Papers by Mwiza Mbewe
Resource Nationalism: The Zambian Perspective, 2020
This paper discusses resource nationalism with specific reference to Zambia. The country has in t... more This paper discusses resource nationalism with specific reference to Zambia. The country has in the recent past displayed tenets of resource nationalism in relation to the mining sector. The paper examines the reasons for resource nationalism on a broader basis and provides cases from different countries. Zambia's history with resource nationalism is discussed. The paper proposes several measures as a means to minimising the adversarial environment that tends to prevail within the context of resource nationalism.
Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development: Prospects for Africa, 2021
Entrepreneurial activity is now regarded as one of the major actors for sustainable development. ... more Entrepreneurial activity is now regarded as one of the major actors for sustainable development. This perspective presents challenges for developing countries, especially for those in Africa, given the trials which entrepreneurial development itself undergoes. This paper discusses these issues and presents policy proposals that could help African entrepreneurship effectively take on the developmental role that has been bestowed upon it.
Assessing the Implementation of Sustainable Development in Africa: An Iterative Process , 2020
With Governments in Africa increasingly adopting sustainable development concerns as the guiding ... more With Governments in Africa increasingly adopting sustainable development concerns as the guiding framework for their national development plans, there is a need to assess and communicate the multiple impacts of the sustainable development polices and actions. This document presents a framework for that very purpose.
Resource Nationalism: The Zambian Perspective, 2020
This paper discusses resource nationalism with specific reference to Zambia. The country has in t... more This paper discusses resource nationalism with specific reference to Zambia. The country has in the recent past displayed tenets of resource nationalism in relation to the mining sector. The paper examines the reasons for resource nationalism on a broader basis and provides cases from different countries. Zambia's history with resource nationalism is discussed. The paper proposes several measures as a means to minimising the adversarial environment that tends to prevail within the context of resource nationalism.
Financing Sustainable Development: An African Perspective, 2020
There is a growing realization that African development should predominantly utilize domestic fin... more There is a growing realization that African development should predominantly utilize domestic financing. Agenda 2063 which is the strategic framework to deliver inclusive and sustainable development for Africa has adopted the domestic financing framework. However, there are structural impediments that stand in the way of achieving the desired objective. The impediments are highlighted and proposals to eliminate them are discussed. The argument in this paper is that the achievement of sustainable development is predicated on the premise that the financing is itself sustainable.
Issues on the Zambian Economy, 2004
Macro-prudential analysis is a relatively new atea infinancial system supervision. The paper pres... more Macro-prudential analysis is a relatively new atea infinancial system supervision. The paper presents a synopsis of the main attributes of the area, noting that one of its main features is that it adds an element of dynamism to the existing framework of supervision. Based on these factors several lessons have been druwn which should have a bearing on establishing the mocro-prudential analytical framework in Zambia. In conclusion, it is noted that being a new area, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done in order to have an adequate analytical frameworkinplace.
Development Planning Challenges in Africa: Focus on Zambia , 2020
The paper discusses the challenges of development planning with specific reference to Zambia. Whi... more The paper discusses the challenges of development planning with specific reference to Zambia. While the country has a long history with several tenets of development planning, the challenges of poverty, hunger and economic inequalities continue to prevail. It is noted that the failures have not been on account of a lack of knowledge, non-availability of financing nor lack of other countries' assistance; rather the major hindrance appears to be the planners' capacity to design, implement and monitor development plans that work. The paper thus proposes several measures as a means to fulfilling a nationalistic development agenda.
Conference Presentations by Mwiza Mbewe
Revamping SME Businesses Post COVID-19 in Zambia, 2020
The paper discusses the importance of SMEs as the means to revamping the Zambian economy in the c... more The paper discusses the importance of SMEs as the means to revamping the Zambian economy in the current and post COVID-19 pandemic era. The makes proposals as regards the role of the SMEs themselves and the challenges which the face overall and particularly in the existing era; the role of larger enterprises to support the SMEs; and, the role of the Government with regard to intervention activities.
