History, Path Dependence and Development: Evidence from Colonial Railroads, Settlers and Cities in Kenya

Remi Jedwab, Edward Kerby and Alexander Moradi

No 2014-04, CSAE Working Paper Series from Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford

Abstract: Little is known about the extent and forces of urban path dependence in developing countries. Railroad construction in colonial Kenya provides a natural experiment to study the emergence and persistence of this spatial equilibrium. Using new data at a fine spatial level over one century shows that colonial railroads causally determined the location of European settlers, which in turn decided the location of the main cities of the country at independence. Railroads declined and settlers left after independence, yet cities persisted. Their early emergence served as a mechanism to coordinate investments in the post-independence period, yielding evidence for how path dependence influences development.

Keywords: Path Dependence; Urbanisation; Transportation; Colonialism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N97 O18 O33 R11 R12 R40 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-geo, nep-his, nep-tre and nep-ure
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (14)

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Working Paper: History, Path Dependence and Development: Evidence from Colonial Railroads, Settlers and Cities in Kenya (2014)
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