DECON 200: Microeconomics Required Assessment Introduction to Assignment Africa, by almost any measure, is the wealthiest continent in terms of...

DECON 200: Microeconomics Required Assessment

Introduction to Assignment

Africa, by almost any measure, is the wealthiest continent in terms of natural resources yet, a large percentage of the continent’s population lives in poverty and continually struggles with civil strife. The material you covered in this course can help us to explain why economic development in many African Countries is still lagging behind other nations of the world.

In this assignment, you are required to write a research paper on the general topic of natural resource extraction and utilization in two countries of your choice from Sub-Saharan Africa. You can select any two countries from the list of Sub-Saharan Countries available at http://www.loc.gov/rr/amed/guide/afr-countrylist.html.

Preparation

To prepare for your research, you are to review material from the following 3 chapters of the class text.

Externalities (Chapter 10)
Public Goods and Common Resources (Chapter 11)
Income Distribution and Poverty (Chapter 20)

In addition, scan the background papers listed below and read at least one of the background papers or books in detail. Feel free to also seek out additional information.

Development of Thesis

Listed below are possible research questions that could help formulate the topic for your paper. In every case, be sure to support your thesis with concrete examples from your research of African Countries and with economic theory. Factual information about countries must be supported with valid sources and economic theory should be cited (either from your text or from academic publications). In addition, you must include your own analysis, in your own words, based on your sources and references. Be sure to tie together the information you present so that the main theme is clear to the reader; do not assume that the reader can guess why you are including the information.

Select two African countries based on your review of background papers and any additional information you have discovered in your background preparation. You will use these two countries in addressing your research question.

Possible Research Questions

Compare/contrast the control of natural resources/minerals in many African countries with the United States. Specifically focus on the role of property rights and the control of these rights. Give examples and support your claim with evidence and economic theory.
Given the current situation in many African countries, do we see the Tragedy of the Commons occurring? Consider not only how the “tragedy” is impacting the current population but also how hit may be devastating to coming generations. Give examples and support your claim with evidence and economic theory.
Should political leaders have the ability to control natural resources? What advantages and disadvantages might there be to such control in theory? What has been the actual experience? What evidence is there of the theoretical advantages and disadvantages in practice? Who has benefited from resource allocation decisions?
What externalities result from the situation where political leaders control the resources and subsequently appropriate the income and wealth from these resources? Do political leaders have the same goals as citizens of a country in directing resources? You might consider actual and possible uses of resources including military, personal gain of leaders, infrastructure, public health, education, and any others you can think of. Where are resources currently directed? What are the opportunity costs of using resources in this way? Is the current allocation of resources efficient? Could resources be better allocated? Support your claims with evidence and economic theory.
What responsibility do developed countries have in alleviating the strife caused by the appropriation of resources by political leaders in African countries? Is there any validity to the claim that citizens of poorer countries are exploited by individuals in developed countries who make deals with political leaders for the nation’s resources? Is there action that can be taken by developed countries to help alleviate the problem? Has such action ever been taken? Be sure to support your claims with evidence from valid sources.
What market imperfections exist in the allocation of resources in African countries? What steps could be taken to either remove or ease the imperfections to allow the market mechanisms to function efficiently?
Discuss how it is possible for countries to actually be “cursed” from natural resources?

Minimum Requirements

The paper will be 5-7 pages in length not counting the cover page or reference page.

APA format must be used. The paper will include a cover page, abstract, introduction, body, conclusion, and reference page.

The introduction must clearly identify your research question and the countries you are using to support your thesis.

While the paper will be written in narrative reporting form, it will address a set of issues related to an overall research question. Do not enumerate or bullet the questions or issues in list form. Include the information that addresses the questions and issues in the body of the paper.

Information should be summarized and paraphrased as much as possible. Direct quotes should be limited to ideas that cannot be expressed in words other than those used by the source. A good guideline is to have direct quotes represent no more than 5% of the paper, not including statistics and the reference page. Substantial points will be deducted if more than 8% of the paper is directly quoted, and the paper will not be accepted if more than 30% is directly quoted.

Scholarly sources and/or reputable news sources must be used to validate factual information and to support critical analysis. There must be at least three such scholarly sources and/or reputable news sources cited in addition to information that may be taken from the assigned readings and course text. Editorials, opinion pages, commentaries, and blogs that are posted at news media web pages are not to be used for this purpose (that is, to validate factual information and to support critical analysis). Sources must be recent (within the last 5 years).

Opinion pages such as those mentioned above and user-contributed websites may be used in addition to scholarly and reputable sources to demonstrate the viewpoint(s) of those potentially affected by policy, but may not be used to validate factual information.

Students are not limited to suggested resources; other reputable websites are also permitted. In evaluating a website, consider the credentials of the author of the article being cited. If there is any doubt the credibility of the source, check with your instructor.

