Governance, Inequality and Inclusive Education in Sub-Saharan Africa

Asongu, Simplice and Diop, Samba and Addis, Amsalu (2020): Governance, Inequality and Inclusive Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Forthcoming in: Forum for Social Economics

Abstract

The study provides thresholds of income inequality that if exceeded will nullify the positive effect of governance dynamics on gender-inclusive education in 42 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2004-2014. The Generalised Method of Moments is used as an estimation strategy. The following findings are established. First, the unconditional effects of governance dynamics on inclusive education are consistently positive whereas the corresponding conditional effects from the interaction between inequality and governance dynamics are consistently negative. Second, the levels of inequality that completely crowd-out the positive incidence of governance on inclusive “primary and secondary education” are: 0.587 for the rule of law and 0.565 for corruption-control. Third, the levels of inequality that completely dampen the positive incidence of governance on inclusive “secondary education” are: 0.601 for “voice & accountability” and 0.700 for regulation quality. Fourth, for tertiary education, inequality thresholds are respectively 0.568 for political stability and 0.562 for corruption-control. The main policy implication is that for governance dynamics to promote inclusive education in the sampled countries, income inequality levels should be kept within the established thresholds. Other implications are discussed in the light of Sustainable Development Goals.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Africa; Inequality; Gender; Inclusive development
• Subjects: G - Financial Economics > G2 - Financial Institutions and Services > G20 - General; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I1 - Health > I10 - General; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty > I32 - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O4 - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity > O40 - General; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O5 - Economywide Country Studies > O55 - Africa

References

Ajide, K. B., & Raheem, I. D., (2016a). “Institutions-FDI Nexus in ECOWAS Countries”, Journal of African Business, 17(3), pp. 319-341.

Ajide, K. B., & Raheem, I. D., (2016b). “The Institutional Quality Impact on Remittances in the ECOWAS Sub-Region”, African Development Review, 28(4), pp. 462–481.

Andrés, R. A, & Asongu, S. A., (2013). “Fighting Software Piracy: Which Governance Tools Matter in Africa?”,Journal of Business Ethics, 118(3), pp. 667-682.

Andrés, R. A., Asongu, S. A., &Amavilah, V. H., (2015). “The Impact of Formal Institutions on Knowledge Economy”, Journal of the Knowledge Economy, 6(4), pp. 1034-1062.

Asiedu, E., (2014). “Does Foreign Aid in Education Promote Economic Growth? Evidence From Sub-Saharan Africa”, Journal of African Development, 16(1), pp. 37-59.

Asongu, S. A., (2018). “CO2 emission thresholds for inclusive human development in sub-Saharan Africa”, Environmental Science and Pollution Science, 25(26), pp. 26005–26019.

Asongu S. A.,& De Moor, L., (2017). “Financial globalisation dynamic thresholds for financial development: evidence from Africa”, European Journal of Development Research, 29(1), pp. 192–212.

Asongu, S. A., &Kodila-Tedika, O., (2016). “Fighting African Conflicts and Crimes: Which Governance Tools Matter?” International Journal of Social Economics, 43(5), pp. 466-485.

Asongu, S. A., &Kodila-Tedika, O., (2017).“Is Poverty in the African DNA (Gene)?”,South African Journal of Economics, 85(4), pp. 533-552.

Asongu, S. A., & le Roux, S., (2019). “Understanding Sub-Saharan Africa’s Extreme Poverty Tragedy”, International Journal of Public Administration, 42(6), pp. 457-467.

Asongu, S. A., le Roux, S., Nwachukwu, J. C., &Pyke, C., (2019).“The Mobile Phone as an Argument for Good Governance in Sub-Saharan Africa”, Information Technology & People, 32 (4), pp. 897-920.

Asongu, S. A., &Nwachukwu, J. C., (2016a).“The Role of Governance in Mobile Phones for Inclusive Human Development in Sub-Saharan Africa”, Technovation, 55-56 (September-October), pp. 1-13.

