Research and policy work on Africa
I have been interested in African finance since the early 2000s, when few data were available for African financial systems. During and after my World Bank time, I have done extensive policy work across the continent and co-authored several policy reports. More recently, I have become interested in cross-border cooperation between regulators, reflecting the increasingly regional and global nature of African finance.
Trade Credit and Access to Finance: Evidence from Ethiopian Retailers, with Mohammad Hoseini and Burak Uras, Journal of African Economies 29, 146-172, 2020.
Finance and Demand for Skill: Evidence from Uganda, joint with Mikael Homanen and Burak Uras, Journal of Development Studies 12, 2495-2512, 2019
Payment instruments, finance and development, with Haki Pamuk, Ravi Ramrattan and Burak Uras, Journal of Development Economics 133, 162-186, 2018
Entrepreneurial Savings Practices and Reinvestment: Theory and Evidence, with Haki Pumak and Burak Uras, Review of Development Economics 21, 1205-28, 2017.
Financial inclusion in Africa, prepared for AERC Senior Policy Seminar in March 2016 in Nairobi
Cross-Border Banking and Financial Deepening: The African Experience, Journal of African Economies 24, i32-i45, 2015.
SME Finance in Africa, with Robert Cull, Journal of African Economies 23, 583-613, 2014.
Making Cross-Border Banking Work for Africa (joint with Michael Fuchs, Dorothe Singer and Makaio Witte), June 2014.
Banking in Africa (joint with Bob Cull), prepared for 2nd Edition of Oxford Handbook of Banking
Financing Africa - Through the Crisis and Beyond, (joint with Samuel Maimbo, Issa Faye and Thouraya Triki), World Bank: Washington DC. 2011. Datasets
Finance in Africa: Achievements and Challenges, with M. Fuchs and M. Uy, in: World Bank, African Development Bank and World Economic Forum, 2009 (Eds.): African Competitiveness Report
Making Finance Work for Africa, with P. Honohan, World Bank, Washington, February 2007.
Gender and Finance in Sub-Saharan Africa: Are Women Disadvantaged?, with Reyes Aterido and Leonardo Iacovone, World Development 47, 102-120.
Banking Sector Stability, Efficiency and Outreach in Kenya, joint with Robert Cull, Michael Fuchs, Jared Getenga, Peter Gatere, John Randa, and Mircea Trandafir, in: Christopher Adam, Paul Collier and Njuguna Ndung'u (Eds.): Kenya: Policies for Prosperity, 2010.
Bank Efficiency, Ownership and Market Structure: Why are Interest Spreads so High in Uganda?, with H. Hesse. Journal of Development Economics, 88(2), 192-204, 2009.
Bank Privatization and Performance: Empirical Evidence from Nigeria, with R. Cull and A. Jerome, Journal of Banking and Finance 29, August-September 2005, pp. 2355-2379.
Structural Issues in the Kenyan Financial System: Improving Competition and Access, with M. Fuchs, July 2004.