137
BjornVanCampenhout,HarunaSekabira,andDedeHoueto
Aduayom
Part2.RapidGrowthbutLimitedPovertyReduction
8. BurkinaFaso:ShippingaroundtheMalthusianTrap 163
MichaelGrimm,ClaudeWetta,andAudeNikiema