Political Institutions and Economic Growth in Africa
CID Faculty Working Paper No. 98
Janvier D. Nkurunziza and Robert H. Bates
March 2003
Abstract
In this paper we (a) review the literature on the so-called "African dummy"; (b) describe the system GMM method of estimation, by which Hoeffler (2002) shows the "Africa dummy" to be an artifact of the application of inappropriate estimation techniques; and (c) employ this technique to measure the impact of political variables - measures of stability, regime type, and violence - on economic growth in Africa.
Keywords: Africa, political economy, development, economic growth, System Generalised Method of Moments, Anke Hoeffler, "Africa dummy"
JEL subject codes: O00, O55, O57