Asongu, S. A., &Nwachukwu, J., (2016b). “Revolution empirics: predicting the Arab Spring” Empirical Economics, 51(2), pp. 439-482.

Asongu, S.A, &Nwachukwu, J. C., (2016c). “The Mobile Phone in the Diffusion of Knowledge for Institutional Quality in Sub Saharan Africa”, World Development, 86(October), pp.133-147.

Asongu, S.A, &Nwachukwu, J. C., (2016d).“Foreign aid and governance in Africa”, International Review of Applied Economics, 30(1), pp. 69-88.

Asongu, S. A., &Nwachukwu, J. C., (2017).“Foreign Aid and Inclusive Development: Updated Evidence from Africa, 2005–2012”, Social Science Quarterly, 98(1), pp. 282-298.

Asongu, S. A., &Nwachukwu, J. C., (2018).“Educational quality thresholds in the diffusion of knowledge with mobile phones for inclusive human development in sub-Saharan Africa”, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 129(April), pp. 164-172.

Asongu, S. A., &Odhiambo, N. M., (2018). “ICT, Financial Access and Gender Inclusion in the Formal Economic Sector: Evidence from Africa”, African Finance Journal,20(2), pp. 45-65.

Asongu, S. A., &Odhiambo, N. M., (2019a).“Enhancing ICT for quality education in Sub-Saharan Africa”, Education and Information Technologies, 24(5), pp. 2823–2839.

Asongu, S. A., &Odhiambo, N. M., (2019b).“Basic formal education quality, information technology, and inclusive human development in sub‐Saharan Africa”, Sustainable Development, 27(3), pp. 419-428.

Asongu, S. A., &Odhiambo, N. M., (2019c). “Environmental Degradation and Inclusive Human Development in Sub‐ Saharan Africa”, Sustainable Development, 27(1), pp. 25-34.

Asongu, S. A., &Odhiambo, N. M., (2019d). “How Enhancing Information and Communication Technology has affected Inequality in Africa for Sustainable Development: An Empirical Investigation”, Sustainable Development, 27(4), pp. 647-656.

Asongu, S. A., &Odhiambo, N. M., (2020). “Finance, Governance and Inclusive Education in Sub-Saharan Africa”, Social Responsibility Journal, DOI: 10.1108/SRJ-02-2020-0039.

Asongu, S. A., Orim, S-M, I., &Nting, R. T., (2019). “Inequality, Information Technology and Inclusive Education in Sub-Saharan Africa”, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 146(September), pp. 380-389.

Asongu, S. A., &Tchamyou, V. S., (2016). “The impact of entrepreneurship on knowledge economy”, Journal of Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies, 8(1), pp. 101-131.

Asongu, S. A., &Tchamyou, V. S., (2019). “Foreign Aid, Education and Lifelong Learning in Africa”, Journal of the Knowledge Economy,10(1), pp. 126–146.

Asongu, S. A., &Tchamyou, V. S. (2020). “Human Capital, Knowledge Creation, Knowledge Diffusion, Institutions and Economic Incentives: South Korea versus Africa”, Contemporary Social Science,15(1), pp. 26-47.

Bayraktar, N., &Fofack, H., (2018). “A Model for Gender Analysis with Informal Productive and Financial Sectors”, Journal of African Development, 20(2), pp. 1-20.

Beck, T., Demirgüç-Kunt, A., & Levine, R., (2003), “Law and finance: why does legal origin matter?”,Journal of Comparative Economics, 31(4), pp. 653-675.

Bicaba, Z., Brixiova, Z., &Ncube, M., (2017). “Can Extreme Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa be Eliminated by 2030?,” Journal of African Development, 19(2), pp. 93-110.

Boateng, A., Asongu, S. A., Akamavi, R., &Tchamyou, V. S., (2018). “Information Asymmetry and Market Power in the African Banking Industry”, Journal of Multinational Financial Management, 44(March), pp. 69-83.

