Market failures and government failures in West Africa: Which strategies for the future?

Structuralism and orthodox economics failed to help African countries overcome their backwardness because these countries lack efficient institutions and have not reached the critical value of human capital beyond which an economy generates self-sustaining development. These findings legitimized the following propositions: because development requires a strong mobilization capacity, African governments should decentralize to levels where loyalty and transparency are high. Since decentralization merely facilitates consensus on basic principles but does not affect the quality of goods produced and the competitiviness of an economy, it must be supplemented by a sufficient stock of knowledge that can adapt and master advanced technologies.