Governing African oil and gas: Boom-era political and institutional innovation

This paper introduces a special issue titled ‘Governing African Oil and Gas: Boom-Era Political and Institutional Innovation’. The special issue comprises 11 papers which investigate political and institutional innovation during the continent's 2004–2014 boom period. This is explored across state and non-state actors and in the local, national and transnational realms to chart creative engagements with the opportunities and constraints afforded by the resource boom. The special issue covers changes in regulatory frameworks, civil society mobilization, institutional goals and corporate policy. This introductory paper interrogates the major themes covered in this special issue and simultaneously introduces each of the 11 papers that follow.