Abstract

This study investigates how colonial administrative styles have shaped long-run economic and human development outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa. It examines whether British indirect rule and French direct rule produced persistent institutional differences that continue to influence growth, public goods provision, and welfare. Building on New Institutional Economics (North, 1989) and growth theory (Acemoglu et al., 2001), the paper develops a dual-framework model in which colonial legacies affect economics development through two channels: institutional capacity and institutional legitimacy. In the first channel, administrative style influences institutional quality, which enters the Solow growth model through productivity and shapes steady-state income and public goods provision. In the second channel, coercive colonial experiences influence trust and behavioral preferences, affecting the demand for some types of health and education services.

Empirically, the study introduces two measures, D-score, and D-health, to capture how effectively countries translate income into broader development outcomes. These measures are inspired by Njoh’s (2000) comparison of economic and human development outcomes across colonial administrative systems and are constructed by comparing global rankings of GDP per capita with rankings in human development and health indicators between 1990 and 2015. The results reveal large and persistent variation in development translation efficiency across countries. While British colonial heritage does not consistently predict stronger development outcomes once regional controls are included, governance quality (proxied by control of corruption) has a statistically and economically significant effect. Improvements in corruption control substantially reduce the gap between income and development outcomes. At the same time, evidence from colonial health campaigns shows that mistrust generated by coercive institutions can weaken the relationship between income and welfare.

Taken together, the findings suggest that colonial legacies matter insofar as they shape durable institutional environments rather than colonizer identity alone. By distinguishing between institutional capacity and institutional legitimacy, this paper offers a more nuanced explanation for persistent translation gaps in human development across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Advisor

Moledina, Amyaz

Department

Economics

Publication Date

2026

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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