An African Miracle: State and Class Leadership and Colonial Legacy in Botswana Development

Afro-pessimism has dominated the Africanist literature in the social sciences during the last twenty years. Many works characterized as such deal with what has gone wrong in Africa. In sharp contrast, An African Miracle shows how an African state and its people used their resources to remain free from the dictates of racist South Africa, achieving a high rate of economic growth while maintaining a solid commitment to democracy. The book examines the relationship between the dominant class in Botswana, its leadership, and the state in understanding why Botswana succeeded where other African states with more resources and talent failed.