China’s Second Continent
August 27, 2015 3 min. read

China watchers around the world are alarmed at the significant fall in Chinese stock markets. But Beijing may have a few tricks up its sleeve.

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Beyond Local Content: Catalyzing Job Creation in Ghana’s Oil Sector
April 28, 2014 10 min. read

By Sarah Lawson and Marina Tolchinsky The discovery of oil off Ghana’s coast in 2007 sparked both excitement and concern. While the actual finds were modest in comparison with regional oil powerhouses such as Nigeria and Angola, it was estimated that oil exports could bring $1 billion in gross annual revenues.[1] As the country began […]

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Efforts to Light Africa Increase
July 24, 2013 8 min. read

President Obama’s trip to Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania was touted as a commitment to begin a new partnership with the rising continent. Home to 6 of the 10 fasted growing economies, Africa has made great strides – the International Monetary Fund predicts growth of 5.4 percent this year and 5.7 percent next year, but […]

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Obama visits Africa, welcomes competition on the continent
July 7, 2013 4 min. read

Obama’s recent visit to Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania has some arguing “too little, too late”.  They argue that while the U.S. was resting on its laurels, China has stolen a march over the United States with its narrow commercial approach, eschewing the Western goals of social and political development.   To back their argument, they […]

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Will Ghana Overcome its New Energy Challenge?
May 16, 2013 5 min. read

Ghana has been forced to cope with increased energy shortages as a result of damages to the West African Gas Pipeline, dating back to Aug. 28, 2012. The $1 billion, 650 kilometer long pipeline, built to carry gas from Nigeria to Benin, Togo and Ghana, was severely damaged during an incident between a Togolese Navy […]

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Ghana’s 2012 Elections: Thievery or Error?
December 25, 2012 8 min. read

The 2008 presidential election in Ghana was regarded as a shining example of a vibrant democratic process. In a typical multi-party system where two parties enjoy the lion’s share of support, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) both earned nearly 50% of the votes cast, but neither won an outright […]

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Engaging in Africa: Promoting a Virtuous Circle of Democratization and Economic Growth
October 19, 2012 6 min. read

  By K. Riva Levinson With the presidential debate on foreign policy around the corner, there is one topic that likely won’t get much attention, even though it should: American aid and investment in sub-Saharan Africa. As Todd Moss, vice president and senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, pointed out in a recent […]

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How great it is when what you expect to happen, happens
July 30, 2012 4 min. read

So often the news, and commentary on it, focuses on when things go wrong. Things going wrong usually involve drama and confrontation, which makes for interesting stories. I am have been guilty of contributing to this trend myself in commenting on when democracy goes wrong, i.e., election fraud and impeachments. But recently I was reminded […]

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Success stories
February 10, 2010 4 min. read

Can corruption really be fought? That is, can you change a society from one whose everyday wheels are greased by bribes to one in which petty corruption is rare and shunned? Can you, say, turn Uzbekistan into Britain? The textbook examples of such change are Singapore and Hong Kong. Both faced corruption as a commonplace […]

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