DEMOCRACY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA: A FRIEND OR FOE?

Abstract

DOI No: 10.36713/epra6811 Article DOI URL: https://doi.org/10.36713/epra6811 The study assessed the impact of democracy on economic development in Africa from 1996 to 2017 for a panel study of 50 African countries. The study employed panel methodologies such as panel stepwise regression, generalized linear model, and Arellano-Bond dynamic panel data GMM (two-step) and censored Tobit regression methods for its robustness inference. The study found a negative and strong statistically significant relationship between democracy and economic development in Africa. Whereas the rule of law negatively relates to economic growth and voice and accountability also relates at a statistical significance level of 1% across all the methods used for the data analysis. İn the wake to achieve higher economic development, one variable critically showed promising thus human development index. The human development index encompasses a composite measure of life expectancy at birth, per capita income indicators, and level of education in every country.