Bongomin, G. O. C., Ntayi, J. M., Munene J. C., &Malinga, C. A., (2018). “Mobile Money and Financial Inclusion in Sub-Saharan Africa: the Moderating Role of Social Networks”, Journal of African Business,18(4), pp. 361-384.

Bruno, G., De Bonis, R., & Silvestrini, A., (2012). “Do financial systems converge? New evidence from financial assets in OECD countries”.Journal of Comparative Economics, 40(1), pp. 141-155.

Carew, M. T., Deluca, M., Groce, N., & Kett, M., (2019). “The impact of an inclusive education intervention on teacher preparedness to educate children with disabilities within the Lakes Region of Kenya”, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 23(3), pp. 229-244.

Clouder, J., Cawston, J., Wimpenny, K., Mehanna, A. K. A., Hdouch, Y., Raissouni, I., &Selmaoui, K., (2019). “The role of assistive technology in renegotiating the inclusion of students with disabilities in higher education in North Africa”, Studies in Higher Education, 44(8), pp. 1344-1357.

Costantini, M., & Lupi, C., (2005).“Stochastic Convergence among European Economies”.Economics Bulletin, 3(38), pp.1-17.

De Magalhães, L., & Santaeulàlia-Llopis, R., (2018). “The consumption, income, and wealth of the poorest: An empirical analysis of economic inequality in rural and urban Sub-Saharan Africa for macroeconomists”, Journal of Development Studies, 134(September), pp. 350-371.

del Rosario C., & Kitada, M., (2020).The Governance of Inclusive Maritime Higher Education in the Philippines. In: Kantola J., Nazir S., Salminen V. (eds) Advances in Human Factors, Business Management and Leadership. AHFE 2020.Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 1209.

Efobi, U., (2015). “Politicians’ Attributes and Institutional Quality in Africa: A Focus on Corruption”, Journal of Economic Issues, 49(3), pp. 787-813.

Efobi, U. R., Tanaken, B. V., &Asongu, S. A., (2018). “Female Economic Participation with Information and Communication Technology Advancement: Evidence from Sub‐ Saharan Africa”, South African Journal of Economics, 86(2), pp. 231-246.

Ellis, A., Blackden, M., Cutura, J., MacCulloch, F., &Seebens, H., (2007). “Gender and Economic Growth in Tanzania: Creating Opportunities for Women”, Washington: The World Bank.

Elu, J., (2018). “Gender and Science Education in Sub-Saharan Africa-Keynote address at the African Development Bank/African Finance and Economic Association Luncheon, Chicago, January 7, 2017”, Journal of African Development, 20(2), pp. 105-110.

Food and Agricultural Organization – FAO (2011), “Women in Agriculture: Closing the Gender Gap for Development, Rome”: FAO.

Fosu, A. K. (2017). “Growth, inequality, and poverty reduction in developing countries: Recent global evidence”, Research in Economics, 71(2), pp. 306-336.

Fosu, A. K., &Gafa, D. W., (2020). “Progress on poverty in Africa: how have growth and inequality mattered?” African Review of Economics and Finance, 12 (1), pp. 61-101.

Goetz, A. M., & Jenkins, R., (2016). “Gender, security, and governance: the case of Sustainable Development Goal 16”, Gender & Development, 24(1), pp. 127-137.

Hazel, M., (2010). “Poverty among Women in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Review of Selected Issues”, Journal of International Women’s Studies, 11(4), pp. 50-72.

Hui, N., Vickery, E., Njelesani, J., & Cameron, D., (2018). “Gendered experiences of inclusive education for children with disabilities in West and East Africa”, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 22(5), pp. 457-474.

International Labour Organization – ILO (2016). “Women at Work – Trends 2016”, Geneva: International Labour Organization.

Kairiza, T., Kiprono, P., &Magadzire, V., (2017). “Gender differences in financial inclusion amongst entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe”, Small Business Economics, 48(1), pp 259-272.

