Economic Development within Sub-Saharan Africa - Research Paper Example

?Whereas many studies have focused upon the realities of poverty that are exhibited within the nations that comprise sub-Saharan Africa, the reality of the situation underscores the fact that poverty reduction on a systemic level will only be able to be realized through an effective, combined, and concerted micro-financial international and national development that focuses upon the introduction of stable and regulated means of currency policy. Such an introduction of policies related to micro-finance are instrumental as they not only assist the local economies in developing a stable approach to economic policy and currency policy; they are also integral in seeking to provide a stable environment for the reduction of poverty. Such cases as have been evidenced within nations such as Zimbabwe within the past decade are evidence of the detrimental effects that an unstable economic policy of currency manipulation and run-away depreciation of the currency can have on the overall level of both economic development and levels of poverty exhibited within such systems.1 As a function of understanding the unique local of steps must be taken within sub-Saharan African nations in order to affect growth and integrate with the rest of the world’s economy, the following analysis will focus specifically on some of the means by which this can be leveraged in realized. Although a great deal of scholarship has been performed over past decades with regards to the level in which runaway globalization can negatively impact upon the economic development of given economy, the fact that matter is that globalization is one of the most effective means by which many of the issues that have thus far been introduced and discussed can ultimately be lessened. Ultimately, the economic development that is currently exhibited within sub-Saharan Africa is dependent upon the outside sources of funding and development that third party nations can provide. As such, it would be shortsighted to downplay the role that globalization plays with regards to varying and developing the economic resources and the exhibition of poverty that are currently extant within the system. It can and should be noted that globalization within Africa portends unnecessary risk which must be countered with robust economic policy and regulation.2 Even a cursory review of the realities of how Africa has been exploited the past several hundred years went to the reader to understand that without a robust and nuanced level of regulation, the African economies are at risk for a new round of exploitation as prior models of European colonialism had effected upon the diverse nations and economies of sub-Saharan Africa.3 Due to the fact that sub-Saharan Africa’s economy is almost solely reliant upon the production of raw materials and the exportation and sale of primary foodstuffs, globalization can have the ancillary benefit of diversifying the economy in ways that would not otherwise be realized. In much the same way that economies of Southeast Asia have benefitted from an increased level of globalization, it is possible and realistic to assume that sub-Saharan African nations can benefit from similar methods as a means of building and diversifying their otherwise one-dimensional economies.4 Yet another reality the globalization has presented is the fact that in order for an economy to develop it must have a rigid structure of advanced communications and place in order to link business and facilitate economics. Unfortunately, such an infrastructure does not oftentimes exist within many sub-Saharan nations.5 However, and potential for growth and relatively inexpensive development of this technology currently exists. Whereas the developed economies of Europe and the United States have been able to experience the full brunt of the industrial and technological revolution, this has a high cost. This economic cost is necessarily the fact that many intermediary stages of technological development must be integrated, utilized, and then abandoned is more efficient and appropriate means are found. However, in the case of sub-Saharan Africa, most of these nations have never been able to develop a robust system of industry or technological advancement.6 Whereas this may be seen as a net drawback, it nonetheless entails the unique benefit of not having to go through each successive stage of industrialization or technological revolution prior to being able to realize the benefits that the integration of certain forms of technology can leverage. In such a way, rather than needing to build complete landline systems or wired means of medication, sub-Saharan African nations can leverage the much less expensive approach of wireless forms of data transfer and communications in order to affect the very same means.7 This ultimately allows sub-Saharan African nations to piggyback on the success of the developed world as a means of relatively inexpensively providing entry into the marketplace.8 Whereas pointing to a specific area of globalization and stating that development within such a context is the most important, it should be understood that an increased level of globalization and economic development within each of the areas that have thus far been elaborated upon will doubtless have a net positive effect on the economic strength, resiliency, diversity, and independence of the sectors of the economy that engage with it. For instance, scholarship has noted