For a long time, economic research on Africa was not seen as a profitable venture
intellectually or professionally-few researchers in top-ranked institutions around the world
chose to become experts in the field. This was understandable: the reputation of Africa-
centered economic research was not enhanced by the well-known limitations of economic
data across the continent. Moreover, development economics itself was not always
fashionable, and the broader discipline of economics has had its ups and downs, and has …