Are Africa's Oil Resources a Curse?

The oil industry is booming in various African countries, yet in places such as Nigeria, Angola and Sudan oil wealth has not benefited the country as a whole. Since the end of its long civil war, Angola has become the second largest producer of oil on the continent, yet some 70 percent of its people live in poverty and not much of its infrastructure has been rebuilt. Hugh McCullum, writing in in At Issue Ezine looks at whether "the 'curse of oil' be halted [and] be prevented in newly developing producers like Chad and São Tomé and Príncipe?" particularly "as the US and China focus on Africa to feed their energy needs." Read more...