The belief that lack of "good governance" might be the main hindrance to economic growth in Africa was firmly set in the minds of the international community following a World Bank report in 1989. Rarely recognised is that the inspiration came from African scholars and that the current use of the concept diverges significantly from their own original understanding, writes Thandika Mkandawire. Director of UNRISD. "For the African contributors, good governance related to the larger issues of state-society relations and not just to the technocratic transparency-accountability mode it eventually assumed in the international financial institutions."