ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the development experience of the continent. This is followed by a discussion on the responses of the international community. The chapter focuses on the response of Africans themselves, in particular from the Lagos Plan of action (LPA) to the latest New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD). In April 1980, the Monrovia strategy was translated into the Lagos LPA, adopted at the special session of the organization of African Unity (OAU) Conference of the Heads of State and Government held in Lagos, Nigeria. NEPAD thus includes MAP's major ideas, notably in its overall historical analysis, the omega Plan's operational proposals and a certain broadening of the priority sectors for action. The experience of African countries in promoting development has led some to characterize it as development breakdown or as a development crisis. The chapter looks at the prospects for Africa's future development.
