Pre‐colonial culture,post‐colonial economic success? The Tswana and the African economic miracle

Cultural explanations of economic phenomena have recently enjoyed a renaissance among economists. This article provides further evidence for the salience of culture through an in‐depth case study of one of the fastest‐growing economies in the world during the last 50 years—Botswana. The unique culture that developed among the Tswana before and during the early days of colonialism, which shared many features with those of western nation‐states, appears to have contributed significantly to the factors widely seen as determinants of Botswana's post‐colonial economic success: state legitimacy, good governance and democracy, commercial traditions, well‐established property rights, and inter‐ethnic unity. Neighbouring Southern African cultures typically did not exhibit these traits.     

Outsourcing the State? Public–Private Partnerships and Information Technologies in India

This paper examines public–private partnerships (PPPs) for development through the example of telecenters in two Indian states. How might a developmental state position itself with respect to civil society under a PPP model of service delivery? We find that each state’s political economy is reflected in its PPP strategy, but that in both states the emerging middle classes rather than the poor benefit most from ongoing telecenter projects. Outsourcing development services to private entities need not “privatize” the state but does alter the way in which citizens “see” the state. Service delivery through telecenters becomes a symbol of government efficiency and responsiveness.     

U.S. state fiscal constraints and railroad development through the nineteenth century

Throughout the nineteenth century, U.S. states developed extensive fiscal constraints meant to limit public investment in infrastructure projects, especially railroad aid. These limitations came as a direct result of perceived malinvestment and mishandling of public funds in earlier infrastructure projects that were pursued to promote state and local economic development. However, an important yet under-researched question is to what extent these constraints may have helped or hindered the development of public infrastructure across these states. Overall, the evidence would suggest that in general, more binding constraints that limited the ability of state and local governments to invest in these projects actually led to an increase in railroad mileage. These findings provide important insights both regarding the development of railroads throughout the U.S. and offer a potential counterfactual to some European and Scandinavian experiences, which saw extensive public aid and in some instances nationalisation of railroad lines.     

Mining waste management: Extending sustainability options across economic,social and environmental boundaries

This article assesses the potential for using mining waste residues, such as by-products (e.g. slag) and waste rock, to establish industrial activity beyond mining to serve the country's developmental agenda. The mining industry focuses primarily on its own economic sustainability, rather than on wider socio-economic and environmental sustainability. New thinking on the issue emphasises that capitalism and sustainability have mutually excluding aims. Using a broader understanding of sustainability, this article reassesses initiatives implemented in a research and development setting to reduce mines’ atmospheric emissions through cleaner production and to minimise their mining waste residues through beneficiation. South Africa's regulations require mines to prepare social and labour plans for mine closure. Stockpiled mining residues could form the basis for economic activity in areas affected by mine closures. A collaborative, overarching framework for such activity could promote the development of an industry ‘beyond mining’ – the beneficiation of mining waste residues.     

The state in Chinese economic history

We survey the recent economics and history literature on the Chinese state to investigate its role in China's long-term socioeconomic development. We highlight three insights. First, unlike in Europe, where interstate competition helped give rise to capitalist states with high capacity, the Chinese state emerged from a different historical context. Second, the 18th- and 19th-century Chinese state does not fit into the mould of a strong and extractive Oriental despotic state as once commonly believed. By conventional measures, early modern China had a weak state. Third, state building and centre-local relations are two useful dimensions to understand development and change in China's recent history and political economy. To adapt China to a changing world, Chinese state builders embarked on a long process of state building from the late-19th century through the Republican and Communist eras. Facilitated partly by regional decentralisation, the process now sees the Chinese state playing a substantially larger role in the economy and everyday life than any previous time in history.     

Development planning in the third world education in Botswana: A case study

Development planning is regarded as essential for advancement in the Third World. This article discusses planning in Botswana, specifically in the area of education. The economic and educational developments in Botswana are described.

The process of development planning is discussed under a number of headings, namely the administration of development planning Botswana; drawing up a development plan; and implementing the plan.

The hypothesis that planning, to some extent, arises from compromises that in turn result from conflicts among the planners, is discussed. Examples are given to illustrate this. The article argues that conflicts will increase as financial constraints become more important in Botswana.     

Long‐term trends in economic inequality: lessons from colonial Botswana, 1921–74

This article contributes to the growing literature on colonial legacies influencing long‐term development. It focuses on Botswana, a case where the post‐independence diamond‐led economy has been considered an economic success story, despite its high levels of inequality. Here it is argued that this pathway of rapid resource‐driven growth combined with increasing socio‐economic inequality had already started during the time of the colonial cattle economy, and that this older case is equally relevant for understanding long‐term growth‐inequality trends in Botswana and other natural‐resource‐dependent economies. Six social tables, covering the period 1921 to 1974, are constructed using colonial archives, government statistics, and anthropological records. Based on the social tables, income inequality is estimated in the colonial and early post‐independence eras, capturing both the formal and informal sectors of the economy. The article demonstrates how the creation of a cattle export sector in the 1930s brought new opportunities to access export incomes, and how this led to a polarization in cattle holdings and increasing income inequalities. Further, with the expansion of colonial administration, government wages forged ahead, increasing income inequality and causing a growing income divide between public and private formal employment.     

