ICT and Economic Growth in WAEMU’s Countries: An Econometric Analysis

- 30 December 2020

Trade topics: Information and Communication Technologies, WAEMU

Considered as the main source of economic growth in the United States of America and other northern countries, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are seen as a key factor that can boost Africa’s development. They have proved to be very indispensable in recent years and especially in the management of the health crisis linked to the Coronavirus pandemic. That is why this paper has been set out to analyze their effects on economic growth. The originality of this paper lies on the one hand in the consideration of ICTs as endogenous variables and on the other hand in the econometric technique used. The estimates indicate three main results: (i) ICTs have a marginal, positive and significant influence on economic growth; (ii) ICT components do not individually influence economic growth. Their effect is only perceptible when they are grouped or semi-grouped; (iii) unlike ordinary goods and services, whose imports unbalance the trade balance, imports of ICT goods and services positively influence economic growth in WAEMU countries. These technologies are therefore intermediate goods and thus gross fixed capital formation, the wear and tear of which benefits national production. These results could improve if the countries under consideration develop ICT hardware producing sectors.

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