SOCIAL SCIENCES

Skinning the skunk - facing Zimbabwean futures

Upphovspersoner:	Palmberg, Mai | Primorac, Ranka
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Cultural Images and Expressions | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2005
Ämnesord:	National identity, history, cultural identity, political development, social development, future studies, diaspora, Zimbabwe, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

SKINNING THE SKUNK refers to a saying in Shona, kuvhiya kadembo. The Zimbabwean writer Stanley Nyamfukudza uses it here to illustrate how important problems, like the legacy of violence, are avoided in Zimbabwean public discussion. Terence Ranger writes on the new policy of rewriting the history of Zimbabwe, in the name of patriotic history, through which the Zanu-PF government tries to assert hegemony and achieve a total change of the mindset. To talk about Zimbabwe today also means to talk of the large diaspora. Beacon Mbiba presents a study on what is colloquially called Harare North, that is London (and the rest of the UK).

Land, labour and the family in southern Ghana : a critique of land policy under neo-liberalisation

Upphovsperson:	Amanor, Kojo Sebastian
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2001
Ämnesord:	Land policy, Land tenure, Labour, family, Kinship, Ghana, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

This report is based on field work carried out in the Akyem Abuakwa area of the forest region of Ghana, a section of the country rich in agricultural land, gold, and diamonds. Through the field work which was undertaken and the empirical material generated, the author attempts to chart the processes and patterns of differentiation connected to land and land use in contemporary Ghana. In addition to class-related differentiation, he also identifies intra-household, generational and gender differences as well as their implications for the mobilisation of family labour and the emergence of new land and labour markets. The conclusions which the author draws challenge some of the dominant theoretical approaches to the land question in contemporary Africa, particularly the evolutionary property rights and communitarian approaches.

Who is ruling in South Sudan? : the role of NGOs in rebuilding socio-political order

Upphovsperson:	Riehl, Volker
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet; Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA)
År:	2001
Ämnesord:	conflicts, Sudan, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

This paper examines the role of NGOs in rebuilding socio-political order in South Sudan. It describes the socio-political determinants of the last ten years which will throw some light on the political stage in South Sudan and might contribute to the main question of who really has the political power and influence in South Sudan today.

Ethnicity, state power and the democratisation process in Uganda

Upphovsperson:	Okuku, Juma
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2002
Ämnesord:	Uganda, Ethnicity, political development, Democratisation, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

One of the post-independence political concerns in Uganda today is that ethnicity has been detrimental to national unity, democracy and development. There is no doubt that the conflicts in Uganda have all had ethnicity as one of the driving factors. The central problem has been the politisation of ethnicity, that is, its use for purposes of group mobilisation in social conflicts that also involve the state. However, ethnicity cannot be taken as a given. The problem is not of ethnicity in itself. Ethnicity is more intimately linked to political and economic conditions such as the unequal distribution of and competition for power and wealth. This paper critically review the impact of ethnicity on the democratisation process in Uganda from colonialism to the present. The paper is divided into four parts. Part one is a theoretical overview of the issues of ethnicity and democratisation. Part two examines the nature of ethnicity construction and expression in the colonial period. Part three looks at the post-colonial political practices and their enhancement of ethnicity in Uganda. Part four discusses the possibility of deconstruction of ethnicity through democratisation and the 'no-party movement'-system. In conclusion, the contention is that there is a need to understand the substantive underlying political, economic and social configurations that enhance ethnicity rather than denouncing them.

Models for life : advancing antiretroviral therapy in sub-Saharan Africa

Upphovsperson:	Lazarus, Jeffrey V.
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2005
Ämnesord:	Hiv, aids, medical care, access to health care, medicinal drugs, public health, aids prevention, nongovernmental organizations, Africa South of Sahara, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

Models for Life: Advancing antiretroviral therapy in sub-Saharan Africa is based on two conferences that were held in Copenhagen and Uppsala, in September 2004. The events brought together more than 70 key actors from Denmark, Sweden and Uganda in the field of HIV/AIDS and its treatment: antiretroviral therapy. The conferences were unique in that each panel and the subsequent discussion brought together researchers, donors and representatives from non-governmental organisations, in order to link theory, operations research and practice. The working paper covers a wide range of the issues that were brought up at the conferences, but focuses on the following three main topics: - Access to antiretroviral therapy - Holistic approaches to providing antiretroviral therapy, prevention and support - Antiretroviral therapy and public health services. Each section begins by introducing the core issues to be addressed. The different presentations are then put into perspective by summarising the main questions from the participants and the other panellists. In addition, the editors have further developed some of the key points made by drawing on current literature in the field. The final section concludes with a list of take-home messages for non-governmental organisations.

