Structural Adjustment in Africa

Structural adjustment programs in Africa are as widespread as they are controversial. This book examines the complex economic and political nature of these programs and seeks to make them intelligible to the nonexpert. It analyzes, in a concise, accessible manner, the impact of specific policy measures designed to achieve structural adjustment, such as devaluation, price liberalization, fiscal restraint and privatization. It critically evaluates the past experience of countries implementing these policies and assesses the likelihood of such policies providing sustainable long-term economic solutions to the African crisis. Particular attention is paid to whether orthodox approaches to adjustment, as imposed by the IMF and World Bank as conditionality for their loans, can generate the broad political consensus required for long-term growth and stability in Africa.