5 Summary of Session 3

Local content and localisation are seen as important ways in which natural resource-producing countries can avoid the resource curse. The theory behind these policies and corporate initiatives is based around the experiences of some leading economies that kick-started their industrialisation on the back of natural resources; that is, they did not suffer the resource curse. The key was the development of linkages from the natural resources sectors so that ‘one thing leads to another’. You looked at various ways that linkages can be created, but crucial among these is a favourable policy environment. Using Ghana as a case study you looked at linkage development and the moves the Ghanaian government have put in place to encourage benefits from oil revenue and local content. The laws are seen to be well-meaning and conform to international good practice, but the implementation and realisation of these laws has been patchy. This shows that no matter how ‘good’ the legislation is, politics and institutional capacity can undermine the aims of such legal frameworks. The politics of oil have been central to Sudan’s recent development to which you’ll now turn.

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