PUBLICATIONS

@article{Asongu_601,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs13132-012-0137-0},
doi = {10.1007%2Fs13132-012-0137-0},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-12-01},
journal = {Journal of the Knowledge Economy},
volume = {6},
number = {4},
pages = {682-703},
abstract = {In the current efforts toward harmonizing intellectual property rights (IPRs) regimes in the African continent, this paper provides answers to four key questions relevant in the policy decision-making processes. After empirically examining the questions, the following findings are established. (1) In comparison to common law countries, civil law countries inherently have a significant autonomous rate of software piracy; consistent with the “law and property rights” theory. (2) But for IPRs laws, the other intellectual property (IP) protection channels (World Intellectual Property Organization treaties, main IP law, and multilateral treaties) reduce the incidence of software piracy. (3) In both short-run and long-term, IPRs protection channels in civil law countries appear to mitigate software piracy more than in common law countries. (4) Formal institutions are instrumental in the fight against software piracy through IPRs protection channels.},
keywords = {Africa, Intellectual property rights, Panel data, Software piracy},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_615,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13132-015-0322-z},
doi = {10.1007/s13132-015-0322-z},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-10-01},
journal = {Journal of the Knowledge Economy},
pages = {1-55},
abstract = {Using 25 policy variables, this study investigates determinants of mobile phone/banking in 49 sub-Saharan African countries with data for the year 2011. The determinants are classified into six policy categories, notably macroeconomic, business/bank, market-related, knowledge economy, external flows and human development. The empirical evidence is based on contemporary and non-contemporary quantile regressions. The following implications are relevant to the findings. First, mobile phone penetration is positively correlated with (i) education, domestic savings, regulation quality and patent applications, especially at low initial levels of mobile penetration; (ii) bank density; (iii) urban population density and (iv) internet penetration. Second, the use of the mobile to pay bills is positively linked with (i) trade and internet penetration, especially in contemporary specifications and (ii) remittances and patent applications, especially at low initial levels of the dependent variable. Third, using the mobile to send/receive money is positively correlated with internet penetration and human development, especially in the contemporary specifications. Fourth, mobile banking is positively linked with (i) trade in contemporary specifications, (ii) remittances and patent applications at low initial levels of the dependent variable and (iii) internet penetration and human development, with contemporary threshold evidence. The policy implications are articulated with incremental policy syndromes.},
keywords = {Africa, Development, Mobile banking, Mobile phones},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_616,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13132-015-0321-0},
doi = {10.1007/s13132-015-0321-0},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-10-01},
journal = {Journal of the Knowledge Economy},
pages = {1-43},
abstract = {Africa’s overall knowledge index fell between 2000 and 2009. South Korea’s economic miracle is largely due to a knowledge-based development strategy that holds valuable lessons for African countries in their current pursuit towards knowledge economies. Using updated data (1996–2010), this paper presents fresh South Korean lessons to Africa by assessing the knowledge economy (KE) gaps, deriving policy syndromes, and providing catch-up strategies. The 53 peripheral African countries are decomposed into fundamental characteristics of wealth, legal origins, regional proximity, oil-exporting, political stability, and landlockedness. The World Bank’s four KE components are used: education, innovation, information and communication technology (ICT), and economic incentives and institutional regime. Absolute beta and sigma convergence techniques are employed as empirical strategies. With the exception of ICT for which catch-up is not very apparent, in increasing order, it is visible in innovation, economic incentives, education, and institutional regime. The speed of catch-up varies between 8.66 and 30.00 % per annum with respective time to full or 100 % catch-up of 34.64 and 10 years. Based on the trends and dynamics in the KE gaps, policy syndromes and compelling catch-up strategies are discussed. Issues standing on the way to KE in Africa are dissected with great acuteness before South Korean relevant solutions are provided to both scholars and firms. The paper is original in its provision of practical policy initiatives drawn from the Korean experience to African countries embarking on a transition to KE.},
keywords = {Africa, Catch-up, Knowledge economy, South Korea},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_620,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/AJEMS-12-2012-0083},
doi = {10.1108/AJEMS-12-2012-0083},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-09-01},
journal = {African Journal of Economic and Management Studies},
volume = {6},
number = {3},
pages = {225-250},
abstract = {Purpose
– The generation is witnessing the greatest demographic transition and Africa is at the heart of it. There is mounting concern over corresponding rising unemployment and depleting per capita income. The purpose of this paper is to examine the issues from a long-run perspective by assessing the relationships between population growth and a plethora of investment dynamics: public, private, foreign and domestic investments.

Design/methodology/approach
– Vector autoregressive models in the perspectives of vector error correction and short-run Granger causality are used.

Findings
– In the long-run population growth will: first, decrease foreign and public investments in Ivory Coast; second, increase public and private investments in Swaziland; three, deplete public investment but augment domestic investment in Zambia; fourth diminish private investment and improve domestic investment in the Congo Republic and Sudan, respectively.

Practical implications
– Mainstream positive linkage of population growth to investment growth in the long-term should be treated with extreme caution. Policy orientation should not be blanket, but contingent on country-specific trends and tailored differently across countries. The findings stress the need for the creation of a conducive investment climate (and ease of doing business) for private and foreign investments. Family planning and birth control policies could also be considered in countries with little future investment avenues.

