The Technological Response to Import Liberalization in Subsaharan Africa

Product Description African manufacturing has not responded well to liberalization. The problems that liberalization was to reform remain - Africa's growth is low, exports are stagnant and its ability to attract international investors is minimal.This book examines garment and engineering firms in Tanzania, Kenya and Zimbabwe, countries at different levels of industrialization and with differing liberalization experiences. It shows how technological capabilities responded, what prevented them from reaching world levels, how they differed by circumstances and policies, and why they are generally insufficient to allow firms to face open competition. It draws more differentiated and realistic policy lessons than those of standard adjustment analyses. It is of interest to policy-makers and analysts concerned with technology, adjustment and African development. About the Author Sanjaya Lall is University Lecturer in Development Economics and Fellow of Green College, University of Oxford.