INTERROGATING LAW AND DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA ________________________________________________________________________ Mashood A. Baderin, PhD. Professor of Law SOAS, University of London 1

“Can Africa Claim the 21 st Century?” _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ World Bank Report, April 2000 Strategies: Improving governance and resolving conflicts; Investing in its people; Increasing competitiveness and diversifying economies; Reducing aid dependence and debt and strengthening partnerships. 2

“Can Africa Claim the 21 st Century?” _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ World Bank Report, April 2000 Role of Law: Well-functioning states share certain characteristics: “The first is the capacity to maintain nationwide peace, law and order, without which other government functions are compromised or impossible”; “Second, states must ensure individual liberty and equality before the law … This has been a major institutional inadequacy in many African states”. “Secure property rights and transparent adjudications of dispute arising thereof are critical in shaping investment decisions” 3

“The Meaning of Development” _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Dudley Seers, 1969 Central Questions: “The questions to ask about a country’s development are therefore: What has been happening to poverty? What has been happening to unemployment? What has been happening to inequality? If all three of these have declined from high levels, then beyond doubt this has been a period of development for the country concerned. If one or two of these central problems have been growing worse, especially if all three have, it would be strange to call the result ‘development’, even if per capita income doubled. This applies of course to the future too. A ‘plan’ which conveys no targets for reducing poverty, unemployment and inequality can hardly be considered a ‘development plan’.” 4

Law as an Aid to Development _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Central Questions: What is law? Can law play any significant role in development? Can law aid development in Africa? The Law and Development Movement 5

Propositions __________________________________________________________________ 1.Adopting a Developmental Objective for Law in Africa 2.Legislating for Development in Africa 6