"Why is Zambia so poor?"

A question asked in Pacific Standard:

So far this story—shitty colonizers, problematic independence, Chinese economic invaders—is the one we hear over and over from this part of the world, a sort of Mad Libs history of Sub-Saharan Africa.

Though they should have started here (DoingBusiness.org). While it's easier said than done, it's also pretty easy to get lost in the excuses before recognizing the fact that the foundations of development isn't dependent on an abundance of resources.