Back

Interview with Ugo Panizza, Graduate Institute (IHEID) of Geneva, on Dept Sustainability in Africa

October 11, 2019
Related topics: 
Economy
Africa

Questions : 1/ What are the adequate investments that should be financed by debt and why? 2/ What are the best ways to maintain debt sustainability? 3/ Does China represent a risk for the future of debt sustainability in Sub-Sahran Africa ?

Speakers
Ugo Panizza
Professor of International Economics at the Graduate Institute Geneva (IHEID) and Director of the Institute’s Centre for Finance and Development
Ugo Panizza is Professor of International Economics at the Graduate Institute Geneva (IHEID) and Director of the Institute’s Centre for Finance and Development. Ugo Panizza has been a Visiting Professor at the Institute since 2008, a position he held in addition to being the Chief of the Debt and Finance Analysis Unit at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. He is the Director of the Center for Finance and Development, Director of the International Centre for Monetary and Banking Studies (ICMB), Vice President and Fellow of CEPR, Fellow of the Fondazione Einaudi, and Editor of International Development Policy. Previously, he worked at the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank, alongside holding teaching and research posts at the American Un ...

RELATED CONTENT

  • Download PDF
    RACE AGAINST THE CLOCK : Industrial Policy for Resource-Rich African Least Developed Economies-Transforming Wealth into Productive Capacity
    Authors
    Hinh T. Dinh
    August 5, 2026
    This paper addresses the persistent challenge of resource dependence in the world's poorest countries, focusing on the ten poorest African nations where natural- resource rents average 14% of income. It argues that four decades of conventional policy advice, which treated resource dependence primarily as a revenue management problem, have failed to help these countries. While stabilization funds and permanent-income frameworks aim to smooth consumption, they do not answer the fundam ...
  • Download PDF
    DEVELOPMENT AS DIPLOMACY : China’s Economic Model and the Rewriting of Soft Power
    Authors
    Marcus Vinicius de Freitas
    August 3, 2026
    This policy paper explores how China’s economic development model—rooted in pragmatism, long-term planning, and civilizational renewal—has become its most compelling soft power asset, particularly in the eyes of the Global South. While critically engaging with Joseph Nye’s original conception of soft power as a primarily cultural and normative force, the paper argues that China’s ability to transform itself from an impoverished postimperial state into the world’s largest trading nat ...
  • Annual Report on the African Economy 2026
    Authors
    Edited by
    Larabi Jaïdi
    July 13, 2026
    Available soon on livremoi. The 2026 edition of the Annual Report on the African Economy examines the issue of the valorization of Africa’s natural resources, particularly its mineral wealth. While the continent holds some of the world’s largest known reserves of a wide range of minerals and metals, the objective is not merely to catalogue these resources, but rather to explore the conditions under which natural resource endowments can be transformed into drivers of Africa’s in ...
  • Download PDF
    Morocco as a Connector State: A Winning Strategy in a Fragmented World
    Authors
    Abdelaaziz Ait Ali
    Mahmoud Arbouch
    Fahd Azaroual
    Karim El Aynaoui
    Adnane Lahzaoui
    July 3, 2026
    This Policy Paper has also been published in French and Spanish by Le Grand Continent Morocco offers a compelling example of how a middle-income economy can navigate a more fragmented global environment, characterized by weak growth and slower convergence. Since 2022, economic activity has remained relatively strong, with growth exceeding that of many comparable economies. Non-agricultural growth has averaged 4.4% since 2022, around 1.3 percentage points above its historical av ...
  • Download PDF
    Should Africa Go Nuclear?
    Authors
    Hafez Ghanem
    July 2, 2026
    Africa is facing a massive electricity deficit that is impacting its economic and social development, and its ability to catch up with the rest of the world. It is imperative that the continent increase its electricity production to connect the 600 million people who are currently without access and to improve the quality of service for the millions who are suffering from frequent blackouts and load-shedding. Economic development in the 21st century will crucially depend on the digi ...
  • THE 2026 ELECTIONS IN AFRICA: Youth Participation, Inclusive Governance, and Generational Issues
    Authors
    Nouzha Chekrouni
    June 30, 2026
    Globally, public policies for youth face a twofold challenge: addressing structural socioeconomic challenges—such as unemployment, precariousness, and regional disparities—while accommodating a growing demand for effective civic participation. (ILO, 2023; United Nations, 2020) In Africa, this challenge takes on a unique dimension given the demographic weight of the youth population and the persistent fragility of local democracies. (AfDB, 2020; Mo Ibrahim Foundation, 2023)Elections ...
  • Download PDF
    Les élections de 2026 en Afrique : participation des jeunesses, gouvernance inclusive et enjeux générationnels
    Authors
    Nouzha Chekrouni
    June 30, 2026
    À l'échelle mondiale, les politiques publiques de jeunesse sont confrontées à un double enjeu : répondre à des défis socio-économiques structurels; chômage, précarité, fractures territoriales, tout en intégrant une demande croissante de participation citoyenne effective. (OIT, 2023 ; Nations Unies, 2020) En Afrique, ce défi revêt une dimension singulière compte tenu du poids démographique de la jeunesse et des fragilités persistantes des démocraties locales. (BAD, 2020 ; Mo Ibrahim ...