Access to Credit by Firms in Sub-Saharan Africa: How Relevant is Gender?

(with Elizabeth Asiedu, Isaac Kalonda-Kanyama and Leonce Ndikumana), American Economic Review, 2013, 103 (3) 293-297

The literature on the determinants of firms' financing constraints has paid little attention to gender as a determinant of access to finance. Using data for 34,342 firms from 90 developing countries, the paper analyzes the determinants of firms' financing constraints and assesses whether female-owned firms are more financially constrained than male-owned businesses. The results show that female-owned firms in Sub-Saharan Africa are more likely to be financially constrained than male-owned firms, but there is no gender gap in other developing regions. The gender gap in Sub-Saharan Africa is robust to variations in specifications and econometric estimation procedures.

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Access to Credit by Small Businesses: How Relevant is Race, Ethnicity and Gender?

(with Elizabeth Asiedu and James Freeman), American Economic Review, 2012, 102 (3), 532-537

This paper employs data from the 1998 and 2003 Survey of Small Business Finances to analyze whether, after controlling for observable factors that influence loan decisions, there is a significant difference in the loan approval rate and the interest rate charged on approved loans for businesses owned by minorities or white females, and firms owned by white males. 

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Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Natural Resources and Employment in Sub-Saharan Africa

(with Elizabeth Asiedu and Komla Dzigbede) in "Africa at a Fork in the Road: Taking Off or Disappointment Once Again?" Ed. Ernesto Zedillo and Olivier Cattaneo, 2015, 395-414

FDI to Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has increased substantially since 1990. However, the investments are concentrated in the oil industry. This paper examines the impact of oil-related FDI on host economies in the region. We argue that employment by multinational corporations is one of the most effective ways by which FDI can facilitate poverty reduction and economic growth in host countries. However, FDI in non-extractive industries generate more employment and local linkages than FDI in extractive industries. As a consequence, countries in SSA may not reap the potential positive externalities generated by FDI. We discuss policies that may enable countries in the region, in particular oil exporting countries, to attract FDI in non-extractive industries. 

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The Paradox of Capital Flight from a Capital-Starved Continent

(with Elizabeth Asiedu and John Nana Francois), Concerned Africa's Scholars Bulletin, 2012, 87, 22-28

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