Suggested Resources

List of Sub-Saharan Countries

http://www.loc.gov/rr/amed/guide/afr-countrylist.html

Background Articles

Delivering on the promise Leveraging natural resources to accelerate human development in Africa. (Gates Foundation and African Development Bank, 6/2015)

Overview: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/what-we-do/global-policy/natural-resources/

Report Summary: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/~/media/GFO/What-We-Do/Global_Policy_DPAF/Extractives-Report/Gates-AfDB-Natural-Resources-Summary-ENG081815.pdf

Full Report: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/~/media/GFO/What-We-Do/Global_Policy_DPAF/Extractives-Report/Gates-AfDB-Natural-Resources-Report-Print-ENG081815.pdf

Securing Africa’s Natural Resource to Avoid Conflict (Institute for Security Studies, 6/2013)

https://www.issafrica.org/iss-today/securing-africas-natural-resources-to-avoid-conflict

Africa’s Natural Resources: The Paradox of Plenty (African Bank, 2007)

http://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/Publications/(E)%20AfricanBank%202007%20Ch4.pdf

Analysis of issues shaping Africa’s economic future (World Bank, 4/2013)

http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/document/Africa/Report/Africas-Pulse-brochure_Vol7.pdf

Analysis of issues shaping Africa’s economic future (World Bank, 10/2013)

http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/document/Africa/Report/Africas-Pulse-brochure_Vol8.pdf

The Economy of Conflict in the Oil Rich Niger Delta Region of Nigeria (Nordic Journal of
African Studies, 2005) http://integritynigeria.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/ikelegbe_the_economy-of-Conflict.pdf
Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to

Fight Global Poverty Banerjee, Abhijit V. and Duflo, Esther (Public Affairs, 2011)

Books

Burgis, Tom. The Looting Machine: Warlords, Oligarchs, Corporations, Smugglers and the Theft of Africa Wealth. 2015. ISBN: 978-1610394390.
Chayes, Sarah. Thieves of State: Why Corruption Threatens Global Security. Especially Chapters 10 and 14. 2015. ISBN: 978-0393239461.
Bond, Patrick. Looting Africa: The Economics of Exploitation. 2006. ISBN: 978-1842778111.

Official Statistics and Country Profiles

World Bank's World Development Indicators

http://data.worldbank.org/indicator

International Monetary Fund profiles of countries (this link is to Angola, but once there you can select any country) http://www.imf.org/external/country/ago/
Poverty and Equity (Sub-Saharan Africa)

http://povertydata.worldbank.org/poverty/region/SSA

United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database

http://comtrade.un.org/db/

U.S. Department of State homepage (Country profiles the bottom right of the home page)

http://www.state.gov/

CIA's world fact book with country profiles

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/

Natural Resources Information

World Resources Institute (WRI) on Natural Resource Rights

http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/01/new-map-documents-natural-resource-rights-sub-saharan-africa

Interactive map for Natural Resources Rights for Sub-Saharan African Countries

http://www.wri.org/applications/maps/rights-to-resources/

National Geographic report on Africa’s resources

http://education.nationalgeographic.com/encyclopedia/africa-resources/

Rubric – 150 Points

CATEGORY	High- 24 to 30 Points	Middle- 18 to 23 Points	Low- 0 to 17 Points
Analysis and Economic Content	Writing reflects a sophisticated understanding of economic theories, concepts and main ideas of course materials. Information presented is clearly related to economic concepts and economic perspectives and applications are clearly identified.	Writing reflects a basic understanding of economic theories, concepts and main ideas of course materials. Information presented may be related to economic concepts but this relationship is not clearly identified and may not be apparent to the reader.	Writing does not reflect an understanding of economic theories, concepts and main ideas of course materials.
Scope and Compre-hension	Major thesis is clearly identified and presented with depth. Countries are clearly identified and described with enough detail to address the research question. Analysis and position regarding the research question is clear and demonstrates clear understanding of the issue and is well supported.	Major thesis is clearly identified and presented but may lack depth. Countries are identified and described but my not provide enough detail to address the research question well. Position regarding the research question is clear but analysis may not demonstrate clear understanding of the issue or may not be well supported.	Major thesis is not clearly presented. Countries may be identified but there is not enough detail to clearly relate them to the research question. Position regarding the research question may not be clearly communicated.
Creativity	Paper demonstrates original or innovative thinking. Writer communicates insight and perceptiveness in making connections. Paper begins with strong objective facts and then progresses to interpretation, application, and analysis.	Paper demonstrates some original or innovative thinking. Writer communicates some insight and perceptiveness in making connections. Paper tends more toward reporting without interpretation, application, or analysis.	Paper does not demonstrate original or innovative thinking. Writer does not communicate insight and perceptiveness in making connections. Paper is almost entirely reporting without interpretation, application, or analysis.
Clarity of Writing and Writing Technique	Writing is crisp, clear, and succinct. Sentence structure is effective and author paraphrases effectively and offers additional interpretation and perspective. Supporting references and examples are offered effectively. Paper is well-organized with effective segue. No spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors are made.	Writing is generally clear, unnecessary words may be used. Paragraph or sentence structure is repetitive or too similar to the source without additional interpretation or perspective. Supporting references and examples are not clearly tied to the thesis. Paper could be better organized. Few spellings, grammar, or punctuation errors are made.	Hard to understand, writing is disorganized or distracting. Information is too similar to the source without additional interpretation or perspective. Supporting references and examples are missing or weak. Paper is unorganized or organization is distracting. Paper contains misspelled words, incorrect grammar, and improper punctuation.
Citations/ References, APA format	Citations and paper follow APA format.	Citations are provided but do not follow APA format. Paper may follow some APA guidelines but lacks APA compliance in some places.	Citations do not provide enough information to identify sources. Paper does not follow APA format.
Use of Direct Quotes	10 point deduction if more than 8% of the paper is direct quotes (not including tables, charts, quantitative data, personal interviews, in-text citations, and reference page). Paper not accepted if more than 30) of the paper is direct quotes (not including tables, charts, quantitative data, personal interviews, in-text citations, and reference page)

