ECON-AD 213J | Class 5 Reflection: The consultancy culture

There was a heated discussion during class today about the Mamdani’s article, The Importance of Research in a University. He argues that the problem with African higher education today is that it applies Western curricula, whether it is in the humanities or in the social sciences, on every academic sphere of African life. It produces, therefore, a “consultancy culture” that does not look deeply into problems but rather focus on the toolkit with which to answer questions that are accepted without prejudice. “The moral of the story” Mamdani writes, “is that diagnosis is more important than prescription. Research is diagnosis.” That is why the Gates Foundation spent millions of dollars to eradicate malaria without first considering what role malaria plays in the broader ecosystem. The article moved me especially because I am considering management consulting as a career after graduation. In my defense, I think Mamdani has a skewed perception of what consultants do. The ones who do their jobs well do not only accept the client’s proposal at face value, but investigates the firm as a whole to identify the key areas for improvement. There is in fact a rigorous research process in place for consultants to ask the right questions before offering any recommendations.

We also talked about Africa’s contemporary political economy, particularly its peripheral role in the global economy. In Chapter 23 of The Struggle for Africa, Meredith makes it clear that the Big Man curse in African politics has caused the continent to lag behind other industrializing economies in the East, where “one-party democracies” such as Singapore and China yielded positive results. Meritocracy appears to be the answer: by rewarding public servants for their civic contributions, corruption is discouraged and people are motivated to perform better. That is also the motivation behind the Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, which compensates African heads of state who are elected through fair procedures, serve their constitutionally mandated term, and demonstrate strong leadership. The results, however, were unexpected. Due to high receipts from foreign aid every year, African dictators had better incentives to maintain their power for longer terms than the $2 million payout that the award offered. In Singapore and China, for example, no such foreign aid receipts flow in which can pull away otherwise honest politicians from performing their duties.