The emergence of next generation internet users

The Internet is central to the new media, but the Internet is itself a dynamic technology that is constantly evolving as users adopt and reject new features, devices and applications and use them in ways that are often unanticipated. This article is anchored in longitudinal survey data on how Britons use the Internet, which illuminates the emergence of new patterns of accessing the Internet over multiple devices—some of which are portable—in everyday life and work. We call those who adopt this new approach ‘next generation users’. In contrast, first generation users remain anchored to one or more personal computers in the household or workplace for accessing the Internet. The analysis shows how this emerging pattern of access is reshaping the use and impact of the Internet, such as in supporting the production of user generated content. The analysis also shows how next generation access is socially distributed; creating a new digital divide that reinforces socioeconomic inequalities. Future research needs to move beyond the study of access to the Internet to track the diffusion of next generation access and its implications across a wider array of nations.     

日本经验与东亚发展型国家

日本经济模式的显著特点就是政府主导,东亚其他国家和地区的发展模式又与日本发展模式极为相似,这就是通常所说的东亚"发展型国家"。那么,日本政府导向型经济的具体特征是什么?对其他东亚国家和地区有什么影响?发展型国家与比较优势是怎样结合的?日本主导的东亚经济格局正在发生那些变化?本文力图回答这些问题。     

The role of the state in skill formation: evidence from the Republic of Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan

We propose a new interpretation of the role of the state inskill formation, with reference to three East Asian newly industrializedeconomies. Rather than see the state as simply redressing externalities,we interpret the state as matching the supply and demand forskills in a rapidly growing economy. This role can be superiorto a strategy of allowing education and training institutionsto be driven by autonomous processes. The role is most likelyto be observed in developmental states. We examine the politicalmechanisms that have helped to ensure that educational and trainingpolicy formation are subordinated to the imperatives of economicgrowth. While the East Asian model cannot be imported wholesaleto western countries such as Britain in different historicalcircumstances, the example lends credence to the value of thestate taking a strategic approach to education and trainingpolicy.     

Local tourism value chain linkages as pro-poor tools for regional development in western Uganda

Building on the model of Meyer [(2007). Pro-Poor tourism: from leakages to linkages. A conceptual framework for creating linkages between the accommodation sector and ‘poor’ neighbouring communities. Current Issues in Tourism 10(6), 558–83], this paper focuses on the regional development potential of local linkages with the supply chain and community partnerships of established tourism businesses in western Uganda. Results show that supply-related inconsistencies of local produce undermine the existence of supply chain linkages with local farmers, and favour business linkages with local intermediary suppliers, dominantly shaping the regional development potential of supply chain linkages in western Uganda. Yet, this research found several ‘windows of opportunity’ for local suppliers to connect to the tourism value chain. Results on community partnerships suggest that most businesses do not move beyond the absolute minimum partnership intensity that is required to be able to strategically use for marketing purposes and obtain a unique selling proposition. Finally, our research exposes the complexity of locating responsibility among different stakeholders of the value chain in suggested paths for (regional) development.     

Developments in social accounting methods as applied to the analysis of income distribution and employment issues

Research into the design, construction and use of social accounting matrices (SAMs) for the analysis of income distribution issues in development policy and planning is generally discussed. Specific case studies for Swaziland, Botswana and Kenya are considered and the accounting classifications are compared, especially those for households. The use of the Swaziland and Botswana SAMs to analyse some of the distributional effects of certain exogenous impacts (such as the outbreak of a foot and mouth epidemic in Botswana) is also discussed. This includes a presentation of methodology as well as some results of the analyses.     

The economic history of Thailand: Old debates,recent advances,and future prospects

Despite slow development of Thai economic history scholarship, research output in the last three decades has shed new light and improved arguments on classic debates using novel primary sources and quantitative methods. This article traces the evolution of three Thai economic history debates from the late-nineteenth and twentieth centuries: (1) factors behind Thailand's slow economic growth; (2) the reluctance of rural workers to move into urban employment; and (3) the Thai government's failure to invest in large-scale irrigation projects. The article concludes with a discussion of current challenges facing Thai economic history research and suggestions to move the discipline forward.     

