Thermaltake Level 10 Full Tower Case

The Natural Resource Curse: Useful Degree Level Case Studies

Botswana has 40% of GDP, from diamonds, landlocked and has a predominantly tropical climate, all factors that could make the fate of Botswana adopted vulnerable to the resource curse. However, it has actually the highest per capita growth in the world for the past 35 years, sustainable (Acemoglu et al, 2002). Acemoglu et al. Suggest this economic success is the strength of the institutions of the country, reflects the property rights are protected by investors if the political stability, the elite force within a strong political system and ensures political Participation from a broad cross section of society. Acemoglu et al. argue, is that the strength of Botswana's institutions with respect to the history of the country declared can. Botswana traditional tribal institutions that encouraged broad participation and reluctance of elites meant the peripheral status of Botswana in the British Empire that these tribal structures not completely obliterated by the colonial structures.

It is possible to Botswana, a country with traditional institutions of the situation, the curse the resources to overcome contrast with Somalia, where the traditional institutions is not sufficient political stability (Acemoglu et al. 2002). Again, the British Colonial rule limited impact on the structure of Somali society. Although its economy is dominated by agriculture and is therefore not subject to the same curse of resources such as Botswana, it shows the impact on the economy of with weak institutions, we may assume that conditions in Somalia would be even worse if would have a natural resource abundance. Somalia industrial sector, the processing of agricultural products, mainly was sacked and sold as scrap metal, it has no effective national government, and conflict is common (CIA Factbook). Clapham (1986) writes that were traditionally nomadic Somali society with depth analysis of the available resources. However, the existing tribal foundations Somali society are an inappropriate basis for government, occur in the allocation of resources without ethnic and cultural conflicts.

Collier (2007) uses Nigeria as an example of the benefits of facilities, the "checks and balances on the distribution of resource rents. Nigeria is cursed, no doubt with resource abundance. oil provides 95% of foreign exchange earnings, since independence experienced in 1960 military and civilian rule, has a strong religious and ethnic tensions and the recent elections have been marred by violence (CIA Factbook). It is not an example of what can happen when those conditions are satisfied, but the benefits shown in the institutional development. In 1998, Nigeria returned to civil rule was the first of the new government in which it is massive corruption, checks and balances do not exist, there was no time to introduce them and was mighty interests were to meet them. Publicly funded projects provided opportunities for those in power to benefit and money to buy that electoral support. But at the beginning of his second term of the President strengthened institutions to provide essential checks and balances, such as competitive tendering for public procurement projects retrieved and written out, the costs were reduced by an average of 40%. This shows that the improvement can be made with stronger institutions.

• Acemoglu, D., Johnson, S. and Robinson, J. (2002) An African Success Story: Botswana CEPR Discussion Paper.
• Clapham, C. (1986) The Horn of Africa, Peter Duignan and Robert H. Jackson eds. Politics and Government in African States 1960-1985, Croon Helm, London.
• Collier, P. (2007) The Bottom Billion: Why the poorest countries are failing and what can be done about University Press, Oxford, Oxford

About the Author

Owen Stevens is project manager at Skyblu, a Worcester charity web design company.