Technology, skills and industrial development in Africa
What a study of African economies suggests about considering technology and skills together.
Read the noteMacroeconomics · Finance · Development
Research. Evidence. Impact.
I’m Musa Olanrewaju Oduola, a macroeconomic, financial and development economist with a focus on Sub-Saharan Africa.
I use firm- and macro-level data to study finance, technology, trade and industrial development. My work connects empirical evidence with questions about economic policy and inclusive growth.
Alongside research, I teach at the University of Lagos Distance Learning Institute.
From my research
Research notes
01 / Research interests
What helps firms
and economies grow?
My work connects firm-level evidence with wider questions about trade, productivity and development.
01
Finance & exports
How access to finance and financial constraints shape manufacturing firms’ ability to sell beyond their home markets.
Financial access Export participation
02
Technology & productivity
How digital technology, innovation and human capital work together to influence productivity and industrial competitiveness.
ICT adoption Human capital
03
Institutions & development
How institutions and investment shape industrialisation, alongside wider work on financial inclusion, inequality and energy poverty.
Institutional quality Industrialisation
02 / Publications
Selected publications
2025
The interplay between technological innovation and human capital development in driving industrial productivity and competitiveness in Africa (opens in a new tab)
Journal of Economics and Development · 27(1), 56–71
Read paperResearch summary
This paper examines how technological innovation and human capital development interact to shape industrial productivity and competitiveness in Africa. The findings suggest that technology and skills work together: human capital strengthens the contribution of technological innovation. The study points to the value of coordinating investment in technology with education and skills development.
Citation
Awode, S. S., and Oduola, M. O. (2025). The interplay between technological innovation and human capital development in driving industrial productivity and competitiveness in Africa. Journal of Economics and Development · 27(1), 56–71. https://doi.org/10.1108/JED-03-2024-0079
2024
Income inequality and carbon dioxide (CO2) in sub-Saharan Africa countries: the moderating role of financial inclusion and institutional quality (opens in a new tab)
Environment, Development and Sustainability · 26(7), 18385–18409
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This paper investigates how income inequality relates to carbon emissions in sub-Saharan Africa and whether financial inclusion and institutional quality modify that relationship. The findings indicate a nonlinear association between inequality and emissions. Inequality remains positively associated with emissions when interacted with financial inclusion, while stronger institutions temper the relationship, highlighting the role of governance in environmental policy.
Citation
Ogede, J. S., Oduola, M. O., and Tiamiyu, H. O. (2024). Income inequality and carbon dioxide (CO2) in sub-Saharan Africa countries: the moderating role of financial inclusion and institutional quality. Environment, Development and Sustainability · 26(7), 18385–18409. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-023-03393-9
2022
Foreign direct investment, institution and industrialisation in Sub-Saharan Africa (opens in a new tab)
Economic Change and Restructuring · 55(2), 577–606
Read paperResearch summary
This paper examines whether institutional quality shapes the relationship between foreign direct investment and industrialisation in sub-Saharan Africa. The analysis finds that industrialisation is persistent and that foreign investment is negatively associated with manufacturing development. Only the political dimension of institutional quality offsets this negative relationship, with a small effect, supporting reforms across economic, political and institutional governance.
Citation
Oduola, M., Bello, M. O., and Popoola, R. (2022). Foreign direct investment, institution and industrialisation in Sub-Saharan Africa. Economic Change and Restructuring · 55(2), 577–606. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10644-021-09322-y