Great reviews.. and that's a moving personal anecdote about Botswana, and one which many forget.
AIDS was such a huge issue that my first South African economist decided to quit financial markets to do more studying on HIV/AIDS, which was a laudable decision and quite understandable in the early 2000s.
On Meles Zenawi, apart from Obafemi Awolowo, I'm yet to see one politician vying for office articulate their plan for development in a written document. Not even the almighty Obi or the Lee Kuan Yew of Kaduna. Atiku is a lost cause. I honestly wonder what they scurry about for if they can't sit down in one place and think?
Tinubu is the person that fits them since they've refused to have sense. I’m not a fan of Tinubu but let’s all be mad together. You all kept quiet when the olodo Buhari wrecked the economy. I mean, we have it on record Ameachi saying Nigeria can’t be better while a minister- this guy built a rail to Maradi. SMH. The lot of you were part of the same government but two seconds out of government you’re all screaming blue mudder. I have buckets for your tears, ADC.
My general take from the review so far is that Africa cannot escape Stefan Dercon. At this point, it seems Joe Studwell himself can't escape Stefan Dercon.
Agreed .. Studwell and Dercon's work are very similar, particularly with the focus on Ethiopia which then bankrupted itself because it did not have the domestic savings to fund the east Asian model. The Time Travelling Economist explains why Ethiopia ran out of savings (fertility) and why its manufacturing sector has been one of the smallest in the world (literacy)
I haven’t read Studwell, hopefully I do soon. I read, in the past extensively, about the SEZ approach in Mauritius especially the non-enclave model and transition to garments manufacturing. I think they tried that same SEZ model in some parts of Ghana. I feel truly heartbroken for Ethiopia, was really invested in its success reading all the papers I could on its industrial policy and firm productivity but nothing particularly optimistic jumped at me in the same way as the East Asians. However, I see The Time Travelling Economist as the next phase for quick wins after an elite consensus on development have been reached a la Dercon. A cheat sheet of sorts since our leaders won’t invest in any form of knowledge production. So, thanks for giving us TTTE.
I don't think you should be reading a review/critic of Studwell without even reading Studwell at all.
Ethiopia post Zenawi has been tragic, but things are now turning around.
In 2024, Ethiopia's GDP grew by around 8%, with Industry leading the pack at 9% growth. In 2025, it grew at 7.2% and this year, it's on track to grow at 9%.
Even the balance of payment crisis was primarily caused by the war, which was a failure of politics that seems to have finally been resolved.
Feyi and Tobi did a great job unpacking Chapters 5 and 6.
Feyi’s take on Mauritius stands out. He argues convincingly that it isn’t some strange outlier, but one of Africa’s clearest post-independence success stories. The way he explains the elite consensus, the smart nationwide EPZ strategy, the use of sugar revenues to drive diversification, and the steady focus on learning and upgrading feels thoughtful and well grounded.
Tobi approaches Ethiopia with more caution, and it works. He points out how the country closely followed Studwell’s East Asia model: agriculture first, heavy infrastructure investment, and state-led industrialisation. Yet despite that, major structural issues surfaced. Ethnic tensions, a constrained private sector, and eventual instability all raise fair questions about whether a rigid template can really hold in larger, more complex African contexts.
What makes their contributions strong is the balance. There’s solid analysis, personal reflection, and a willingness to challenge Studwell where necessary. Feyi’s Botswana and HIV reflection added emotional weight and real perspective. Altogether, it feels like the kind of serious, Africa-centered engagement the book calls for. Genuinely impressive work.
Something of a side note but I recently read a paper on the total factor productivity of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and I wonder how the near zero percent growth in Ethiopia fits with Studwell's thesis. Maybe its is an outlier? An inevitable slowdown after a burst of growth from a lower base?
For Botswana, the unhappiness stuff was an aside, not the thrust of its criticism. Despite its laissez faire approach, Botswana is one of the most unequal societies in the world and has high unemployment too.
And for the criticisms of Ethiopia, how can you say that manufacturing jobs being unpleasant is a sign that it failed. It's low-cost manufacturing. Of course it isn't glamorous. I mean, we have China's Foxconn having nets in their factories to prevent people from jumping to their deaths.
Unfortunately, it is a feature, not a bug.
And then you said that majority of the factories were operating at 40% capacity in 2024. That is a weird time to cherrypick. As 2024 is the same year that their balance of payment crisis(which was caused by the war), came to a head.
And of course, the war was caused by a failure of politics, not economics.
Great reviews.. and that's a moving personal anecdote about Botswana, and one which many forget.
