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Ethiopia

China and India, "rising powers" and African development : challenges and opportunities

Upphovsperson: Roy, Sumit
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, African International Links | Uppsala, Sweden
År: 2014
Ämnesord: Africa, China, India, Globalization, economic development, international trade, investment, international economic relations, International relations, development, Sustainable development, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Zambia, Angola, Southern Africa, Eastern Africa, case studies, Political science, Statsvetenskap, economics, Nationalekonomi
In this report, the challenges and opportunities arising from the growing ties between two key “Rising Powers,” China and India, and Africa are more fully explored. This trend has given rise to speculative, exaggerated and ideological responses and a mixture of anxiety and hope. What is needed is an interdisciplinary political economy study to investigate the ways in which global, regional and national linkages in the relationship impact on the prospects of sustainable development in Africa. The necessity for this is underscored by the growing influence of the BRICS group (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) in reshaping the world.In this frame, the focus is on the nature of the shift in China’s and India’s strategic vision of Africa in terms of politics, ideology and economic development. This shift impinges on trade and investment and, in turn, the scope for inducing structural economic change in the context of colonial and postcolonial tensions. Comparative observation of countries in Eastern and Southern Africa, particularly Ethiopia in the former, illustrates their capacity to cope with the new powers. This is a critical aspect of the continent’s complex interplay with states and institutions within and beyond its borders. Ultimately, African nations have to individually and collectively confront the challenges and opportunities stemming from their evolving relationships with these Rising Powers.

Diasporas, Development and Peacemaking in the Horn of Africa

Medarbetare: Laakso, Liisa | Hautaniemi, Petri
Utgivare: London
År: 2014
Ämnesord: Horn of Africa, Ethiopia, Somalia, North East Africa, diaspora, development, Peacebuilding, Refugees
Exiled populations, who increasingly refer to themselves as diaspora communities, hold a strong stake in the fate of their countries of origin. In a world becoming ever more interconnected, they engage in 'long-distance politics' towards, send financial remittances to and support social development in their homelands. Transnational diaspora networks have thus become global forces shaping the relationship between countries, regions and continents. This important intervention, written by scholars working at the cutting edge of diaspora and conflict, challenges the conventional wisdom that diaspora are all too often warmongers, their time abroad causing them to become more militant in their engagement with local affairs. Rather, they can and should be a force for good in bringing peace to their home countries. Featuring in-depth case studies from the Horn of Africa, including Somalia and Ethiopia, this volume presents an essential rethinking of a key issue in African politics and development.

The African Union in Light of the Arab Revolts : An appraisal of the foreign policy and security objectives of South Africa, Ethiopia and Algeria

Medarbetare: Gelot, Linnea | Eriksson, Mikael
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet; The Swedish Defence Research Agency
År: 2013
Ämnesord: African Union, Regional cooperatio, n Foreign policy, Foreign relations, International politics, Regional security, Algeria, Ethiopia, South Africa
The fall of authoritarian regimes in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya has changed political dynamics on the African continent. One immediate concern has been the implications of these developments for the African Union (AU) and its member states. Would overall political dynamics in the AU be changed? Would the most powerful member states use the altered circumstances to enhance their influence on AU policies andframeworks? What would the impact be for the AU's overall authority? In this Discussion Paper series, three edited papers are presented that tackle AU political and institutional dynamics in light of the Arab revolts. A particular puzzle addressed is the current postures of South Africa,Ethiopia and Algeria within the AU. A separate analysis of Nigeria's role was published earlier in the NAI-FOI Lecture Series on African Security. The work in this discussion series reflects the longstanding collaboration between the Swedish Defence Research Agency's Project Studies in African Security and the Nordic Africa Institute to build Africa-related research capacity on peace and security.

Favouring a Demonised Plant : Khat and Ethiopian smallholder enterprises

Upphovsperson: Gessesse, Dessie
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Agrarian Change, Property and Resources | Uppsala, Sweden
År: 2013
Ämnesord: Ethiopia, Plant production, Drugs of abuse, Khat, Commercial farming, Small farms, Smallholders, Income, Livelihood
Khat is a plant native to Ethiopia that has been consumed over several centuries as a mental and physical stimulant. This report outlines khat’s role as a source of livelihood. Khat, dubbed a social ill by many, is at the same time part and parcel of the livelihoods of many others. With consumption of the stimulant spreading to many parts of Africa, Europe, North America, Asia and Australia, khat production has become a controversial global issue. In most European and North American countries khat is illegal. The debates so far focus on the consumption of khat and its allegedly harmful health ,economic and social effects. The argument here is that expanded khat production, driven by growing demand for the stimulant, is made possible through multidimensional links between producers, sellers and others. Today, khat production is part of the wider agro-silvi-pasture complex that characterises Ethiopian rural landscapes. At the farm level, khat shares space with food and tree crops and contributes cash to the household economy. The fact that its production is a smallholder venture andis expanding through a variety of farming systems indicates its importance to cultivators and their use of land. This paper is not exhaustive, but makes an exploratory attempt to highlight khat-related livelihood issues and seeks to contribute to the ongoing debates on the stimulant and to prompt further research.

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