The West African region, one of the largest urban agglomerations in Africa has over decades experienced rapid rate of urbanization. The urbanization processes have been associated with manifold environmental and socioeconomic challenges including inefficient urban infrastructure, unaffordable...

This article proposes to take a fresh look at Germany's colonial past and its key players in order to trace the particular influence of economy in colonial contexts. It presents the Gutehoffnungshütte (GHH) as a colonial actor outside the sectors typically explored in the context of the...

In West Africa, increasing rural–urban flows of food, driven by growing urban populations, require functional, efficient links between cities and production areas. However, underlying mechanisms of urban food sourcing in West Africa are poorly understood. This study deepens understanding of...

This study explores the role of climate conditions in shaping return migration intentions among international migrants. Using original survey data of over 1,000 first-generation migrants from West Africa living in Germany, we correlate observational data on temperature increases in the...

The African Single Electricity Market aims to create the world's largest electricity market by 2040. This initiative faces the challenge of interconnecting a continent with significant geographical, cultural, and political differences, and addressing energy poverty for over 500 million people....

This Brief seeks to address the lack of systematic, comparable data on Russia's engagement in West Africa. Such data is crucial for assessing the threat posed by Russian-sponsored FIMI, which often serves as a tool to advance broader strategic objectives in regions where Russia seeks to expand...

This Brief seeks to address the lack of systematic, comparable data on Russia's engagement in West Africa. Such data is crucial for assessing the threat posed by Russian-sponsored FIMI, which often serves as a tool to advance broader strategic objectives in regions where Russia seeks to expand...

Sharing used injection equipment is one of the main ways in which drug users run the risk of infection (e.g., with HIV, or hepatitis B and C). This has led to the introduction of harm reduction (HR) strategies, such as needle exchange programmes (NEPs). Injection use is considered to be less...

I combine multiple rounds of geo-coded household survey data with a globally gridded climate dataset to quantify the impact of heat exposure on child disease incidence in sub-Saharan Africa. I construct hour-degree bins of temperature exposure and find that 10 additional hours of exposure to...

This Selected Issues paper analyzes domestic revenue mobilization (DRM) in the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). DRM is critical for financing economic and social development and ensuring debt sustainability in WAEMU, especially in light of rising interest, high security...

This paper presents IMF staff report on common policies for member countries of West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). Economic growth continues to be strong in the WAEMU. Inflation has fallen back to its target range, and recent improvements in regional external imbalances are...

This paper employs various empirical methods to test the Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) hypothesis in West and Central Africa, considering countries within the WAEMU, CEMAC, CFA, and ECOWAS currency zones and four possible numeraire currencies-U.S. dollar, euro, renminbi, and the CFA franc. Using...

This quantitative model for Macrofinancial Policy Analysis for the WAEMU was developed to deepen the Fund's engagement in macrofinancial surveillance in the region. By analyzing unobserved credit cycle dynamics and risks, and emphasizing macrofinancial linkages, the model helps assess the...

WAEMU members' trade openness, integration into global value chains (GVCs), and export diversification remain limited. Tariffs, non-tariff measures (NTMs, obstacles to trade that arise mainly from differences in national regulations), and a challenging trade environment (e.g., cumbersome Customs...

Markets for millet and rice in the Western Sudan became much more integrated over the course of the twentieth century. Drawing on a new dataset of prices from across French West African colonies, this paper documents that price dispersion as measured by the coefficient of variation roughly...

This study explores the role of climate conditions in shaping return migration intentions among international migrants. Using original survey data of over 1,000 first-generation migrants from West Africa living in Germany, we correlate observational data on temperature increases in the...

Although microenterprises are the most prevalent employer in Africa, boosting their productivity remains a development challenge. Theoretically, microenterprise business associations could foster technology, improve access to inputs, pool risk, ensure coordination, and facilitate credit for...

The Gulf of Guinea (GoG) spans over 6 000 km of coastline and 19 states. The region is rich in natural resources: it holds significant reserves of gas (2.7% of total world reserves) and oil (4.5%), as well as other valuable minerals including diamonds, tin, bauxite, manganese and cobalt. While...

The Gulf of Guinea (GoG) spans over 6 000 km of coastline and 19 states. The region is rich in natural resources: it holds significant reserves of gas (2.7% of total world reserves) and oil (4.5%), as well as other valuable minerals including diamonds, tin, bauxite, manganese and cobalt. While...