The lottery as an alternative source of state revenue

Conclusion In this paper the authors have developed an economic model of state lotteries that determines the probability of whether a given state will adopt a lottery or not, determines the probability of whether a given state is likely to adopt a lottery sooner rather than later, and determines the state's expected net spendable revenues generated by adopting and operating a lottery. The authors found that a given state will tend to adopt a lottery and will tend to adopt the lottery sooner, the higher the relative tax effort of the state, the higher the mean personal income of the state's residents (or the lower the fraction of the state's residents that are in poverty), the greater the restrictions on raising other taxes in the state, the greater the state's spendable revenue generated from parimutuel betting in the state, the larger the fraction of the state's border that is contiguous with other states with lotteries, and since 1980, the greater the annual number of tourists or visitors in the state.A state's expected net spendable revenue from adopting and operating a lottery is greater the higher the mean personal income of residents in the state, the greater the annual number of tourists or visitors in the state, the smaller the fraction of the state's border that is contiguous with other states with lotteries, and the smaller the parimutuel industry in the state. The ability of a given state's residents to cross the border to purchase lottery tickets in contiguous states, and the ability to engage in parimutuel betting in a state are substitutes for the purchase of lottery tickets in the given state and significantly reduce the expected net spendable revenue from adopting and operating a lottery in that state.From a policy making standpoint, legislators often appear to support the adoption of a lottery for their state without fully considering a realistic expected level of net spendable revenue that the proposed lottery is likely to generate for that particular state.⁸ Often these legislators apparently do not consider important determinants of expected lottery profits such as the level of personal income of state residents, the annual number of tourists in the state, and the presence or absence of adjacent states with lotteries. Also, legislators do not consider fully the impact that adopting a lottery will have on existing parimutuel betting industries in the state. Likewise, legislators apparently do not consider the negative impact of parimutuel betting on the expected net spendable revenue generated by the proposed lottery. Legislative decisions made in the absence of full information often tend to be inefficient decisions. The present study may encourage policy makers to become better informed on the issue of lottery adoption for their state.     

The gear legacy: did gear fail or move South Africa forward in development?

This article describes the economic and development policy legacy of the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (Gear) programme. It considers the arguments for and against Gear, and attempts to answer the question whether or not the programme has moved us forward in development. The economic legacy is described as dismal development outcomes but excellent macroeconomic policy outcomes. The policy legacy is described as continuing with Gear in some respects, but also incorporating a shift in development strategy that takes into account critique of Gear from the left and proposes a more active and direct role for the state in employment creation. This shift is seen as positive because the key challenge in the post‐Gear period is how to use the state more effectively to create jobs and provide income for the poor. The overview of the arguments for and against Gear finds most of the former to be thin. Moreover, it highlights conceptual flaws in the strategy that explain why it failed to produce the promised employment creation and poverty reduction by the end of the programming period (1996–2000). However, there is no clear answer to the question of whether or not Gear has failed – would an alternative policy have produced better outcomes in the period? Also, Gear has improved the private investment climate and produced better resource and institutional conditions for government to play a more active role in pushing future development. Whichever way it is argued, a key point that emerges is that development prospects will remain gloomy if the government reverts back to the strategy of relying largely on the private sector to reduce poverty, and fails to do more itself via effective income support programmes for the poor.     

Beyond GDP in assessing development in South Africa: The Gauteng City-Region Socio-Economic Barometer

Although consensus to move beyond gross domestic product (GDP) for measuring development in Africa exists, efforts to operationalise the idea have been frustrated by institutional barriers and lack of an integrated methodology. This article addresses the methodological problem by introducing an innovative graphic tool – The Gauteng City-Region Socio-Economic Barometer. The tool pulls together a set of 38 indicators across 10 sectors into a single analytical visual. Its efficacy rests in its ability to show each individual indicator, sector, and the overall socio-economy simultaneously. The Barometer not only acts as a tracking and diagnostic tool but as a benchmarking tool as well. Applied to Gauteng province of South Africa, the Barometer shows that high levels of GDP do not necessarily mean good quality of life. Assessment of welfare solely on the basis of GDP can therefore be misleading for government. The Barometer methodology is an invaluable tool for governments committed to evidence-based planning.     

How social security policies and economic transformation affect poverty and inequality: Lessons for South Africa

This article examines how various characteristics of social and economic policy frameworks affect poverty and inequality levels in developing countries, principally in Botswana and Mauritius. The research findings suggest that poverty and inequality are lower in countries with generous and broad-based – rather than pro-poor – social security policies, and where social policies are complemented by economic policies promoting economic transformation rather than mere economic growth. While South Africa's challenges of combating poverty and inequality are shaped by its own historical context, the lessons from other countries offer the opportunity to reflect on the social consequences of various social and economic policy mixtures. In particular, it may be worth considering how to bridge the divide between the economically productive contributors to social security policies and the economically marginalised beneficiaries of such policies.     

District development and closer settlement economy in Gazankulu

Development planning in the South African homelands has been part of the policy of separate development. This policy implied that the homeland inhabitants should make a living there or only leave these areas to be migrant labourers. Agricultural and industrial projects have been developed since the sixties to provide labour opportunities for this population, but these have had little impact on the large need for employment. This study shows how little the local economy of a settlement in Gazankulu is linked to the development projects which are directed at the aggregate, homeland or district level. Their history of underdevelopment has not equipped the local population to escape the constraints of a poor rural existence. Some suggestions are made to move towards a more democratic relationship in development planning and distribution of resources.     

Development,research and participation: Towards a critique of participatory rural appraisal methods

This article examines the theory and techniques used in participatory rural appraisal (PRA), describes the emergence of PRA as a response to conventional approaches in developmental research, and offers a critique of PRA from an anthropological perspective. It is argued that PRA is a promising alternative to conventional development research methods but has certain weaknesses which undermine its overall aims. Of central concern are assumptions about social context. The author suggests that a more critical perspective should be incorporated into PRA to overcome its present limitations.