Professor Steve Onyeiwu

Allegheny College

Bio

Steve Onyeiwu is a tenured full Professor, former department chair and current holder of the Andrew Wells Robertson Endowed Chair in Economics at Allegheny College, Meadville, Pennsylvania. He is a development economist that focuses on African development, international political economy and economics of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). He is the author of the book "Emerging Issues in Contemporary African Economies," (Palgrave-Macmillan, 2024). He was a Fulbright Visiting Scholar at Covenant University, Nigeria.

Thinking Outside the Box: How Rwanda and Tanzania are Using Industrial Policy to Foster Structural Transformation.

Abstract

This paper discusses how Rwanda and Tanzania have pivoted from the classic Import-Substitution Industrialization (ISI) strategy, to strategies that build on their respective dynamic and static comparative advantages. While Rwanda has sought to develop dynamic comparative advantage in knowledge and technology, Tanzania has focused on leveraging its static comparative advantage in natural resources and minerals. In both strategies, the goal is to achieve international competitiveness and foster structural transformation, contrary to their previous ISI strategy.