Kaulihowa, T., &Adjasi, C., (2018). “FDI and income inequality in Africa”, Oxford Development Studies, 46(2), pp. 250-265.

Lang, R., Schneider, M., Kett, M., Cole, E., &Groce, N. (2019). “Policy development: An analysis of disability inclusion in a selection of African Union policies”. Development Policy Review, 37(2), pp.155-175.

Lorenzo, T., & Coleridge, P. (2019).Working Together: Making Inclusive Development a Reality.In The Palgrave Handbook of Disability and Citizenship in the Global South (pp. 233-247). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.

Magumise, J. & Sefotho, M. M., (2020).“Parent and teacher perceptions of inclusive education in Zimbabwe”, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 24(5), pp. 544-560.

Majoko, T., (2018).“Effectiveness of special and inclusive teaching in early childhood education in Zimbabwe”, Early Child Development and Care, 188(6), pp. 785-799.

Manda, M.I., & Backhouse, J., (2019). Smart Governance for Inclusive Socio-Economic Transformation in South Africa: Are We There Yet?. In: E-Participation in Smart Cities: Technologies and Models of Governance for Citizen Engagement. Public Administration and Information Technology, vol 34.

Mannah-Blankson, T., (2018). “Gender Inequality and Access to Microfinance: Evidence from Ghana”, Journal of African Development, 20(2), pp. 21-33.

McGeown, J. (2017). “Quality inclusive education is at the heart of the Sustainable Development Goals”, Global Partnership for Education. https://www.globalpartnership.org/blog/quality-inclusive-education-heart-sustainable-development-goals (Accessed: 08/01/2019).

Meniago, C., &Asongu, S. A., (2018). “Revisiting the finance-inequality nexus in a panel of African countries”, Research in International Business and Finance, 46 (December), pp. 399-419.

Mutanga, O., (2018). “Inclusion of Students with Disabilities in South African Higher Education”, International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 65(2), pp. 229- 242.

Narayan, P.K., Mishra, S., & Narayan, S., (2011). “Do market capitalization and stocks traded converge? New global evidence”.Journal of Banking and Finance, 35(10), pp.2771-2781.

Nkurunziza, M., (2018). “Sub-Saharan Africa, losing $2.5 trillion due to gender inequality – World Bank”, The New Times https://www.newtimes.co.rw/business/sub-saharan-africa-losing-25-trillion-due-gender-inequality-world-bank (Accessed: 01/01/2018).

Nwokora, Z., &Pelizzo, R., (2018). “Measuring Party System Change: A Systems Perspective”, Political Studies, 66(1), pp. 100-118.

Oluwatobi, S., Efobi, U.R., Olurinola, O.I., Alege, P. (2015), “Innovation in Africa: Why Institutions Matter”, South African Journal of Economics, 83(3), pp. 390-410.

Osabuohien, E. S., &Efobi, U. R., (2013). “Africa’s money in Africa”, South African Journal of Economics, 81(2), pp. 292-306.

Pelizzo, R., Araral, E., Pak, A., &Xun, W., (2016). “Determinants of Bribery: Theory and Evidence from Sub‐Saharan Africa”, African Development Review, 28(2), pp. 229-240.

Pelizzo, R., &Nwokora, Z., (2016). “Bridging the Divide: Measuring Party System Change and Classifying Party Systems”, Politics & Policy, 44(6), pp. 1017-1052.

Pelizzo, R., &Nwokora, Z., (2018). “Party System Change and the Quality of Democracy in East Africa”, Politics & Policy, 46(3), pp. 505-528.

Petrakis, P. E., &Stamatakis, D. (2002). “Growth and educational levels: a comparative analysis”. Economics of Education Review, 21(2), pp. 513-521.

Robinson, M., (2015). “Why gender equality is key to sustainable development”, World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/03/why-gender-equality-is-integral-to-sustainable-development/ (Accessed: 02/01/2018).

