Political centralization in pre-colonial Africa

Journal of Comparative Economics Vol/Iss. 41(1) Elsevier Published In Pages: 6-21
By Osafo-Kwaako, Philip, Robinson, James A.

Abstract

This article investigates commonly accepted theories that purport to explain political centralization and investigate their relevance to sub-Saharan Africa. The leading ideas for the formation of political centralization using a worldwide sample include population density, inter-state warfare, and trade. However, the authors reported these factors are not predictive of the sub-Saharan Africa sample. The authors suggest that the lack of agricultural productivity in sub-Saharan Africa may have stunted population density therefore inhibiting political centralization and that Africa’s poor economic performance is, in part, due to lack of political centralization.

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