Compared to the other countries in Africa, the countries of southern Africa (Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, etc.) are relatively young democracies, which have recently overcome bitter internecine domestic struggle for democracy and racial equality. The immediate post-independence economic policy in many such countries was characterized by a socialist tendency which encouraged state capitalism and discouraged private enterprise. The disappointing economic results of this policy and the need for assistance from multilateral agencies encouraged the adoption of more liberal economic policies which promoted private domestic and foreign investment in economies largely guided by market forces. This liberalization occurred in the late 1980s and was embraced by Namibia at its independence in 1990. Although countries in the southern African region had played host to a significantly large volume of foreign capital, it was not until such a liberalization of their economies that one could talk of multinational enterpris