Nobel Memorial Prize laureate Roger Myerson, an economist, has urged African governments to decentralise power and make resources available to local councils in order to spur development.

Mr Myerson, who spoke at the on-going African Economic Conference, said the devolution of power to the local councils could also help curb corruption and create competition.

A winner of the 2007 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, Mr Myerson spoke on the role of institutional and political frameworks in Africa’s capacity to finance its development.

He was joined by Ahunna Eziakonwa, the UN Development Programme’s Assistant Administrator and Regional Director for Africa.

Citing details of the findings of his research published in April 2021 which held that decentralisation was a driving force for development, the laureate said that successful countries devolved between 20 per cent and 30 per cent of their national budgets to local councils.

“A lack of decentralisation is worse than a lack of democracy, a lack of decentralised systems can be most detrimental to development.

“If you are not giving 20 per cent of the national budget to sub-nationals, you are not serious about decentralisation,” he said.

Furthermore, the University of Chicago professor said the trade disruptions caused by the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) provided an opportunity for African countries to grow local industries. 

The pandemic has been central to discussions at the AEC, which began on December 2, with a call from the development community for vaccine equity.

The event is organised by the African Development Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, and the Economic Commission for Africa.

Key changes that have been advocated are the expansion of the tax base in African countries as well as vaccine equity, with many calling for vaccine production within Africa.

(NAN)