Berg report

It also responds to a set of policies determined by African Chiefs of State in 1980, called the Lagos Plan of Action.

It details several policy recommendations in its plan for action, including “(1) more suitable trade and exchange-rate policies; (2) increased efficiency of resource use in the public sector; and (3) improvement in agriculture policies.”[1] In terms of trade and exchange-rate policies, the report recommends liberalizations including “correction of overvalued exchange rates […]; improved price incentives for exports and for agriculture; lower and more uniform protection for industry; and reduced use of direct controls.”[2] For efficient resource usage, the Berg report identifies government and parastatal agencies as being overextended, and suggests streamlining public services, in part by allowing a greater share of these to be provided by the private sector.

In the area of agriculture, they propose promoting export of cash crops by reducing taxes and other unfavorable terms of trade, as well as making domestic food markets more efficient by loosening regulation and increasing the role of the private sector in inputs (such as fertilizer) and in marketing foodstuffs (e.g. deregulating food prices).

[3] The report concludes with a strong appeal to international aid organizations to support African governments as they shift towards the policies of economic liberalization recommended by the World Bank.

The report makes specific recommendations to donors, stating, “The level and pattern of donor assistance to a country must be determined in the framework of programs of action prepared by individual governments, which address the critical development policy issues outlined in this Report.”[5] Explicitly advocating for “policy action and foreign assistance that are mutually reinforcing,” the report reinforces its own recommendations by leveraging loan and aid money.