Book contents
- Human Development and the Path to Freedom
- New Approaches to Economic and Social History
- Human Development and the Path to Freedom
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Preface
- Introduction
- Part I An Aggregate View
- Part II The OECD and the Rest
- 4 Human Development in the OECD and the Rest
- 5 Human Development in Latin America
- 6 Human Development in Africa
- Postscript
- Book part
- Notes
- References
- Index
6 - Human Development in Africa
from Part II - The OECD and the Rest
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 July 2022
- Human Development and the Path to Freedom
- New Approaches to Economic and Social History
- Human Development and the Path to Freedom
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Preface
- Introduction
- Part I An Aggregate View
- Part II The OECD and the Rest
- 4 Human Development in the OECD and the Rest
- 5 Human Development in Latin America
- 6 Human Development in Africa
- Postscript
- Book part
- Notes
- References
- Index
Summary
Chapter 6 assesses long-run augmented human development in Africa. Augmented human development experienced sustained gains since 1880, faster between 1920 and 1960, under colonial rule, and at the turn of the century, but remains at the bottom of the world distribution, although the northern and southern regions forged ahead while the rest stayed behind. AHD grew twice as much as per capita GDP, thriving at times of poor economic performance and, unlike GDP per head that fell behind from a higher relative position, AHD was catching up to the OECD since the late 1920s. Schooling was the main driver of AHD gains and catching up, with life expectancy making a significant contribution in the interwar in the early stage of the epidemiological transition, as the diffusion of health practices prevented infectious disease spread and helped reduce infant and maternal mortality. Civil and political liberties made a contribution both at the time of independence and in the 1990s. AHD long-run performance does not support either the pessimistic view of the colonial era or the depiction of ‘lost decades’ for the post-independence era, but there is still a long way to go from an international perspective
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- Human Development and the Path to Freedom1870 to the Present, pp. 184 - 240Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2022