This paper reviews trade policy reform and performance in Africa since the 1980s. African countries have implemented significant trade liberalisation in this period, in particular reducing tariffs. This has usually resulted in an increase in imports, but export growth has often been sluggish so that in many countries the trade deficit has increased. The paper documents trends and performance an...

This paper analyzes the effects of socio-economic factors on life expectancy. Using multiple regression analysis, the paper shows that there is a positive strong correlation between life expectancy as an independent variable and per capita income, health expenditures, literacy rate and daily calorie intake. Also, it shows that there is a negative strong correlation between life expectancy and n...

This paper uses panel data from African countries from 1992 to 2004 and a dynamic panel data (DPD) estimation method to investigate the demand for telephone services and the impact of telephone use on income growth in African countries. We find that telephone use has a positive and significant impact on income growth in African countries, all things equal. We also find that the demand for telep...

Most African countries have limited health information systems infrastructure. Some health information system components are implemented but often on an adhoc, piecemeal basis, by foreign software developers and designed to solve specific problems. Little attention is usually paid to how these components can fit into an integrated national health information system and interoperate with other c...

Crops that are not part of the customary diet of the local population and grown primarily for their high cash values and export potentials are categorized as nontraditional. Recently, several African countries have gone into the production of nontraditional fruits and vegetables of temperate origin in order to diversify their agricultural exports and increase hard currency earning. Most develop...

Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are acknowledged as being pivotal to poverty alleviation, especially in African countries where the governments’ capacity and revenue are often very limited. Despite their prominent role in developing countries, little is known about how these organisations function. Can NGOs prosper when they are financially reliant on donations and contributions from the ...

The Fondation Mérieux, in partnership with the Ministries of Health of Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal, implemented for four years a project to reinforce the laboratory sector in the three participating countries: the RESAOLAB project (West African Network of Biomedical Analysis Laboratories).The objective of RESAOLAB project, in partnership with the WHO Office for West Africa and the West Afric...

This article addresses the different institutional and cultural contexts which must be considered when implementing e-government in sub-Saharan-Africa. Although e-government is a global phenomenon, simply transferring ICT solutions and related organizational concepts from developed to developing countries seems inappropriate. Undoubtedly, e-government has the potential to reduce administrative ...

Vaccination considered as one of the most cost-effective health interventions worldwide  through prevention and control of many serious childhood diseases (1). It is estimated  global coverage of  Dose 3 of Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis (DTP3)among children one year old has been 86% in 2014 (by range from 77% to 96%  in African Region and Western Pacific Region; respectively) (2). Globally...

Illegal labour immigration is increasingly a source of concern to politicians and the public in relatively rich countries within the Southern African Development Corporation (SADC). This paper examines the status of illegal immigration in Botswana and South Africa. The definition of illegal immigration is discussed. It draws extensively from similar experiences in the United States of America a...