This study shows that the neoliberal project propagated in the 1990s by the Western donors and the international financial institutions has not yet made much progress in Cameroon. It argues that... Show moreThis study shows that the neoliberal project propagated in the 1990s by the Western donors and the international financial institutions has not yet made much progress in Cameroon. It argues that this is not surprising, given the class character of the Cameroonian postcolonial State. The limited political reforms introduced by the Biya regime in 1990, especially the legalization of multipartyism, seem not to have stimulated economic liberalization, but rather to have further eroded the authoritarian and patrimonial State's capacity and willingness to undertake economic reforms. The experience of Cameroon suggests that there is no automatic linkage between political and economic liberalization. Show less
Martin Bernal's 'Black Athena' has evoked three kinds of reaction: scholarly evaluation of the historical evidence for Bernal's claims, both of Ancient Europe's indebtedness to West Asia and... Show moreMartin Bernal's 'Black Athena' has evoked three kinds of reaction: scholarly evaluation of the historical evidence for Bernal's claims, both of Ancient Europe's indebtedness to West Asia and Northeast Africa, and of the construction in recent centuries of the Greek miracle as a Eurocentric, racialist myth; appropriation of the Bernal thesis by African-American and African intellectuals in the process of identity construction and in the politics of global knowledge production as a counterforce to Eurocentrism and scholarly racism; and critical scholarly extrapolation of the Bernal thesis with regard to African material beyond ancient Egypt. Arguing that origin is not to be equated with subsequent local transformation and performance in maturity, the present author posits that a different mode of thinking about cultural dynamics and interdependence is required. Two case studies tracing the geographical distribution and probable diffusion of geomantic divination and mancala board games since the 16th century, suggest that it is a typical pattern of African cultural history to see active early participation in global cultural flows, followed by subsequent 'cultural involution' and the loss of virtually all trace of an earlier intercontinental exchange. The unit of analysis is civilizations; 'Africa', the continent, is not a viable unit of analysis in this connection. Notes, ref., sum. in French (p. 100) Show less
This bibliography on Ethiopia and Eritrea is a sequel to 'Ethiopian society and history: a bibliography of Ethiopian studies 1957-1990' (1990). The present volume, which covers the period 1990... Show moreThis bibliography on Ethiopia and Eritrea is a sequel to 'Ethiopian society and history: a bibliography of Ethiopian studies 1957-1990' (1990). The present volume, which covers the period 1990-1995, contains c. 2000 items. Books, journal articles, and articles from collective volumes have been included. The entries are arranged under the following headings: Bibliographies; History and development of Eritreo-Ethiopian studies; Manuscripts, documents, sources, library studies; Travellers and foreigners; History; Cultural geography, ecology, demography; Politics and law before 1974; Politics, law and revolutionary development after 1974; Politics and law after 1991; Peasantry and the rural sector after 1974; The urban sector; Modernization, communications, industry and 'development'; Economics, economic policy, banking; Social structure, social change and gender; Drought and famine, refugees and resettlement; International relations; Ethno-regional conflicts; Education; Health and health care; Ethnomedicine and indigenous knowledge; Folklore, magic, oral traditions; Music; Material culture, architecture, arts and crafts; Christian and hagiographical literature; Religion and missions; Ethnology and anthropology. The last section is subdivided according to ethno-cultural groups. A list of collective volumes and an index of authors' names have been included Show less
Fundamental changes are taking place within the African State system which is still, in essence, the one created by the colonial powers and inherited at independence by the governments of modern... Show moreFundamental changes are taking place within the African State system which is still, in essence, the one created by the colonial powers and inherited at independence by the governments of modern Africa. Powerful forces in the industrialized world continue to have a crucial influence on events in the African continent. This paper identifies some of the key features of the emerging political economy of Africa, focusing on the manner in which external forces combine with internal ones in affecting Africa's politics. It pays attention, amongst others, to the importance of foreign aid as a source of revenue for African elites; the industrialized world's misperceptions of Africa; democratization and the decline of African States since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989; surviving patterns of precolonial political entities; new economic patterns in Africa; the policy of the industrialized world towards Africa and the role of African political elites now that, with the end of the Cold War, Africa has lost its global significance; the end of the Cold War as the real end of the colonial order in Africa and the intimate connection to the present crisis of African States; the collapse of African States and the world's policy of abandonment. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum Show less
