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Has Mercantilism Reduced Urban Poverty in SSA? Perception of Boom, Bust, and the China-Africa Trade in Lomé and Bamako

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  • Lyons, Michal
  • Brown, Alison

Abstract

Summary This paper addresses the immediate impacts of the China-Africa trade on Africa's informal traders and its longer term impact on urban poverty, based on a comparison of the major cities of two West African countries and drawing on semi-structured interviews with traders and on schedule-based interviews with key informants in government, business and the informal trade sector. The findings are that the increase in imports from China initially broadened access to trading for the poor, creating short-term improvements in livelihoods, but competition is driving down profit margins, and restricting the trade to a survival mechanism for many today. Thus it has provided limited long-term potential as an economic platform for national development and poverty reduction. The findings are discussed in terms of structuration theory and in terms of alternative conceptualizations of informal trade in Africa.

Suggested Citation

  • Lyons, Michal & Brown, Alison, 2010. "Has Mercantilism Reduced Urban Poverty in SSA? Perception of Boom, Bust, and the China-Africa Trade in Lomé and Bamako," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(5), pages 771-782, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:38:y:2010:i:5:p:771-782
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Kate Meagher, 2022. "Crisis Narratives and the African Paradox: African Informal Economies, COVID‐19 and the Decolonization of Social Policy," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 53(6), pages 1200-1229, November.
    2. Forson, Joseph Ato & Braimah, Awaisu Imurana & Awoonor, Akorkor Kehinde, 2016. "African Perceptions of Donor Agencies: Emerging developments in Sino-African relations," MPRA Paper 102171, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 18 Jan 2019.
    3. Brown, Alison, 2015. "Claiming the Streets: Property Rights and Legal Empowerment in the Urban Informal Economy," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 238-248.
    4. Akorkor Kehinde Awoonor & Joseph Ato Forson, 2020. "African Perceptions of Trade Partners: A Ghanaian and Togolese Perspective of Sino-African Relations," Insight on Africa, , vol. 12(2), pages 104-128, July.
    5. Meagher, Kate, 2022. "Crisis narratives and the African paradox: African informal economies, COVID-19 and the decolonization of social policy," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 117263, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Deborah Potts, 2013. "Urban economies, urban livelihoods and natural resource-based economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa: The constraints of a liberalized world economy," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 28(2), pages 170-187, March.

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