that globalization of sub-Saharan African economies can likely have a positive impact upon sectors as diverse as travel and tourism, IT and communications, agriculture, and the overall levels of poverty reduction that can be realized.9 The level and extent to which local economic policy can work hand in glove to affect a greater level of development is of course seen with regards to the means by which sub-Saharan Africa has the potential to leverage its agricultural markets to achieve a greater degree of success. Whereas the broad and overarching understanding, with regards to economic growth and diversification, oftentimes lends one ot discount the level of growth that can be evidenced within economies that rely heavily upon the sale and exportation of a single product to derive the lion’s share of their GDP, there exists as great deal of potential with regards to Africa’s agricultural products. The fact that these resources are heavily relied upon is not in and of itself a drawback. This is due to the fact that the level of development and organization that exists with regards to such an aspect of the economy is limited in nearly each and every sub-Saharan African nation.10 Rather than seeking diversification as the sole means by which growth and poverty reduction can take place, it can and should be noted that extant industry and production can be leveraged to a more efficient degree in order to benefit the system itself as well as the citizen stakeholders within each of the sub-Saharan nations.11 Naturally, agriculture itself makes up the vast majority of current GDP for the sub-Saharan nations; however, there also exists a supreme level of potential development that can be realized from with regards to the sustainable resource of tourism within sub-Saharan Africa. Due to the fact that this particular region of the world is not quite like any other, there exists a great potential for current and existing tourism infrastructure to be increased and the individual economic policies of the sub-Saharan nations in question to leverage this as a means of revenue generation. This represents a unique and interesting potential in much the same way that agricultural development does in the fact that it is a renewable resource which cannot ultimately be exhausted. The need and necessity for sub-Saharan nations to move away from the extraction of mineral and finite resources is perhaps the most pressing need. Whereas these finite resources are a means to generate revenue, basing economic development upon finite resources is a tactic and policy which has proven time and time again to have diminishing returns.12 As such, the development and utilization of non-exhaustible forms of development, such as tourism and agriculture, are the most promising that currently exist. Although this brief examination has taken many economic factors into account with regards to building and developing the level of economic resilience within sub-Saharan Africa, there is of course a fundamental and determinate factor that ultimately impacts upon the level and extent to which the means which a been suggested and discussed can be affected. Regardless of the degree of strength that given areas of economic system can leverage in helping to develop, define, and reduce poverty within the nations the comprised sub-Saharan Africa, governance and its affect cannot and should not be misunderstood.13 The truth of the matter is that without a governmental structure that is willing and able to engage with the multitude of economic needs that the preceding analysis necessarily demands, it is unlikely that any degree of development can ultimately be affected. One need look no further than many of the totalitarian dictatorships that define many of the nations within sub-Saharan Africa to realize the constricting effects that corruption, nepotism, and undemocratic systems can have upon the way in which these economies developed.14 Although it is necessarily beyond the scope of a simple economic analysis to provide prescriptions for growth and development within the governmental structure, it must be noted and underscored that without systemic change in the means by which sub-Saharan Africans govern themselves, it is highly unlikely that a higher level of growth and development will ever be actualized. Accordingly, from the factors that it been analyzed, it can be convincingly stated that the ultimate degree of success and development within sub-Saharan Africa which will be realized is contingent upon the way in which these systems are able to engage in a concerted, democratic, and rational directional focus for the economies in question. Rather than being a theory that is currently far out of reach of the African nations in question, the prescriptions for growth which are briefly been elaborated upon, are all within the realm of feasibility. However, this is not to state that merely pursuing the status quo and continuing down the course that has defined African history and politics for so many years will be able to affect the level of growth, economic development, reduction of poverty, and freedom business acetate. By seeking to leverage those aspects of the economy that hold promise, without devaluing by means of export the limited mineral and natural resources that many of these countries exhibit, the system as a whole will be able to develop their ultimate strengths and diversify the economy without borrowing against the future. 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