1. Nathan Nunn Diego Puga Presented By: Ian Hughes

2.  Nathan Nunn  Department of Economics – Harvard University  Diego Puga  Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Dep. Economia

3. ISSUE: WHY ARE RUGGED COUNTRIES BETTER OFF IN AFRICA?  Rugged terrain tends to hinder economic development  Nations with rugged terrain don’t tend to perform well compared to flatter countries

4. HYPOTHESIS: RUGGED TERRAIN HINDERED SLAVE TRADERS, HELPING FUTURE GROWTH  Slave trade decimated entire regions of Africa from the 1400s to the 1800s  Societies were disrupted, fragmented  Led to slower economic progress  Areas with rugged terrain provided more protection from raiders

5.  1996 US Geological Survey  Measured elevation differences between hundreds of points in each country to determine overall ruggedness

6.  The resource curse  Tropical diseases  Soil quality  Overweighting outliers  Colonial rule

7.  Not all regions of Africa were equally affected by the slave trade  Ruggedness did not benefit Northern Africa  Was most beneficial in Western Africa

8.  Average per capita income in areas affected by slave trade: $ 1,784  In areas untouched by the slave trade: $ 4,419  Difference:$ 2,635  A single standard deviation in ruggedness increases per capita income by approximately $747

9.  Current governments in Africa are influenced by past damage from the slave trade  Magnitude of effects is difficult to quantify