Colonial legacies and economic growth

Much of the work on colonialism has been theoretical or anecdotal. In this paper, I close the gap between the literature on development and new growth theory by testing the effect of colonization on subsequent growth and deve lopment. In a sample of 63 ex-colonial states from 1961-1990, I find that c olonies that were held for longer periods of time than other countries tend to perform better, on average, after independence. Finally, I show that th e level of education at the time of independence can help to explain much o f the development gap between the former British and French colonies in Afr ica.