Why Africa Remains Underdeveloped Despite its Potential? Which Theory can Help Africa to Develop?

Abstract

Africa is rich in natural as well as human resources which are the basis for the prosperity of a given nation. Despite its potential the continent is still underdeveloped. Different scholars have tried to analyze the root causes of under development in Africa in different perspective. Some from the colonization perspective and others from the political set up of the continent. Based on this rational, we were initiated to review different literatures to identify the real causes of poverty in Africa, and to recommend an appropriate development theory for the continent. The socio political set up of African countries has a similarity with those of the East Asian nations which have brought economic progress through exercising developmental state. These countries were able to solve their citizens' unemployment through implementing technical education in their education policy, which is the peculiar feature of developmental state. Therefore, African leaders have to strive for change in the continent to reverse the situation through applying developmental state theory and gradually in a way of exercising democratic culture in the region.