ABSTRACT
Without doubt, one of the most striking features in the African countries since their independence around the 1960s is the burgeoning of the public sectors of their economies, either through the nationalisation of foreign investments or the establishment of new enterprises by state agencies, and frequently a combination of both. The expansion of the public sector has taken place in countries which claim to be aiming at a socialist development and those which are committed to a capitalist development. Unfortunately, despite considerable experience with public enterprises in these countries, no clear theory which explains their establishment or operation has emerged. In so far as there is a legal theory, it is based on the institutional features which determined the form of public enterprises in Britain. A fundamental characteristic of this form is a careful balance between the control by the government of the policy of the enterprises and the operational autonomy of the enterprise, vested in its management. Restatements of this balance are made frequently and ritually in African countries, especially when a new enterprise is being established, and whether the country aspires to socialist or capitalist development. This balance is reflected in the legislation and institutions of the public sector, whether it is a public corporation or a company.
