The Gold Quandary: Is It a Resource Curse for Africa?

Abstract

This paper aims to examine the effect of gold exports on GDP per capita in Africa, thereby contributing to the controversial resource curse debate. In total, three regressions were performed: a simple regression, a multiple regression, and a second multiple regression to examine potential secondary effects of gold exports. The statistically significant results implied that gold exports are positively correlated with economic growth among select African countries, hence hinting against the existence of a resource curse, at least in the gold mining industry. These findings, while not completely overarching, may have important implications for governments and policy makers around the world.