Africa's Resource Curse

I just finished up the Douglas Yates book about African oil that I mentioned a few weeks back. Fair to say that I enjoyed it. The driving objective is an examination of why a continent so rich in resources remains so mired in poverty and corruption. Using each chapter to cover a different angle, and a country-specific case study to extrapolate therein, he lays out a compelling case for why change must come from below and not above. The topics covered include neocolonialism in the aftermath of "independence", failed attempts to implement better governance by outside entities, evolution of rentier states that ultimately create a class of elites that have no interest in sharing oil revenues with their countrymen, and the simple reality that the countries of Africa are artificial constructs of colonial times. He makes a surprisingly strong case for why African states might try to follow the lead of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, but also recognizes the inherent differences between Africa and Latin America that complicate such a possibility. In any event, I liked it and it provided the necessary relief from my previous read.