Washington Consensus Reforms and Lessons for Economic Performance in Sub-Saharan Africa

Bibliographic Data

ID4029916
AuthorsBelinda Archibong (0000-0003-1904-9237, Belinda Archibong is Assistant Professor of Economics at Barnard College, Columbia University, New York City, New York.), Brahima Coulibaly (0000-0003-0141-3141, Brahima Coulibaly is Vice President of the Global Economy and Development, Brookings Institution, Washington, DC.), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is Director-General of the World Trade Organization, Geneva, Switzerland. She is also a former Finance Minister of Nigeria; Nonresident Distinguished Fellow with the Global Economy and Development Program, Brookings Institution, Washington, DC; and Chair of the Board of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, Washington, DC.)
Year2021
Volume35
Issue3
Pages133-156
Publication date2021-08-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of Economic Perspectives (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0895-3309 • E-ISSN: 1944-7965
PublisherAmerican Economic Association (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1257/jep.35.3.133
OpenAlexW3192588879
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited16

Over three decades after market-oriented structural reforms termed "Washington Consensus" policies were first implemented, we revisit the evidence on policy adoption and the effects of these policies on socio-economic performance in sub-Saharan African countries. We focus on three key ubiquitous reform policies around privatization, fiscal discipline, and trade openness and document significant improvements in economic performance for reformers over the past two decades. Following initial declines in per capita economic growth over the 1980s and 1990s, reform adopters experienced notable increases in per capita real GDP growth in the post-2000 period. We complement aggregate analysis with four country case studies that highlight important lessons for effective reform. Notably, the ability to implement pro-poor policies alongside market-oriented reforms played a central role in successful policy performance

Development economics · Economic policy · Economic reform · Economics · Openness to experience · Per capita · Per capita income · Political science · Politics · Population · Washington Consensus · Economic Growth and Development · Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth

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