AIDS was such a huge issue that my first South African economist decided to quit financial markets to do more studying on HIV/AIDS, which was a laudable decision and quite understandable in the early 2000s.
Thank you. This was a conversation around 2005 and I’ve never forgotten it
On Meles Zenawi, apart from Obafemi Awolowo, I'm yet to see one politician vying for office articulate their plan for development in a written document. Not even the almighty Obi or the Lee Kuan Yew of Kaduna. Atiku is a lost cause. I honestly wonder what they scurry about for if they can't sit down in one place and think?
Tinubu is the person that fits them since they've refused to have sense. I’m not a fan of Tinubu but let’s all be mad together. You all kept quiet when the olodo Buhari wrecked the economy. I mean, we have it on record Ameachi saying Nigeria can’t be better while a minister- this guy built a rail to Maradi. SMH. The lot of you were part of the same government but two seconds out of government you’re all screaming blue mudder. I have buckets for your tears, ADC.
My general take from the review so far is that Africa cannot escape Stefan Dercon. At this point, it seems Joe Studwell himself can't escape Stefan Dercon.
Agreed .. Studwell and Dercon's work are very similar, particularly with the focus on Ethiopia which then bankrupted itself because it did not have the domestic savings to fund the east Asian model. The Time Travelling Economist explains why Ethiopia ran out of savings (fertility) and why its manufacturing sector has been one of the smallest in the world (literacy)
I haven’t read Studwell, hopefully I do soon. I read, in the past extensively, about the SEZ approach in Mauritius especially the non-enclave model and transition to garments manufacturing. I think they tried that same SEZ model in some parts of Ghana. I feel truly heartbroken for Ethiopia, was really invested in its success reading all the papers I could on its industrial policy and firm productivity but nothing particularly optimistic jumped at me in the same way as the East Asians. However, I see The Time Travelling Economist as the next phase for quick wins after an elite consensus on development have been reached a la Dercon. A cheat sheet of sorts since our leaders won’t invest in any form of knowledge production. So, thanks for giving us TTTE.
I don't think you should be reading a review/critic of Studwell without even reading Studwell at all.
Ethiopia post Zenawi has been tragic, but things are now turning around.
In 2024, Ethiopia's GDP grew by around 8%, with Industry leading the pack at 9% growth. In 2025, it grew at 7.2% and this year, it's on track to grow at 9%.
Even the balance of payment crisis was primarily caused by the war, which was a failure of politics that seems to have finally been resolved.
Feyi and Tobi did a great job unpacking Chapters 5 and 6.
Feyi’s take on Mauritius stands out. He argues convincingly that it isn’t some strange outlier, but one of Africa’s clearest post-independence success stories. The way he explains the elite consensus, the smart nationwide EPZ strategy, the use of sugar revenues to drive diversification, and the steady focus on learning and upgrading feels thoughtful and well grounded.
Tobi approaches Ethiopia with more caution, and it works. He points out how the country closely followed Studwell’s East Asia model: agriculture first, heavy infrastructure investment, and state-led industrialisation. Yet despite that, major structural issues surfaced. Ethnic tensions, a constrained private sector, and eventual instability all raise fair questions about whether a rigid template can really hold in larger, more complex African contexts.
What makes their contributions strong is the balance. There’s solid analysis, personal reflection, and a willingness to challenge Studwell where necessary. Feyi’s Botswana and HIV reflection added emotional weight and real perspective. Altogether, it feels like the kind of serious, Africa-centered engagement the book calls for. Genuinely impressive work.
Something of a side note but I recently read a paper on the total factor productivity of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and I wonder how the near zero percent growth in Ethiopia fits with Studwell's thesis. Maybe its is an outlier? An inevitable slowdown after a burst of growth from a lower base?
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2312519121
Studwell loves "outliers", I can tell you that 😀. But I will check out the paper. Thanks
Hi guys. Thanks for the great work. Would you be open to publishing this series as well as F.O.O.D as a book?
For Botswana, the unhappiness stuff was an aside, not the thrust of its criticism. Despite its laissez faire approach, Botswana is one of the most unequal societies in the world and has high unemployment too.
And for the criticisms of Ethiopia, how can you say that manufacturing jobs being unpleasant is a sign that it failed. It's low-cost manufacturing. Of course it isn't glamorous. I mean, we have China's Foxconn having nets in their factories to prevent people from jumping to their deaths.
Unfortunately, it is a feature, not a bug.
And then you said that majority of the factories were operating at 40% capacity in 2024. That is a weird time to cherrypick. As 2024 is the same year that their balance of payment crisis(which was caused by the war), came to a head.
And of course, the war was caused by a failure of politics, not economics.