Drafts by Mwiza Mbewe
Bank, Joseph Stiglitz, writes in his book, The Roaring Nineties, that the instability of developi... more Bank, Joseph Stiglitz, writes in his book, The Roaring Nineties, that the instability of developing countries was in part due to the policies of capital market liberalisation that the IMF pushes. According to Stiglitz, there needs to be a balance between the role of government and the markets. He states that a country can suffer from under-regulation just as it can from over-regulation. He further states that the government can help stabilise the economy but badly designed policies can make fluctuations worse. He notes that the IMF finally recognises this phenomenon.
Developing Countries' Extraction of Value from Natural Resources - The Devil is in the Detail, 2023
By Mwiza Mbewe The world of natural resource commodities is fraught with accusations. On the one ... more By Mwiza Mbewe The world of natural resource commodities is fraught with accusations. On the one side, the companies that undertake extraction of the natural resources are often accused of deriving greater benefits than the owners of the natural resource base, that is, the countries. On the other side, the companies also accuse the countries of practising resource nationalism. The back-and-forth accusations tend to be emotive especially on the part the countries' nationals and more so when the individual countries are dependent on single commodities as the main drivers of their economies.
Resource Nationalism: The Zambian Perspective, 2020
This paper discusses resource nationalism with specific reference to Zambia. The country has in t... more This paper discusses resource nationalism with specific reference to Zambia. The country has in the recent past displayed tenets of resource nationalism in relation to the mining sector. The paper examines the reasons for resource nationalism on a broader basis and provides cases from different countries. Zambia's history with resource nationalism is discussed. The paper proposes several measures as a means to minimising the adversarial environment that tends to prevail within the context of resource nationalism.
Books by Mwiza Mbewe
Undefined Wealth - Perspectives on Resource-Rich Botswana and Zambia, 2024
Resource-rice Botswana and Zambia have conflicting experiences in their economic fortunes. At ind... more Resource-rice Botswana and Zambia have conflicting experiences in their economic fortunes. At independence, Botswana was considered to not have much of a future while Zambia, with its copper riches, was deemed to have bright prospects. Six decades later, the story is different. Botswana is the wealthier of the two as Zambia seeks to untangle itself from huge foreign debts.
Botswana has managed to place itself at the apex of economic performance with consistent levels of high economic growth while Zambia has seemingly struggled to find its place despite its significant potential. However, while the two countries are clearly at different levels of economic performance, they do share the same socio-economic angst of unemployment, inequality, and poverty amongst their people.
This book traces the economic paths for the two countries to understand how the changed circumstances emerged and how, despite the changed circumstances, both countries face the same socio-economic challenges. It is argued that the starting point to resolving the challenges is by defining the two countries’ national wealth. As long as their national wealth remains undefined, the two countries will fail to outline the many opportunities that are available for their people.
A CALL TO ARMS, 2023
Africa has long been perceived as a poverty-stricken continent. Yet, those that come from afar dr... more Africa has long been perceived as a poverty-stricken continent. Yet, those that come from afar draw significant riches from the very continent. Unfortunately, the numerous initiatives by the African countries over the years to overcome the poverty have not yielded the expected rewards for the African people.
The failures to achieve the desired objectives speak to the lack of control over the continent’s natural resource wealth as well as a bias to seeking external advice rather than internally generated solutions.
In recent times, it has become evident that there is a new Scramble for Africa on the horizon. The critical question is whether the continent is prepared to protect its interests from the approaching invasion. This book explores the strategies which Africa must adopt to defend its wealth and to finally seize its rightful place in the sphere of global economics.
Introduction
Africa bears the unflattering image of a poverty-stricken continent. As some authors... more Introduction
Africa bears the unflattering image of a poverty-stricken continent. As some authors have stated, this defies conventional logic given that the continent is host to the richest natural resources.
Interestingly, this image of Africa is in contrast to its historical reality. Alois Mlambo informs us that until the 14th century, there is not much evidence to suggest that Africa’s development lagged behind that of other parts of the world.
African empires and kingdoms achieved significant development and economic growth between the 1st and 14th Centuries on the back of agriculture, mining and trading with Asia, the Mediterranean countries and the Middle East. The African empires and kingdoms achieved their development by controlling the trade routes and ensuring that taxes were effectively paid.
