The Palgrave Handbook of International Trade and Development in Africa

This book explores the intricate activities and systems that underpin international trade and development in Africa. The relationship between trade and economic performance is analysed, with a particular emphasis on financial development, trade liberalization, and the welfare implications of free trade areas (FTA). A critical reflection of international trade and development in Africa is provided that highlights how institutions that govern the international trade system, largely found in the Global North, have enabled developed countries to benefit most from African trade. Emerging issues, such as FDI, the COVID-19 pandemic, the gendered nature of trade, remittances, and digital trade, are also discussed. This book examines how Africa can play a more active role in international trade and how the trade systems can be altered to help drive economic growth and development in Africa. It will be relevant to students and researchers interested in development and African economics. Matthew Kofi Ocran is an economist and a Professor of Economics at the University of Western Cape. He is a Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Management Sciences. Matthew was previously Chair of the Department of Economics at the University of the Western Cape. He has served on expert panels for the Economic Commission for Africa and the Africa Peer Review Mechanism’s Ad hoc Committee on Credit Ratings. Matthew has also held Visiting Scholar positions at the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank. Joshua Yindenaba Abor is a financial economist, Professor of Finance and former Dean at the University of Ghana Business School. He is an External Fellow at the Centre for Global Finance, SOAS University of London. He served as Afreximbank Research Fellow and has also held Visiting Scholar positions at the IMF. He is a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Ghana.