Non-parametric Diversity Indices of Technical Capability of African Countries

:  Academic research often claims that the lack of technical capability undermines Africa's economic growth. Policy decisions based on that claim then recommend technological improvement, where technology is generally treated as a homogenous manna from the heaven. This paper outlines four, and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:African development review 2006-09, Vol.18 (2), p.205-220
Main Author: Amavilah, Voxi Heinrich S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Africa
Cross-national analysis
Data analysis
Developing countries
Development economics
Economic development
Economic Growth
Economic performance
Inequality
LDCs
Science and technology
Studies
Technical Assessment
Technical skills
Technology
Technology assessment
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Summary::  Academic research often claims that the lack of technical capability undermines Africa's economic growth. Policy decisions based on that claim then recommend technological improvement, where technology is generally treated as a homogenous manna from the heaven. This paper outlines four, and calculates two, broad indices of the diversity of technical capability of 14 African countries based on nine common descriptors of technical capability. It finds technical capability to be heterogeneous both within and across countries, and concludes that performance policies that overlook diversity of technical capability are potentially misleading, ineffective, and perhaps even damaging (growth retarding).
ISSN:1017-6772
1467-8268
DOI:10.1111/j.1467-8268.2006.00139.x