Diaspora as Driver of Agricultural Structural Transformation in West Africa

Abstract

The structural transformation is recognized as a key driver of sustainable economic development by researchers and international development agencies. However, it is lagging in West Africa, whereas the diaspora is recognized as a vector for the structural transformation of African economies. Thus, this paper analyzes the contribution of the diaspora to the structural transformation of the economies of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The structural transformation is measured by the reallocation of labor from the agricultural sector. Diaspora is measured by the total emigration rate and the high education emigration rate. The Least Squares Dummy Variable Corrected (LSDVC) method applied to a dynamic specification was used on 15 ECOWAS countries from 1990 to 2010. The results revealed that the diaspora attracts labor to the agricultural sector in ECOWAS. While supporting the industrial sector, the diaspora should invest in modern techniques in the agricultural sector, leading to improved productivity gains in this sector and fostering the structural transformation desired by the African Union.