Some of the notable kingdoms and empires are:
• Aksum which covered present day Eritrea and northern Ethiopia between the 1st and 7th centuries CE;
• Ghana which was established by the Soninke people of West Africa in the 7th century CE;
• the Mali empire, founded in 1230 and lasting until the 16th century;
• the Songhai empire which in the late 15th century covered western Sudan;
• the inland southern kingdoms of Mapungubwe, Great Zimbabwe, Munhumutapa and Rozvi which were commercially linked with China, the Persian Gulf and other parts of Asia through the ports of Sofala and Kilwa on the East African coast; and,
• the East African kingdoms whose increased trade with the Persian Gulf and India led to the region becoming part of the Muslim world in the 7th and 8th centuries.
Africa’s decline begun during the 15th century when the trans-Atlantic slave trade started robbing the continent of its able-bodied population and continued to do so over the next 400 years. The decline was worsened in the 19th century when Africa now lost control over its lands and natural resources arising from the Scramble for Africa. It essentially means that for over five hundred years, Africa was denied the opportunity for development as it could not draw on the ingenuity of its human resource base nor could it use its natural resource wealth as the means for transactional equity.
Upon attaining political independence, many of the African countries found themselves economically dependent on their former colonisers. Unfortunately, the many attempts to engineer Africa’s development have lamentably failed to achieve this singular objective. The worst part is that there has also been an inculcation of corruption which further compounds Africa’s underdevelopment and increasing poverty.
History shows that the inequity of Africa’s interaction with Europe and the Americas from the 15th century onwards is largely responsible for the structural poverty which the continent endures. The context of this relationship therefore needs to change.
Africa must once again control access to its natural resources. The continent must also look inwards rather than outwards for solutions. To look outside of Africa for solutions is to serve the interests of others and to facilitate the persistence of the structural poverty.
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Papers by Mwiza Mbewe
Conference Presentations by Mwiza Mbewe
Drafts by Mwiza Mbewe
Books by Mwiza Mbewe
Botswana has managed to place itself at the apex of economic performance with consistent levels of high economic growth while Zambia has seemingly struggled to find its place despite its significant potential. However, while the two countries are clearly at different levels of economic performance, they do share the same socio-economic angst of unemployment, inequality, and poverty amongst their people.
This book traces the economic paths for the two countries to understand how the changed circumstances emerged and how, despite the changed circumstances, both countries face the same socio-economic challenges. It is argued that the starting point to resolving the challenges is by defining the two countries’ national wealth. As long as their national wealth remains undefined, the two countries will fail to outline the many opportunities that are available for their people.
The failures to achieve the desired objectives speak to the lack of control over the continent’s natural resource wealth as well as a bias to seeking external advice rather than internally generated solutions.
In recent times, it has become evident that there is a new Scramble for Africa on the horizon. The critical question is whether the continent is prepared to protect its interests from the approaching invasion. This book explores the strategies which Africa must adopt to defend its wealth and to finally seize its rightful place in the sphere of global economics.
Africa bears the unflattering image of a poverty-stricken continent. As some authors have stated, this defies conventional logic given that the continent is host to the richest natural resources.
Interestingly, this image of Africa is in contrast to its historical reality. Alois Mlambo informs us that until the 14th century, there is not much evidence to suggest that Africa’s development lagged behind that of other parts of the world.
African empires and kingdoms achieved significant development and economic growth between the 1st and 14th Centuries on the back of agriculture, mining and trading with Asia, the Mediterranean countries and the Middle East. The African empires and kingdoms achieved their development by controlling the trade routes and ensuring that taxes were effectively paid.
Some of the notable kingdoms and empires are:
• Aksum which covered present day Eritrea and northern Ethiopia between the 1st and 7th centuries CE;
• Ghana which was established by the Soninke people of West Africa in the 7th century CE;
• the Mali empire, founded in 1230 and lasting until the 16th century;
• the Songhai empire which in the late 15th century covered western Sudan;
• the inland southern kingdoms of Mapungubwe, Great Zimbabwe, Munhumutapa and Rozvi which were commercially linked with China, the Persian Gulf and other parts of Asia through the ports of Sofala and Kilwa on the East African coast; and,
• the East African kingdoms whose increased trade with the Persian Gulf and India led to the region becoming part of the Muslim world in the 7th and 8th centuries.
Africa’s decline begun during the 15th century when the trans-Atlantic slave trade started robbing the continent of its able-bodied population and continued to do so over the next 400 years. The decline was worsened in the 19th century when Africa now lost control over its lands and natural resources arising from the Scramble for Africa. It essentially means that for over five hundred years, Africa was denied the opportunity for development as it could not draw on the ingenuity of its human resource base nor could it use its natural resource wealth as the means for transactional equity.
