Geopolitics

Movement for the emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) : political marginalization, repression and petro-insurgency in the Niger Delta

Upphovsperson:	Courson, Elias
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2009
Ämnesord:	Energy resources, Petroleum industry, Transnational corporations, Macroeconomics, Geopolitics, conflicts, violence, Marginality, Protest movements, Nigeria, Niger Delta, Political science, Statsvetenskap

This Discussion paper addresses the linkages between the political economy of oil and violent conflict in Nigeria’s main oil and gas producing region, the Niger Delta. It is based on a case study of the insurgent Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), which has targeted and attacked the interests of international oil companies and the federal government in the oil-rich, but impoverished, Niger Delta region of Nigeria, in its professed campaign for the control of the oil wealth of the region for the benefit of local people. Through this study of MEND, fresh perspectives are brought to bear on the causes and ramifications of the oil conflict in the region, and the role of various actors at the local, national and international levels. This is important in grasping the nature of the violence in the Niger Delta and Nigeria and the enormity of the task of resolving the complex conflict in which the region is immersed. It is a challenge, which as the author argues, transcends the resort to the militarized or securitized solutions that often fail to adequately address the roots of conflict.

Water Scarcity and Food Security along the Nile : Politics, population increase and climate change

Upphovsperson:	Oestigaard, Terje
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Agrarian Change, Property and Resources | Uppsala, Sweden
År:	2012
Ämnesord:	River basins, Shared water resources, Water shortage, Food security, Population growth, Climate change, Geopolitics, International agreements, Regional developmen, Nile river, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

In 2050, the population in all the Nile Basin countries is expected to be ten times higher than it was in 1950. This will put ever increasing pressure on water as a resource for development. The Nile Basin catchment area is shared by 11 countries covering about one-tenth of the African continent. Globally, around 70 per cent of fresh water consumption is used in agriculture. This puts the spotlight on future scenarios regarding food production: will there be enough water for food security in the Nile Basin countries? In this Current African Issues publication, water scarcity and food security are analysed from a range of perspectives. What are the future predictions regarding population increase and climate change, and how will these affect development in Nile Basin countries? What are the current water theories addressing the above issues, and what are the main challenges the Nile Basin countries will face in a context that is also strongly shaped by its history?

Oil and Insurgency in the Niger Delta : Managing the Complex Politics of Petroviolence

Medarbetare:	Obi, Cyril I. | Rustad, Siri Aas
Utgivare:	London, Uppsala : Zed Books, Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2011
Ämnesord:	Energy resources, Petroleum industry, international trade, Transnational corporations, Geopolitics, Responsibility, Governance, Corruption, Political crisis, ethnic conflicts, Dispute settlement, Human rights violations, Political violence, Protest movements, Conflict management, Political conditions, Nigeria, Niger Delta, Political science, Statsvetenskap

The recent escalation in the violent conflict in the Niger Delta has brought the region to the forefront of international energy and security concerns. This book analyses the causes, dynamics and politics underpinning oil-related violence in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. It focuses on the drivers of the conflict, as well as the ways the crises spawned by the political economy of oil and contradictions within Nigeria's ethnic politics have contributed to the morphing of initially poorly coordinated, largely non-violent protests into a pan-Delta insurgency. Approaching the issue from a number of perspectives, the book offers the most up-to-date and comprehensive analysis available of the varied dimensions of the conflict. Combining empirically-based and analytic chapters, it attempts to explain the causes of the escalation in violence, the various actors, levels and dynamics involved, and the policy challenges faced with regard to conflict management/resolution and the options for peace. It also examines the role of oil as a commodity of global strategic significance, addressing the relationship between oil, energy security and development in the Niger Delta.

The Rise of China and India in Africa : Challenges, Opportunities and Critical Interventions

Medarbetare:	Cheru, Fantu | Obi, Cyril
Utgivare:	London : Zed Books/Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2010
Ämnesord:	Foreign relations, international economic relations, Foreign investment, natural resources, Geopolitics, Economic and social development, South south relations, South south trade, China, India, Africa, Political science, Statsvetenskap

In recent years, China and India have become the most important economic partners of Africa and their footprints are growing by leaps and bounds, transforming Africa's international relations in a dramatic way. Although the overall impact of China and India's engagement in Africa has been positive in the short-term, partly as a result of higher returns from commodity exports fuelled by excessive demands from both countries, little research exists on the actual impact of China and India's growing involvement on Africa's economic transformation. This book examines in detail the opportunities and challenges posed by the increasing presence of China and India in Africa, and proposes critical interventions that African governments must undertake in order to negotiate with China and India from a stronger and more informed platform.

