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We are pleased to announce the publication of IPC Working Paper #45, “Financial Liberalization and Domestic Resource Mobilization in Africa: An Assessment”. The author, John Serieux, visiting researcher at IPC from the University of Manitoba, examines data from 1965 to 2004 to identify the effects of different financial regimes on the financial and economic performance of a group of sub-Saharan African countries. The focus is on determining whether recent financial liberalization has improved domestic resource mobilization by increasing financial liquidity, credit to the private sector, private savings, private investment and growth. He concludes that although liberalization has changed the dynamics of the financial system, it has had no clear effect on boosting savings, investment or growth.

Available for downloading at: http://www.undp-povertycentre.org/pub/IPCWorkingPaper45.pdf

This Working Paper is part of IPC’s ongoing research and training programme on “Economic Policies, MDGs and Poverty”, in partnership with the Centre for Development Policy and Research and the Political Economy Research Institute.

Please see the related IPC One Pager #48, “Is Financial Liberalization a Flop? An Africa Assessment”, and IPC Training Module #3 on Financial Policy, which is also part of the training programme on “Economic Policies, MDGs and Poverty”.