Originality/value
– The objective of this study is to provide policy makers with some insights on how future investment opportunities could help manage rising population growth and corresponding unemployment.},
keywords = {Africa, Causality, Human Capital, investment, Productivity},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_639,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs13132-015-0273-4},
doi = {10.1007%2Fs13132-015-0273-4},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-07-11},
journal = {Journal of the Knowledge Economy},
abstract = {The paper complements the scarce literature on knowledge economy (KE) in Africa by comparing KE dynamics within Africa in order to assess best and worst performers based on fundamental characteristics of the continent’s development. The five dimensions of the World Bank’s Knowledge Economy Index (KEI) are employed, notably education, information and communication technology, innovation, economic incentives, and institutional regime. The empirical evidence is based on a five-step novel approach with data from 53 African countries for the period 1996–2010. Limitations of the beta catch-up approach are complemented with the sigma convergence strategy. Based on the determined fundamental characteristics, computed dynamic benchmarks, policy syndromes, and syndrome-free scenarios, we establish that landlocked, low-income, conflict-affected, Sub-Saharan African, nonoil-exporting, and French civil law countries are generally more predisposed to lower levels of KE, whereas English common law, openness to sea, absence of conflicts, North African, and middle-income countries are characteristics that predispose certain nations to higher KE. Broad and specific policy implications are discussed in detail.},
keywords = {Africa, Benchmarks, Catch-up, Knowledge economy, Policy syndromes},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_640,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13132-015-0268-1},
doi = {10.1007/s13132-015-0268-1},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-07-01},
journal = {Journal of the Knowledge Economy},
abstract = {This paper examines how Africa’s share in the contribution to global scientific knowledge can be boosted with existing intellectual property rights (IPRs) mechanisms. The findings which broadly indicate that tight IPRs are correlated with knowledge contribution can be summarized in two main points. First, the enshrinement of IPRs laws in a country’s constitution is a good condition for knowledge economy. Secondly, while main intellectual property (IP) laws, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) treaties, and bilateral treaties are positively correlated with scientific publications, the IPRs law channels have a negative correlation. Whereas the study remains expositional, it does however offer interesting insights into the need for IPRs in the promotion of knowledge contribution within sampled countries of the continent. Other policy implications are discussed.},
keywords = {Africa, governance, Intellectual property rights, Publications},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_641,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/IJSE-11-2012-0228},
doi = {10.1108/IJSE-11-2012-0228},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-07-01},
journal = {International Journal of Social Economics},
volume = {42},
number = {8},
pages = {706 - 716},
abstract = {Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to complement theoretical and qualitative literature with empirical evidence on the income-redistributive effect of mobile phone penetration in 52 African countries.

Design/methodology/approach
– Robust ordinary least squares and two stage least squares empirical strategies are employed.

Findings
– The findings suggest that mobile penetration is pro-poor, as it has a positive income equality effect.

Social implications
– “Mobile phone”-oriented poverty reduction channels are discussed.

Originality/value
– It deviates from mainstream country-specific and microeconomic survey-based approaches in the literature and provides the first macroeconomic assessment of the “mobile phone”-inequality nexus.},
keywords = {Africa, Inequality, Mobile phones, Poverty, Shadow economy},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_642,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/IJSE-12-2013-0287},
doi = {10.1108/IJSE-12-2013-0287},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-07-01},
journal = {International Journal of Social Economics},
volume = {42},
number = {7},
pages = {666 - 686},
abstract = {Purpose
– How do economic prosperity, health expenditure, savings, price-stability, demographic change, democracy, corruption control, press freedom, government effectiveness, human development, foreign aid, physical security, trade openness and financial liberalization play-out in the fight against health-worker crisis when existing emigration levels matter? Despite the acute concern of health-worker crisis in Africa owing to emigration, lack of relevant data has made the subject matter empirically void over the last decades. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach
– A quantile regression approach is used to assess the determinants of health-worker emigration throughout the conditional distributions of health-worker emigration. This provides an assessment of the determinants when existing emigrations levels matter.

Findings
– Findings provide a broad range of tools for the fight against health-worker brain-drain. As a policy implication, blanket emigration-control policies are unlikely to succeed equally across countries with different levels of emigration. Thus to be effective, immigration policies should be contingent on the prevailing levels of the crisis and tailored differently across countries with the best and worst records on fighting health-worker emigration.

Originality/value
– This paper has examined the theoretical postulations of a World Health Organization report on determinants of health-worker migration.},
keywords = {Africa, Health, Human Capital, Migration, Wealth},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{Asongu_643,
author = {Simplice A Asongu},
url = {http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/IJSE-12-2013-0286?journalCode=ijse},
doi = {10.1108/IJSE-12-2013-0286},
year = {2015},
date = {2015-06-01},
journal = {International Journal of Social Economics},
volume = {42},
number = {6},
pages = {543-565},
abstract = {Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to integrate two main strands of the aid-development nexus in assessing whether institutional thresholds matter in the effectiveness of foreign-aid on institutional development in 53 African countries over the period 1996-2010.

Design/methodology/approach
– The panel quantile regression technique enables us to investigate if the relationship between institutional dynamics and development assistance differs throughout the distributions of institutional dynamics. Eight government quality indicators are employed: rule of law, regulation quality, government effectiveness, corruption, voice and accountability, control of corruption, political stability and democracy.

Findings
– Three hypotheses are tested and the following findings are established: first, institutional benefits of foreign-aid are contingent on existing institutional levels in Africa; second, but for a thin exception (democracy), foreign-aid is more negatively correlated with countries of higher institutional quality than with those of lower quality; third, the institutional benefits of foreign-aid are not questionable until greater domestic institutional development has taken place. The reverse is true instead. government quality benefits of development assistance are questionable in African countries irrespective of prevailing institutional quality levels.

Originality/value
– This paper contributes to existing literature on the effectiveness of foreign-aid by focussing on the distribution of the dependent variables (institutional dynamics). It is likely that best and worst countries in terms of institutions respond differently to development assistance.},
keywords = {Africa, Development, Foreign aid, Political economy},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}