Excellence System competency addressed with this required assessment: Global and Intercultural Competence.

Rubric:

Excellence System Competency: Global & Intercultural Competence Graduates understand that working and succeeding in an inclusive, multicultural, and international world involves complex issues present in diverse environments
Outcome	3 Mastered Create/Evaluate	2 Reinforced Apply/Analyze	1 Introduced Understand/Remember	0 Not exhibited by student
1. Evaluates and demonstrates culturally-appropriate behavior in diverse domestic and global contexts	Evaluates and constructs culturally-appropriate behavior in both, diverse domestic and global contexts	Interprets and examines culturally-appropriate behavior in diverse domestic and/or global contexts	Discusses and explains culturally-appropriate behavior in at least one context: diverse domestic or global context
2. Interprets issues and events from diverse domestic and global perspectives	Appraises social and cultural issues and formulates reasons why perspectives other than their own might exist on these issues in both, diverse domestic and global contexts	Examines social and cultural issues and illustrates why perspectives other than their own might exist on these issues in diverse domestic and/or global contexts	Lists social and cultural issues and explains why perspectives other than their own might exist on these issues in at least one context: diverse domestic or global context
3. Demonstrates an understanding of the dynamics of power, privilege and inequality and appropriate interventions/responses to bias in diverse domestic and global contexts	Evaluates the dynamics of power, privilege and inequality and constructs appropriate interventions/responses to bias in both, diverse domestic and global contexts	Demonstrates the dynamics of power, privilege and inequality and illustrates appropriate interventions/responses to bias in diverse domestic and/or global contexts	Explains the dynamics of power, privilege and inequality and identifies appropriate interventions/responses to bias in at least one context: diverse domestic or global context
4. Demonstrates awareness of personal culture and biases and how these influence interactions/relationships in diverse domestic and global contexts	Appraises personal culture and evaluates biases relating to gender, race, religion, social class, disability, age, or sexual orientation. Formulates how personal culture and biases influence interactions and relationships in both, diverse domestic and global contexts	Examines personal culture and questions biases relating to gender, race, religion, social class, disability, age, or sexual orientation. Demonstrates how personal culture and biases influence interactions and relationships in diverse domestic and/or global contexts	Recognizes personal culture and classifies biases relating to gender, race, religion, social class, disability, age, or sexual orientation. Explains how personal culture and biases influence interactions and relationships in at least one context: diverse domestic or global context
5. Demonstrates an ability to interact successfully with people from diverse domestic and global perspectives	Appraises the complexity of elements of another culture in relation to its history, values, politics, communication styles, economy, or beliefs and practices in order to develop shared understanding and to suspend judgment in valuing her/his interactions with culturally different others from both, diverse domestic and global perspectives	Examines the complexity of elements of another culture in relation to its history, values, politics, communication styles, economy, or beliefs and practices in order to employ a shared understanding and to suspend judgment in valuing her/his interactions with culturally different others from diverse domestic and/or global perspectives	Describes the complexity of elements of another culture in relation to its history, values, politics, communication styles, economy, or beliefs and practices in order to identify a shared understanding and to suspend judgment in valuing her/his interactions with culturally different others from at least one perspective, diverse domestic or global
6. Understands and examines differing value systems to determine appropriate courses of action and decision making in the diverse work environment and the domestic and global community	Evaluates differing cultural value systems and designs appropriate actions and decisions in the diverse work environment in both, domestic and global communities	Interprets differing cultural value systems and chooses appropriate actions and decisions in the diverse work environment in domestic and/or global communities	Explains differing cultural value systems and identifies appropriate actions and decisions in the diverse work environment in at least one context, domestic or global

Due date is on or before April 20th, 2016 at the start of class. Once class starts on that day the paper is late. I prefer the paper to be sent electronically as a Word file attached to email, however, I will accept a hard copy, however, I do not want the paper placed in a folder. The paper must be stapled, no paper clips. To discourage the use of folders, if you place your paper in any type of folder the grade will be reduced by 5 points. Folders are non-economic, they use up resources, the add weight and they don’t improve the content.

If the paper is late the score will immediately be reduced by 20 points. After the next class meeting the paper will not be accepted and the grade for the paper will be 0 (zero).