Africa: Dilemmas Of Development And Change / Edition 1

by Peter Lewis

Overview

In the decades since independence, the countries of sub-Saharan Africa have faced three central dilemmas of development. The first has been the challenge of state building. In the wake of colonial rule, governments have encountered the problems of establishing legitimate authority and constructing capable states. A second dilemma has been that of nation building and state-society relations. African countries have confronted the difficulties of managing ethnic diversity, forging national identities, and negotiating relations between citizens and rulers. The third challenge encompasses problems of economic development as the region has grappled with a legacy of poverty, slow growth, and external dependence.This collection provides an overview of the leading themes and issues in these three critical areas of Africa's postindependent development. A selection of pathbreaking articles provides insights into the key questions, the major theories, and the outstanding challenges in African development. Written by today's most influential African scholars, the readings cover a variety of topics including political leadership; forms of state power; the role of civil society; the importance of class, ethnicity, and gender; and the prospects for democratic change in the region. Changes in African political economies are also addressed, focusing special attention on the debt crisis and the problems of economic reform. A final section focuses on the present-day challenges to African development: the spread of refugees, pressures on the environment, the devastating toll of AIDS, and the threat of state collapse.Providing a broad historical perspective on Africa's political and economic development and an overview of current problems and prospects, this collection will be especially useful for advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and development professionals.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813327556
Publisher:	Westview Press
Publication date:	07/10/1998
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	468
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.00(d)
Lexile:	1820L (what's this?)

About the Author

Peter Lewis teaches in the School of International Services at American University.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Development and Change in Africa Part One: States and Leadership 1. Personal Rule: Theory and Practice in Africa 2. Class, State, and Prebendal Politics in Nigeria 3. Patrons, Clients, and Factions: New Dimensions of Conflict Analysis in Africa Part Two: State, Society, and Participation 4. Colonialism and the Two Publics in Africa: A Theoretical Statement 5. Disengagement from the State in Africa: Reflections on the Experience of Ghana and Guinea 6. Political Transition and the Dilemma of Civil Society in Africa Part Three: Class, Ethnicity, and Gender 7. The Nature of Class Domination in Africa 8. The Making of a Rentier Class: Wealth Accumulation and Political Control in Senegal 9. Reconfiguring State-Ethnic Relations in Africa: Liberalization and the Search for New Routines of Interaction 10. Gender, Political Participation, and the Transformation of Associational Life in Uganda and Tanzania Part Four: Democracy and Political Transition 11. Africa: The Second Wind of Change 12. Neopatrimonial Regimes and Political Transitions in Africa 13. Democratization: Understanding the Relationship Between Regime Change and the Culture of Politics 14. Africa: An Interim Balance Sheet Part Five: Political Economy: Crisis and Reform 15. Trends in Development Economics and Their Relevance to Africa 16. Between Scylla and Charybdis: The Foreign Economic Relations of Sub-Saharan African States 17. Adjustment with Growth: A Fragile Consensus 18. The Structural Adjustment of Politics in Africa