ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the theoretical basis of structural adjustment programmes (SAPs), examines how SAPs have been implemented in Africa, and discusses their results in the light of the expectations based on theory. SAPs recommend reliance on the free interplay of market forces for allocation of resources and distribution of income. SAPs packages seem to subscribe to the position that “the business of government is not business” and so recommends the withdrawal of government from economic activities. For Uganda, SAPs brought social benefits and many lessons could be learnt from the Afican experiences with SAPs. Monetarists seem to suggest that workers should share the blame with governments for the economic crisis. They argue that the inflation that results from excessive monetary expansion makes workers and other income groups demand higher wages which reduce profit levels and the incentive to invest.
