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Politics in Africa
Democracy, prosperity and self-rule, this was the vision of African independence. Across the continent, however, the 'optimism' that characterized the immediate post-independence period has largely faded. Meanwhile, ordinary Africans lurch between undemocratic, unaccountable and unresponsive governments and a decaying traditional African past. How did things go so wrong? Why has the continent lagged behind others in economic development despite its potential natural resources? Why are so many African states prone to conflict? And why has democracy been slow to take root in a majority of the countries? Covering everything from African economies to the role of the state, rural livelihoods to issues of gender, 'Politics in Africa' offers a fresh perspective in answering these questions, making the continent's problems more understandable, less wretched and even intensely hopeful. Up-to-date, concise and provocative, this is indispensable reading for anyone interested in African politics.
Prosperity in Rural Africa?
"What does it mean to say that rural areas of Africa are poor? Many people insist that in rural African countries areas poverty is prevalent. This is either because the smallholder agricultural practices are unproductive or it is because economic policies have not protected and promoted African farming. But whether this deprivation is the fault of the peasant, or the government, both sides agree on the facts of rural poverty. However in both cases rural poverty is described using measures which make it hard, if not impossible, to capture new forms of wealth that rural people may be accruing. These new forms of wealth, which largely comprise productive assets, are especially important because they feature so prominently in rural people's own definitions of wealth. Using an unprecedented collection of longitudinal surveys, in which experienced researchers have revisited villages which they have known for decades, we track surprising increases in assets in diverse locations in Tanzania. These findings the result is a compilation which is fascinating in itself and important far understanding of rural economies development data and agricultural policy"--
Participatory Research Methodologies
Participatory research methodologies have been used since the 1970s as a tool to garner accurate information about communities in which development practitioners operate. Their usefulness as a collection of research techniques has been evident in academic disciplines such as politics, sociology, anthropology and economics, among others. This informative text assesses the use of participatory methods as a research tool in the contexts of development and reconstruction after conflict and disasters by identifying cross-cutting themes and establishing a comparative lessons-learned framework that can help inform future uses of them, both for practitioners and researchers. More importantly, rather than adopting a prescriptive perspective, this book provides a critical analysis of such methodologies. Specifically, the reader will benefit from the collation of the experiences of those who utilize participatory research methods in different countries and contexts, and from different academic and practitioner perspectives.
A Journey Through Darkness
Many of us may live our lives without ever stopping to think What if I couldnt see? We hardly ever ask ourselves this question because, to say the least, we take or eyes for granted. I, like most people, had never thought about it until 11th January 2008. My mother came to wake me up that morning and asked what I was still doing in bed and confidently I replied, It is still dark outside Mum. She told me it was 8am and the sun was shining bright (a typical African morning!). I rubbed my eyes, opened them wider and yelled out, I cant see! I cant see! That was the beginning of a long journey through darkness.
Increasing Production from the Land
African agriculture faces major challenges with growing population pressure and the impact of climate change. Until now food production overall has broadly kept pace with demand. To maintain this impressive achievement, production from the land needs to be intensified, soil fertility must be enhanced, forests and water resources must be conserved, and land use practices must be sustainable over the long term. This book shows what needs to be done, and points to how best to achieve this. The book starts with a brief guide to what plants and animals need to grow well, how farmers currently use the land, and the research that is being conducted on new agricultural technologies. A comparison is ...
The FARC
Garry Leech has written the definitive introduction to the FARC, examining the group's origins, aims, and ideology, and looking at its organizational and operational structures. The book also investigates the FARC's impact on local, regional, and global politics and explores its future direction. 'Rebels' is an exciting and innovative new series looking at contemporary rebel groups and their place in global politics. Written by leading experts, the books serve as definitive introductions to the individual organizations, whilst seeking to place them within a broader geographical and political framework. They examine the origins, ideology and future direction of each group, whilst posting such questions as 'When does a "rebel" political movement become a "terrorist" organization?' and 'What are the social-economic drivers behind political violence?'. Provocative and original, the series is essential reading for anyone interested in how rebel groups operate today.
Volunteer Economies
Examines the increasing significance of the volunteer and volunteerism in African societies, and their societal impact within precarious economies in a period of massive unemployment and faltering trajectories of social mobility.
Al-Qaeda
Since the attacks of September 11th 2001 and up to and beyond Osama bin Ladin's death, al-Qaeda has come to embody the new enigmatic face of terrorism, dominating discussions of national and international security. Yet in spite of the attention it receives, conflicting assumptions about the group abound. Is al-Qaeda a rigidly structured organization, a global network of semi-independent cells, a franchise, or simply an idea whose time has come? What is meant by talk of the ‘global Salafi jihad’ that is confronting the West? What are the implications of bin Ladin's death? Christina Hellmich offers a critical examination of the widely-held notions regarding the origins and manifestations o...
Dictators, Dictatorship and the African Novel
This book examines the representation of dictators and dictatorships in African fiction. It examines how the texts clarify the origins of postcolonial dictatorships and explore the shape of the democratic-egalitarian alternatives. The first chapter explains the ‘neoliberal’ period after the 1970s as an effective ‘recolonization’ of Africa by Western states and international financial institutions. Dictatorship is theorised as a form of concentrated economic and political power that facilitates Africa’s continued dependency in the context of world capitalism. The deepest aspiration of anti-colonial revolution remains the democratization of these authoritarian states inherited from the colonial period. This book discusses four novels by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, Ahmadou Kourouma, Chinua Achebe and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in order to reveal how their themes and forms dramatize this unfinished struggle between dictatorship and radical democracy.
Global Governance in the Age of the Anthropocene
Chapter 1: Introduction -- Chapter 2: Global Governance and the Anthropocene: An Entangled History -- Chapter 3: Conceptual Toolbox -- Chapter 4: Global Governance of Infectious Disease Outbreaks -- Chapter 5: Global Food Production -- Chapter 6: Transboundary Water Governance? -- Chapter 7: Global Energy Governance -- Chapter 8: Global Environmental Governance -- Chapter 9: Conclusion. .
