The Africa’s Pulse, is a bi-annual macro-economic update of the state of the continent. Each edition also features one or two special topics. It is published by the Office of the Chief Economist in the Africa Region of the World Bank. The April 2019 edition featured two special topics: ‘Implementing Regional Solutions to Address Fragility … More Taking the Pulse of the Economies in African Countries
I recently participated in a panel discussion at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on 30 January 2019. The event was entitled: “Nigeria’s 2019 Elections: Insecurity, Economic Adversity and Political Competition”. The conversation was with Carl LeVan, Associate Professor at the School of International Service, American University and Judd Devermont, Director of the … More Video: Panel Discussion at CSIS on Nigeria’s Upcoming Elections
I’m pleased to announce that my chapter on “The ‘Resource Curse’ and the Constraints on Reforming Nigeria’s Oil Sector” is now published. It is one of three chapters on Nigeria’s oil economy in the Oxford Handbook on Nigerian Politics. The analysis goes beyond the ‘resource-curse’ and uses political settlements theory to argue that the dysfunctions … More PUBLISHED: My Book Chapter on “The ‘Resource Curse’ and Constraints to Reforming Nigeria’s Oil Sector”
A paper I co-authored on the political economy of power sector reforms was recently published. It examines developing country experiences with market reforms in unbundling, regulation, privatization and creating competition in the power sector. Here’s the abstract: The power sector reform experiences of developing countries vary greatly. To help explain this from a political economy … More NEW PAPER: The Political Economy of Power Sector Reforms in Developing Countries
THE KNIGHT-HENNESY SCHOLARSHIP FOR GRADUATE STUDIES AT STANFORD UNIVERSITY. Apply by September 2017 and Enroll at Stanford in September 2018 Each year up to 100 high-achieving students (50 in the first year) who are independent thinkers, display purposeful leadership, and have a civic orientation will receive full funding to pursue a graduate education at Stanford. … More Scholarships and Development Opportunities No. 19
APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR THE 2017 GATES CAMBRIDGE FULL SCHOLARSHIP FOR POSTGRADUATE STUDY (MASTERS, PHD) AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE Gates Cambridge considers applications from citizens from outside the United Kingdom who wish to pursue a full-time postgraduate degree at the University of Cambridge. See the eligibility page for details Deadline: 7 December 2016. Further details are available … More Scholarships and Development Opportunities, No. 18
1. THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AFRICAN PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLARS PROGRAM See website and brochure. UMAPS accepts direct applications from faculty members of colleges or universities in Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, and Uganda. Faculty members of colleges and universities in all other African countries cannot apply directly to the UMAPS program without first being nominated and invited to … More Scholarships and Development Opportunities No.17
I recently wrote this piece for The Conversation. A consistent feature of global analyses of Africa’s economic prospects is their fickleness. In the years since the global financial crisis in 2008, forecasts about Africa have swerved from deep pessimism to heady optimism, and back to a bearish outlook of slow growth and fragility. The vacillation … More To transform Africa’s economies, African companies matter too
1. CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: IZA/DFID SHORT COURSE ON PROGRAM EVALUATION (ALL EXPENSES COVERED) Organisers: David Lam (University of Michigan and IZA), Maryam Naghsh Nejad (IZA) Location: Lusaka, Zambia Date: October 29 – October 30, 2016 Submission Deadline: June 30, 2016 Notification of Acceptance: July 30, 2016 Deadline for Registeration: August 10, 2016 Event Manager: Dominik Spitza Online Application Form
On 29 February 2016, I participated in a panel discussion on the above subject, ‘China and Global Development: Different Perspectives on Africa’. This was at the School of Public Policy, Central European University, Budapest, alongside, Professor George Wu (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) and Professor Chris Alden (London School of Economics and Political Science). The … More China and Global Development: Different Perspectives on Africa
Apologies for the long hiatus. Scholarships and Development Opportunities is back 1. WORLD BANK GROUP ANALYST PROGRAMME The World Bank Group Analyst Program is a new and unique opportunity for exceptionally talented young people with a passion for international development to contribute to solving some of the world’s most pressing problems. Through this structured three-year … More Scholarships and Development Opportunities No. 15
Happy New Year! On 3-4 November 2015, I was at a conference organised by the Friederich Ebert Stiftung (FES) foundation on ‘New Industrial Policy in Africa: Overcoming the Extractives Trap’ in Atananarivo, Madagascar . The conference was organised to discuss attempts by African countries, especially resource producers and exporters to cope with the ongoing collapse in … More New Industrial Policy in Africa: Overcoming the Extractives Trap
INTERNSHIP: SOCIAL POLICY FOR INCLUSIVE DEVELOPMENT AT THE UN INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT Deadline: 19 July 2015 The United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) is an autonomous research institute within the UN system that undertakes multidisciplinary research and policy analysis on the social dimensions of contemporary development issues. Through our work, … More Scholarships and Development Opportunities No. 14
Last week, I was at a conference organised by the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), formerly Revenue Watch Institute, on the challenges and opportunities presented by falling commodity prices. It was attended by the best in the academia, in policy and in civil society in the field. A breakdown of the panels and speakers is … More “EITI was the Wrong Focus” and other Highlights of the Natural Resource Governance Conference
Our publication (with colleague Dr Olly Owen) in the July edition of the journal, African Affairs is out. We wrote a brief on the Nigerian presidential election in March 2015, assessing why the election was exceptional in many respects, why many previous predictions including ours of a runoff or an outright Jonathan/PDP victory did not … More Publication: ‘Why Goodluck Jonathan Lost the Nigerian Presidential Election of 2015’
Zainab Usman 