This study used an emic approach to examine the dynamics of online romance fraud, focusing on the migration of offenders from Nigeria to Ghana. We collected data through qualitative methods, such as semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Ghanaian police officers and Nigerian law...

Africa is one of the fastest-growing crypto markets in the world, with its crypto transactions peaking at $20 billion per month in mid-2021, with Nigeria contributing to the world's third largest bitcoin-holding. Evidence continues to grow, showcasing criminals who seek to use cryptocurrencies...

Most power utilities in West Africa are not financially sustainable. Several interrelated factors cause these performance issues, but dependence on liquid fuels, poor governance, insufficient use of information technology (IT), and weak balance sheets are particularly common and acute...

This paper is one of a series of three that aim to help West African utilities and governments and the development financiers that support them - better understand and respond to these issues. The focus in the papers is primarily on utilities with a distribution function (that is,...

Most power utilities in West Africa are not financially sustainable. Several interrelated factors cause these performance issues, but dependence on liquid fuels, poor governance, insufficient use of information technology (IT), and weak balance sheets are particularly common and acute...

This article proposes to take a fresh look at Germany’s colonial past and its key players in order to trace the particular influence of economy in colonial contexts. It presents the Gutehoffnungshütte (GHH) as a colonial actor outside the sectors typically explored in the context of the...

Purpose - This paper aims to empirically investigate the factors attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into emerging economies. Design/methodology/approach - This study uses secondary data from the World Bank and the Global State of Democracy Indices of 16 West African countries...

The rapid digitalization of sub-Saharan Africa has generated considerable hope for territorial development. Yet behind the dominant discourse of technological leapfrogging lies a troubling reality: the digital divide may amplify existing inequalities rather than reduce them. This study examines...

The empirical outcomes of previous studies examining the relationship between economic growth and socio-economic indicators have been inconclusive and conflicting. To further probe into the study area, the current research employed a dynamic panel model estimated via three robust dynamic panel...

Markets for millet and rice in the Western Sudan became much more integrated over the course of the twentieth century. Drawing on a new dataset of prices from across French West African colonies, this paper documents that price dispersion as measured by the coefficient of variation roughly...

This paper provides measures of compliance with labour regulations that vary across space, time, and type of regulation, allowing for a rich analysis of worker vulnerability. We compute a multidimensional index of labour violations that covers minimum wages, leave benefits and social security in...

Measuring inequality in West Africa is a challenging task that is constrained by the limited availability and irregular collection of household consumption data. To address this challenge, we reconstructed the evolution of inequality in the Sahel region using an innovative framework that...

The election of Bassirou Diomaye Faye as President of Senegal on March 24, 2024, after a turbulent electoral process, reflects the resilience of Senegal's democratic institutions. It provides an opportunity to strengthen transparent governance and combat inequality. It was the first time since...

Since the 1960s, both the regime of Reza Pahlavi (1941-1979) and, subsequently starting from 1979 the Islamic Republic of Iran, have intervened in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). While the Shah's policies were motivated by a virulent anti-communist stance, the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) pursued a...

Armed conflicts significantly affect the social and economic conditions of societies in turmoil, disrupting the normal functioning of local economies. This study seeks to delve into the repercussions of armed conflicts on the dynamics of local economies in Ségou and Mopti, Mali, since the...

Our study examines the integration of food markets in West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and assesses the role of bilateral trade. In this study, we hypothesize that each country has a market. We adopted the framework borrowed from Ravallion using a dynamic panel model. The...

This paper uses a structural approach to analyse economic convergence within the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) countries. This Regional Economic Community has recorded several postponements of the convergence horizon defined by the Economic Commission. However, it is a...

This paper analyzes the role of the nature of traded goods in the effect of the real exchange rate on the trade balance in West African Economy and Monetary Union countries. Empirically, the estimation of the parameters of a distributed lag autoregressive model using the technique of dynamic...

This policy brief focuses on the digital gender gap in Africa, a critical issue highlighted by The World Bank. We look into why men's and women's internet use differ significantly, due to factors such as affordability, limited content availability and digital literacy gaps that exacerbate the...

West Africa has been struggling with a lack of proper transport infrastructure for a long time. This has been hindering economic growth and trade competitiveness in the region. To achieve the goal of an integrated Africa and support continental trade, it is essential to address this gap. The...