The Nigerian state, oil and the Niger Delta crisis

Upphovsperson:	Ukiwo, Ukoha
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | London; Uppsala : Zed Books; Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2011
Ämnesord:	Energy resources, Petroleum industry, international trade, Transnational corporations, Geopolitics, Responsibility, Governance, Corruption, Political crisis, ethnic conflicts, Dispute settlement, Human rights violations, Political violence, Protest movements, Conflict management, Political conditions, Nigeria, Niger Delta, Political science, Statsvetenskap

The recent escalation in the violent conflict in the Niger Delta has brought the region to the forefront of international energy and security concerns. This book analyses the causes, dynamics and politics underpinning oil-related violence in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. It focuses on the drivers of the conflict, as well as the ways the crises spawned by the political economy of oil and contradictions within Nigeria's ethnic politics have contributed to the morphing of initially poorly coordinated, largely non-violent protests into a pan-Delta insurgency. Approaching the issue from a number of perspectives, the book offers the most up-to-date and comprehensive analysis available of the varied dimensions of the conflict. Combining empirically-based and analytic chapters, it attempts to explain the causes of the escalation in violence, the various actors, levels and dynamics involved, and the policy challenges faced with regard to conflict management/resolution and the options for peace. It also examines the role of oil as a commodity of global strategic significance, addressing the relationship between oil, energy security and development in the Niger Delta.

Introduction, Africa in the 21st Century: Strategic and Development Challenges

Upphovspersoner:	Obi, Cyril I. | Cheru, Fantu
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation | Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Globalization, Trade and Regional Integration | London : Zed Books
År:	2010
Ämnesord:	Foreign relations, international economic relations, Foreign investment, natural resources, Geopolitics, Economic and social development, South south relations, South south trade, China, India, Africa, Political science, Statsvetenskap

Causes and cures of oil-related Niger Delta conflicts

Upphovsperson:	Ukiwo, Ukoha
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2009
Ämnesord:	Energy resources, petroleum resources, Transnational corporations, conflicts, Geopolitics, Macroeconomics, Nigeria, Niger Delta, Peace and conflict research, Freds- och konfliktforskning

Nigeria’s political and economic fortunes and the country’s ability to play a stabilizing role in the African region partly depend on the resolution of the lingering Niger Delta conflict. The Niger Delta covers nine out of 36 states and 185 out of 774 local government areas of the Nigerian federation. It occupies a total land area of 75,000 square kilometers and is the world’s third largest wetlands. The 2006 Nigerian population census shows that 30 million out of the country’s 140 million people reside in the Niger Delta region. Nearly all of Nigeria’s oil and gas reserves are located in the region. Oil and gas have accounted for about 40 per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) since 1990. Between 2000 and 2004, oil and gas accounted for 75 per cent of total government revenues and 97 per cent of foreign exchange. Apart from being vital to Nigeria’s fiscal viability, the Niger Delta is important to global energy security.

A new scramble for Africa? Imperialism, investment and development

Medarbetare:	Southall, Roger | Melber, Henning
Utgivare:	Scottsville, South Africa : Published by the UKZN Press with support from the Nordic Africa Institute
År:	2009
Ämnesord:	international economic relations, Foreign investment, natural resources, resources exploitation, Geopolitics, Imperialism, Economic dependence, Business and economics, Ekonomi

Dramatically escalating prices of raw materials, driven by rapid industrialisation in China and other countries of the global South as well as by looming world shortages, had for the few years preceding the financial meltdown and global recession of 2009 promoted a new scramble for Africa’s natural resources. It signalled a brisk turnaround in prospects for what The Economist had dubbed the ‘hopeless continent’ as recently as 1999. However, while average growth rates across the continent have increased, the implications for Africa’s development were and remain at best dubious. In this important volume, the new scramble for Africa is placed in the historical context of imperialism and the contributors show important continuities with the original nineteenth-century scramble. However, while the previous scramble was between major European powers, today the continent provides a battleground for competition between the US, the European Union, China and other emerging players such as India and South Africa. This book raises significant general questions relating to the nature of emerging global competition between the US and China; the centrality of the struggle for oil and minerals and resulting militarisation; the international battle to capture Africa’s markets; the marginalisation of African capitalism; and the ambiguous benefits that investment and production by multinational companies bring to African communities. Arguing that exploitation of the continent by comprador African elites remains central, the book concludes by raising important questions about the prospects for development in Africa.