Our Continent, Our Future: African Perspectives on Structural Adjustment

For decades now, many African countries have implemented the structural adjustment programs of the Bretton Woods Institutions. The results, however, have been less than sterling. Extreme poverty and underdevelopment continue to plague what is becoming the world's "forgotten continent," and it is now generally agreed that a new approach is urgently required.
Our Continent, Our Future presents the emerging African perspective on this complex issue. The authors use as background their own extensive experience and a collection of 30 individual studies, 25 of which were from African economists, to summarize this African perspective and articulate a path for the future. They underscore the need to be sensitive to each country's unique history and current condition. They argue for a broader policy agenda and for a much more active role for the state within what is largely a market economy.

Thandika Mkandawire served as Executive Secretary of the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) in Dakar, Senegal, from 1986 until 1996. He is currently the Director of the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Charles C. Soludo is a senior lecturer in the department of Economics at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka, Nigeria. Dr. Soludo is an Elected Member of the Governing Council of the Nigerian Economic Society.