Although CODESRIA has, since its founding, maintained a tradition of studying African and global economic problems – indeed, the institution was initially known as the Council for the Development of Social and Economic Research in Africa before a decision was made to re-name it Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa - it was still considered appropriate to launch a specific programme dedicated exclusively to focusing attention on Africa’s economic condition. This was all the more so as the continent appeared to be caught in a state of permanent economic crises which, moreover, seemed to defy all the solutions that were applied. Thus it was that in 1997, a programme for the advancement of research on African economies and for the renewal of development-oriented economic traditions in Africa was launched. This way, the Council also hopes to stimulate African economic research and debates on the trends in Economics and in the economies of the countries of the continent. Furthermore, through the programme, CODESRIA is intent on fostering the development of a new generation of African economists capable of producing internationally competitive knowledge that is both responsive to African conditions and needs, as well as to the requirements of different African policy communities for variety in the options and choices available to them. Underpinning the CODESRIA initiative is the assumption that the economy cannot be studied separately and independently from social and political questions. Thus, the programme combines the critical reflection on the economy, politics and society that characterised the first generation of economic research at CODESRIA with the conceptual and methodological puzzles associated with the challenges of re-thinking African development to lay the foundations for a new tradition of economic research in Africa.