Union power in the Nigerian textile industry : labour regime and adjustment

Upphovspersoner:	Andræ, Gunilla | Beckman, Björn
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	1998
Ämnesord:	Nigeria, West Africa, Textile industry, Trade unions, Labour relations, Structural adjustment, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

Nigeria, once a promising and resourceful country, is experiencing economic and political decay. This book highlights the remarkable progress wich has been achieved in spite of this decline. It follows Nigeria´s important textile industry from the heyday of the oilboom through successive phases of adjustment and liberalization. The fo-cus is on the trade unions and the book points to the successful institutionalization of a union-based labour regime. It draws on extensive field work, interviews with managers unionists, workers and massive documentation from internal union sources.

Aid and poverty reduction in Zambia : mission unaccomplished

Upphovspersoner:	Saasa, Oliver S. | Carlsson, Jerker
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2002
Ämnesord:	Zambia, Southern Africa, poverty, Economic conditions, Development aid, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

Zambia, a once prosperous African country, now has 73 percent of its people below the poverty line and by the early 1990s, the country had reached a level where the UN General Assembly included it on the list of the least developed countries. With crippling indebtedness amidst poor economic performance, Zambia is at present one of the world's most heavily indebted low-income countries. And poverty continues to take its toll with the province housing the capital city registering the highest increase in poverty over the 1996 to 1998 period. This means that, although rural areas have the highest poverty levels, Zambia's urban centres are fast catching up. With help from donors, poverty reduction is at the centre stage on the Zambia development agenda after almost two decades of externally prescribed experiments with adjustment and stabilisation as a panacea for welfare improvement. But despite significant aid volumes and structural reforms, the country is getting deeper and deeper into poverty. What is the missing link between aid and positive change? Is the problem mainly that the volume of aid is not sufficient and, as is often heard, more of it would make a difference? Is the sluggish social and economic progress in Zambia appropriately diagnosed and correct remedies and strategies prescribed? This book attempts to address these and related questions.

Regulating mining in Africa : for whose benefit?

Upphovspersoner:	Campbell, Bonnie K. | Akabzaa, Thomas M. | Butler, Paula
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2004
Ämnesord:	Environment, legislation, Mining, mining development, mining policy, Africa, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

One of the main hypotheses underlying much of the discussion about extractive industries, and a central recommendation in the Report of the World Bank Group's Extractive Industries Review, is that the quality of a country's governance is a key determinant of the development outcomes of extractive industry activities. While the quality of national governance is undoubtedly a key ingredient, this comparative study of mining code reform in Africa seeks to demonstrate that no amount of local governance is sufficient if it is not accompanied by legal and fiscal frameworks designed to meet development objectives, and implemented in the context of good international policies and rules. Based on five case studies (Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Madagascar, and Tanzania), the volume suggests that the reform measures introduced largely on the recommendation of multilateral financial institutions over the last twenty years have entailed a redefinition of the role of the state so profound that it is without historical precedent. The comparative study of three generations of African mining codes concludes that past reforms have the potential to drive down standards in areas of critical importance to social and economic development, as well as to protecting the environment in the countries concerned.The question that arises from this study is whether a country which deregulates and liberalises in order to be fully competitive in the context of evolving norms and incentives, and which respects its obligations under WTO rules, can, indeed, ensure the enforcement of environmental norms, pursue development objectives that build backward and forward linkages to resource extraction (such as value added processing of minerals), and introduce "trade balancing," involving, if necessary, export/import restrictions to increase local content and stimulate local productive activities. At best, the answer to this question appears to be uncertain, leading to the further question: Regulating mining - for whose benefit?

Responsibility and partnership in Swedish aid discourse

Upphovsperson:	Dahl, Gudrun
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	2001
Ämnesord:	Aid policy, Development aid, Partnership, Africa, Sweden, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP

In 1997 the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs elaborated a 'New Policy for Africa'. Its purpose was to co-ordinate the country's cultural assistance, trade and development aid to African countries by giving these activities a frame of common goals and an ideological rationale, emphasising 'partnership' rather than 'solidarity' or 'aid'. This paper analyses the metaphors and paradoxes of the rhetorical draping of the policy as presented in the main report and the speeches of various officials. Of particular concern is what image of moral and reciprocal relations the policy mediates.

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