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Contract Flexibility and Dispute Resolution in African Manufacturing

Author

Listed:
  • Arne Bigsten
  • Paul Collier
  • Stefan Dercon
  • Marcel Fafchamps
  • Bernard Gauthier
  • Jan Willem Gunning
  • Abena Oduro
  • Remco Oostendorp
  • Cathy Patillo
  • Måns Söderbom
  • Francis Teal
  • Albert Zeufack
Abstract
This paper examines the contractual practices of African manufacturing firms using survey data collected in Burundi, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Descriptive statistics and econometric results are presented. They show that contractual flexibility is pervasive and that relational contracting is the norm between manufacturers, their suppliers, and their clients. The existence of long-term relations between firms helps them deal with contract non-performance through negotiation. Confrontational methods such as lawyers and courts are used only by large firms and when negotiations fail. Whenever confrontation can be avoided, business is resumed. Of the six studied countries, incidence of breach and the use of lawyers and courts are highest in Zimbabwe which is also the country with legal institutions that best support business. Our favored interpretation is that good legal institutions incite firms to take more chances, thereby encouraging trade and leading to more cases of breach and more recourse to courts and lawyers. A high frequency of contract non-compliance should thus not be interpreted as a sign of imperfect legal institutions.

Suggested Citation

  • Arne Bigsten & Paul Collier & Stefan Dercon & Marcel Fafchamps & Bernard Gauthier & Jan Willem Gunning & Abena Oduro & Remco Oostendorp & Cathy Patillo & Måns Söderbom & Francis Teal & Albert Zeufack, 1999. "Contract Flexibility and Dispute Resolution in African Manufacturing," CSAE Working Paper Series 1999-20, Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford.
    • Handle: RePEc:csa:wpaper:1999-20
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    File URL: https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:30edb00a-f2dc-4063-97bf-35753078a2ac
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Abhijit V. Banerjee & Esther Duflo, 2000. "Reputation Effects and the Limits of Contracting: A Study of the Indian Software Industry," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 115(3), pages 989-1017.
    2. Fafchamps, Marcel & Minten, Bart, 2001. "Property Rights in a Flea Market Economy," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 49(2), pages 229-67, January.
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    1. Arne Bigsten & Paul Collier & Stefan Dercon & Marcel Fafchamps & Bernard Gauthier & Jan Willem Gunning & Abena Oduro & Remco Oostendorp & Cathy Patillo & Måns Soderbom & Francis Teal & Albert Zeufack, 2000. "Contract flexibility and dispute resolution in African manufacturing," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(4), pages 1-37.

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