Roodman, D., (2009a). “A Note on the Theme of Too Many Instruments”, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, 71(1), pp. 135-158.

Roodman, D., (2009b). “How to do xtabond2: An introduction to difference and system GMM in Stata”, Stata Journal, 9(1), pp. 86-136.

Sulemana, I., &Kpienbaareh, D., (2018). “An empirical examination of the relationship between income inequality and corruption in Africa”, Economic Analysis and Policy,60(December), pp. 27-42.

Tandon, N., &Wegerif, M., (2013). “Promises, Power and Poverty: Corporate Land Deals and Rural Women in Africa”, OXFAM Policy Brief, 170(9), pp. 1-26.

Tchamyou, S. V., (2017). “The Role of Knowledge Economy in African Business”, Journal of the Knowledge Economy, 8(4), pp. 1189-1228.

Tchamyou, V. S., (2020). “Education, Lifelong learning, Inequality and Financial access: Evidence from African countries”.Contemporary Social Science, 15(1), pp. 7-25.

Tchamyou, V. S., (2019).“The Role of Information Sharing in Modulating the Effect of Financial Access on Inequality”.Journal of African Business, 20(3), pp. 317-338.

Tchamyou, V. S., &Asongu, S. A., (2017).“Information Sharing and Financial Sector Development in Africa”, Journal of African Business, 18(7), pp. 24-49.

Tchamyou, V.S., Erreygers, G., &Cassimon, D., (2019). “Inequality, ICT and Financial Access in Africa”, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 139(February), pp. 169-184.

Theriault, V., Smale, M., &Haider, H., (2017). “How Does Gender Affect Sustainable Intensification of Cereal Production in the West African Sahel? Evidence from Burkina Faso”, World Development, 92(April), pp. 177-191.

Tlale, L. D. N., &Romm, N. R. A. (2018). “Systemic Thinking and Practice Toward Facilitating Inclusive Education: Reflections on a Case of Co-Generated Knowledge and Action in South Africa”, Systemic Practice and Action Research, 31(2), pp. 105-120.

Uduji, J.I. &Okolo-Obasi, E. N. (2018).“Young rural women’s participation in the e-wallet programme and usage intensity of modern agricultural inputs in Nigeria”.Gender, Technology and Development, 22(1), 59-81.

Uduji J. I,&Okolo-Obasi E. N. (2019). “Corporate social responsibility initiatives in Nigeria and rural women livestock keepers in oil host communities”. Social Responsibility Journal, 15(8), pp. 1008-1032.

Uduji J. I,&Okolo-Obasi E. N., (2020). “Does corporate social responsibility (CSR) impact on development of women in small-scale fisheries of sub-Saharan Africa? Evidence from coastal communities of Niger Delta in Nigeria”.Marine Policy,118, August 2020.

Uduji J. I, Okolo-Obasi E. N., &Asongu, S. A. (2019).“Corporate Social Responsibility and the role of Rural Women in Sustainable Agricultural Development in sub-Saharan Africa: Evidence from the Niger Delta in Nigeria”. Sustainable Development, 27(4), pp. 692-703.

UN (2017). “UNDP launches study on income inequality in sub-Saharan Africa”, United Nations Development Programme. http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2017/09/21/undp-launches-study-on-income-inequality-in-sub-saharan-africa.html (Accessed: 09/01/2019).

World Bank (2015). “Unlocking the Potential of Women through Technology for Sri Lanka’s Development”, Washington: The World Bank.http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2015/04/09/unlocking-potentialwomen-technology-ict-development(Accessed: 05/12/2016).

World Bank (2018). “Globally, Countries Lose $160 Trillion in Wealth Due to Earnings Gaps Between Women and Men”, The World Bank. https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2018/05/30/globally-countries-lose-160-trillion-in-wealth-due-to-earnings-gaps-between-women-and-men (Accessed: 03/01/2018).