Upon attaining political independence, many of the African countries found themselves economically dependent on their former colonisers. Unfortunately, the many attempts to engineer Africa’s development have lamentably failed to achieve this singular objective. The worst part is that there has also been an inculcation of corruption which further compounds Africa’s underdevelopment and increasing poverty.
History shows that the inequity of Africa’s interaction with Europe and the Americas from the 15th century onwards is largely responsible for the structural poverty which the continent endures. The context of this relationship therefore needs to change.
Africa must once again control access to its natural resources. The continent must also look inwards rather than outwards for solutions. To look outside of Africa for solutions is to serve the interests of others and to facilitate the persistence of the structural poverty.
Botswana has managed to place itself at the apex of economic performance with consistent levels of high economic growth while Zambia has seemingly struggled to find its place despite its significant potential. However, while the two countries are clearly at different levels of economic performance, they do share the same socio-economic angst of unemployment, inequality, and poverty amongst their people.
This book traces the economic paths for the two countries to understand how the changed circumstances emerged and how, despite the changed circumstances, both countries face the same socio-economic challenges. It is argued that the starting point to resolving the challenges is by defining the two countries’ national wealth. As long as their national wealth remains undefined, the two countries will fail to outline the many opportunities that are available for their people.
The failures to achieve the desired objectives speak to the lack of control over the continent’s natural resource wealth as well as a bias to seeking external advice rather than internally generated solutions.
In recent times, it has become evident that there is a new Scramble for Africa on the horizon. The critical question is whether the continent is prepared to protect its interests from the approaching invasion. This book explores the strategies which Africa must adopt to defend its wealth and to finally seize its rightful place in the sphere of global economics.
Africa bears the unflattering image of a poverty-stricken continent. As some authors have stated, this defies conventional logic given that the continent is host to the richest natural resources.
Interestingly, this image of Africa is in contrast to its historical reality. Alois Mlambo informs us that until the 14th century, there is not much evidence to suggest that Africa’s development lagged behind that of other parts of the world.
African empires and kingdoms achieved significant development and economic growth between the 1st and 14th Centuries on the back of agriculture, mining and trading with Asia, the Mediterranean countries and the Middle East. The African empires and kingdoms achieved their development by controlling the trade routes and ensuring that taxes were effectively paid.
Some of the notable kingdoms and empires are:
• Aksum which covered present day Eritrea and northern Ethiopia between the 1st and 7th centuries CE;
• Ghana which was established by the Soninke people of West Africa in the 7th century CE;
• the Mali empire, founded in 1230 and lasting until the 16th century;
• the Songhai empire which in the late 15th century covered western Sudan;
• the inland southern kingdoms of Mapungubwe, Great Zimbabwe, Munhumutapa and Rozvi which were commercially linked with China, the Persian Gulf and other parts of Asia through the ports of Sofala and Kilwa on the East African coast; and,
• the East African kingdoms whose increased trade with the Persian Gulf and India led to the region becoming part of the Muslim world in the 7th and 8th centuries.
Africa’s decline begun during the 15th century when the trans-Atlantic slave trade started robbing the continent of its able-bodied population and continued to do so over the next 400 years. The decline was worsened in the 19th century when Africa now lost control over its lands and natural resources arising from the Scramble for Africa. It essentially means that for over five hundred years, Africa was denied the opportunity for development as it could not draw on the ingenuity of its human resource base nor could it use its natural resource wealth as the means for transactional equity.
Upon attaining political independence, many of the African countries found themselves economically dependent on their former colonisers. Unfortunately, the many attempts to engineer Africa’s development have lamentably failed to achieve this singular objective. The worst part is that there has also been an inculcation of corruption which further compounds Africa’s underdevelopment and increasing poverty.
History shows that the inequity of Africa’s interaction with Europe and the Americas from the 15th century onwards is largely responsible for the structural poverty which the continent endures. The context of this relationship therefore needs to change.
Africa must once again control access to its natural resources. The continent must also look inwards rather than outwards for solutions. To look outside of Africa for solutions is to serve the interests of others and to facilitate the persistence of the structural poverty.