Towards a New Map of Africa

About this book

From the publisher's announcement:

This ground-breaking book with a foreword by Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and UN human rights commissioner, uniquely distils the complex issues surrounding Africa as it enters the 21st century.

African and Western scholars provide a fascinating `map' which reviews urban and rural livelihoods, the potential of fresh water fishing, health, the HIV/AIDS crisis, conflict and efforts at peace making. Also included are critical assessments of Africa's role in the global economy, the growth of regional economic cooperation within Africa, the evolution of its political institutions, the influence of ethnicity on the continent's politics, and the influence of Africa's legal systems on its development. A substantial introductory essay by the editors measures the distance Africa has travelled and the lessons it has learned since Africa in Crisis, the classic Earthscan book, was published in 1985.

Contents

Foreword by Mary Robinson; Part I: Human Ecology; Continuity and Change in West African Rural Livelihoods; Fishing Livelihoods; Urban Livelihoods in Africa; HIV/AIDS and the Threat of Social Involution in Africa; The Politics of Discourse, Famine Early Warning Systems and Hunger in Africa; Part II: Institutional Change; Maladjusted African Economies and Globalization; Law and Crisis in Africa; Resisting Democratic Decentralization in Africa; State Leadership and Economic Development in Botswana; Beyond Settler and Native as Political Identities; Regional Cooperation and Integration in Africa; Pursuing Peace and Justice in Africa; The Role of NGOs; Part III: Conclusions; Agenda for Action; Bibliography, Index..

Customer Reviews

Biography

Ben Wisner is research fellow at DESTIN, London School of Economics and Benfield Hazard Research Centre, University College London. Camilla Toulmin is Director of the International Institute for Environment and Development. Rutendo Chitiga is a freelance writer and editor and has a postgraduate degree in Environment and Development.