La rente pétrolière et le développement économique des pays exportateurs

The economic performances of oil exporting countries reveal a counter intuitive phenomenon: natural wealth is a limit for growth opportunities. Development experiences of many oil exporting countries prove that the possession of natural resources is often transformed into a curse. The literature on the oil curse is abundant, especially after the oil shocks of the 1970s. However, it does not reach a consensus concerning the transmission mechanisms. The aim of this thesis is to figure why the oil surplus of exporting countries did not generate economic development. We propose an analysis of the impact of oil revenues on the economies, by examining first the dynamics and distribution of the world oil surplus. We study afterwards different factors that explain economic decline in these countries. The Dutch Disease phenomenon is well known, but we show that on top of economic issues, there are also pains linked to bad governance. In the last part, we explore some propositions to escape the curse. Economic policies can be adopted, as exports diversification policies, or the implementation of oil funds. Other political actions can also contribute to enhance institutional quality by improving governance and transparency in the oil sector.