Can the Asian economic miracle be replicated in Africa?
This question has been brought to the fore by the remarkable recent book “How Asia Works” by Joe Studwell, former editor-in-chief of the China Economic Quarterly. In his book, Studwell appropriately credits the crucial role of land rights reform in Taiwan, South Korea, China and Japan in helping to spark and enable the sustained economic growth of those Asian tigers — growth that started in the agricultural sector and then fed the manufacturing sector.
Studwell asserts that land rights reform was one of three factors for successful Asian economies, giving a kick-start to development by using a large rural workforce and providing capital for growth.