Time and again, African leaders have rejected the European colonial legacy as a paradigm for economic development and have pursued various, often nationalistic programs deemed to be uniquely African. But no successful examples deserving of emulation have emerged, as some have failed more miserably than others. There have, of course, been hybrid Africanized-European paradigms: African versions of Marxist humanism, of socialism, of central planning. Then there are the Hitleresque or Stalinesque strongman dictatorships. There have even been examples of lackluster British and French-style parliamentary wrangling. Each of these has typically ended at the same point: stagnating or declining living standards for the population...