EMC Working Papers

A central goal that has eluded most countries in sub-Saharan Africa is to effectively manage their natural resources, develop diversified and prosperous economies, and as a result improve the standard of living of their citizens. This paper draws from the framework of diversification and economic growth, resource-based industrialization, resource curse hypothesis, ownership and control, and political structure and economic choices to examine how Nigeria and Angola managed their oil and gas resources from th 1970s and the outcome of their choices. The findings show that both countries were poorly equipped to diversify their economies and failed to achieve economic prosperity for their citizens. The contribution that this paper makes is to clearly outline and discuss key lessons that emerging oil producers in sub-Saharan Africa can learn from Nigeria and Angola for them to successfully manage their hydrocarbon resources.

Research Topics: Deregulation Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility