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Namibia

Namibia and external resources : the case of Swedish development assistance

Upphovsperson: Odén, Bertil
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År: 1994
Ämnesord: Namibia, Southern Africa, Sweden, Economic conditions, Economic development, External financing, Resources management, Income distribution, Development aid, Recommendations, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP
What is the role of international development assistance in a newly independent country such as Namibia? The two studies in this report give some inputs to the discussion on the benefits and problems of aid. One focuses on macro-economics, resource distribution and effects of international development assistance in general. The other is an analysis of the impact of Swedish development assistance.

Development from below : a Namibian case study

Upphovspersoner: Kössler, Reinhart | Melber, Henning | Strand, Per
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År: 2003
Ämnesord: Southern Africa, Namibia, colonialism, history, Independence, Globalization, Ethnicity, Traditional culture, Nation-building, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP
This Discussion Paper offers a revised lecture by Reinhart Kössler, which was originally presented to a Research Forum organised by The Nordic Africa Institute jointly with the Seminar for Development Studies of Uppsala University. It deals with aspects of rebuilding societies from below firstly in a general development studies discourse on a more theoretical level, considering aspects of the current debate on globalisation. This is followed by a concrete case study from southern Namibia. It illustrates local responses by the Witbooi-Nama in Gibeon to (re-)define identity within the context of a (nation-)state in a post-apartheid society. The paper is commented upon by two discussants (Per Strand and Henning Melber). The contributions reflect on the issue of social reconstruction in the context of (southern) Africa with reference to a particular marginalised group. They deal, among other things, with the question of social power and the "invention of tradition" in local efforts to gain from, or seek integration into, the nation building process.

Music as instrument of diversity and unity : notes on a Namibian landscape

Upphovsperson: Mans, Minette
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År: 2003
Ämnesord: Namibia, music, cultural identity, Nation-building, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP
This report explores the interface between recent socio-political changes in Namibia, and the way they are reflected in emergent musical practices and identities within the country. The potential tension between unity and diversity is investigated within musical landscapes in traditional and contemporary frames. Sadly, diversity is often seen to be the precursor of divisiveness rather than a product of human creativity and ingenuity. Based on a decade of field research undertaken mainly in the north and central areas of Namibia since 1993, this report poses questions about fundamental purposes of music-making, and the conscious response of people to the contemporary Namibian socio-political situation. It provides a broad overview of music emanating from different cultural practices in Namibia, and relates this to the State's political strategies for ensuring unity and nation-building through policy-making, education and broadcast media. The changes that occur in musical practices are seen as strategic cultural choices and ongoing identity-formation.

Political opposition in African countries : the cases of Kenya, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe

Upphovspersoner: Hulterström, Karolina | Kamete, Amin Y. | Melber, Henning
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År: 2007
Ämnesord: political opposition, politics, Democratization, Ethnicity, Local government, political parties, SWAPO, case studies, Kenya, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Political science, Statsvetenskap
This Discussion Paper is another result of the project “Liberation and Democracy in Southern Africa” (LiDeSA), which was coordinated at the Institute between 2001 and 2006. The papers are revised versions of presentations to a Session of the Research Committee “Comparative Sociology” at the XVI World Congress of Sociology held at the end of July 2006 in Durban. They explore the role of opposition parties under different aspects in several East and Southern African countries, which differ according to the socio-political determinants.

Measuring democracy and human rights in Southern Africa

Upphovspersoner: Davids, Yul Derek | Melber, Henning
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År: 2002
Ämnesord: Democratisation, Liberation, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Southern Africa, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP
Are there ways and means of measuring democracy and “good governance”? The contributions to this Discussion Paper present attempts to do this by means of surveys on democratic attitudes in Mozambique and Namibia respectively as well as by exploring the degree of commitment to and violation of human rights in a comparative perspective in Namibia and South Africa. They illustrate attitudes by offering empirical evidence of the preferences and views of local people, as well as by examining the track record of a human rights culture. In doing so, by going beyond a level of theoretical analysis, they offer concrete evidence of attitudes prevalent among both individuals and state agencies in societies of Southern Africa.

Governance and state delivery in Southern Africa : examples from Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe

Upphovsperson: Melber, Henning
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År: 2007
Ämnesord: political development, Democratization, Political power, Governance, Political culture, Post-independence, Southern Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Political science, Statsvetenskap
This Discussion Paper highlights in complementary ways problems and challenges for governance issues under centralised state agencies, which base their authority and legitimacy on a dominant party and its influence. The case study on Namibia argues for a need for parliamentary and administrative reform to improve the efficiency of lawmakers. The Botswana chapter explores the decision on the location of the country’s second university as an act without consultation of the local population. The Zimbabwe paper advocates an approach in favour of using the African Peer Review Mechanism as an instrument to assist in a change towards better governance. All the authors have intimate knowledge of the matters discussed through their own involvement with the respective cases and/or their individual positioning within these societies. This publication is among the final results of the project “Liberation and Democracy in Southern Africa” (LiDeSA), which was undertaken at the Institute between 2001 and 2006.

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