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Kenya : the struggle for a new constitutional order
No full textThe aftermath of recent Kenyan elections has been marred by violence and an apparent crisis in democratic governance, with the negotiated settlement resulting from the 2007 election bringing into sharp focus longstanding problems of state and society. The broader reform process has involved electoral, judicial and security-sector reforms, among others, which in turn revolve around constitutional reforms. Written by a gathering of eminent specialists, this highly original volume interrogates the roots and impact of the 2010 constitution. It explains why reforms were blocked in the past but were successful this time around, and explores the scope for their implementation in the face of continued resistance by powerful groups. In doing so, the book demonstrates that the Kenyan experience carries significance well past its borders, speaking to debates surrounding social justice and national cohesion across the African continent and beyond.CONTENTS: Part One: Contexts and actors in the making of a new constitution -- 1. The protracted transitions to the Second Republic in Kenya - Paul Tiyambe Zeleza -- 2. Fuelling the violence: the print media in Kenya's volatile 2007 post-election violence - Sammy Gakero Gachigua -- 3. Mediating Kenya's post-election violence: from a peace-making to a constitutional moment - E. Njoki Wamai -- 4. Instrumentalism and constitution-making in Kenya: triumphs, challenges and opportunities beyond the 2013 elections - Raymond Muhula and Stephen Ndegwa -- 5. Revisiting 'the two faces of civil society' in constitutional reform in Kenya - Wanjala S. Nasong'o -- Part Two: The content, challenges and opportunities of a new constitutional order -- 6. Constitutions and constitutionalism: the fate of the 2010 Constitution - Yash Pal Ghai -- 7. Elite compromises and the content of the 2010 constitution - Godwin R. Murunga -- 8. Security and human rights in the new constitutional order in Kenya - Mutuma Ruteere</p
Commanders for good and bad : alternative post-war reconstruction and ex-commanders in Liberia
No full textContrary to the general conviction, collaboration with ex-commanders and their informal networks can actually promote postwar stability. When former generals are integrated into the post-conflict societal structure as brokers of socioeconomic service and mediators between governing elites and former combatants, they can help to provide security and stability. In the case of Liberia their direct access to ex-combatants makes them suitable for distributing jobs, money, food, scholarships and other resources
Youth and the labour market in Liberia : on history, state structures and spheres of informalities
No full textThis study explores the historical development of the Liberian labor market with a particular focus on young men and women. It asks, what constitutes and shapes the Liberian labour market? By looking at labour mobilization and the structure of the (in)formal labour market – both in peace and war – our understanding of the contemporary Liberian labour marketis substantially enhanced. The study finds that there are many recurring patterns of labor migration, labor mobilization and distribution that have existed in the Liberian pre-war, war and post-war settings. Historical structures of informality and patrimonialism continue to dominate Liberia today. In addition to this, the study's focus on youths provides an insight into how this section of society moves through the labour market. It also examines the idea of unemployed youths as particularly prone to violence.Contents: Introduction -- Framework -- The history of labour in Liberia -- The post-war context -- Conclusion -- References</p
Between Militarism and Technocratic Governance : State Formation in Contemporary Uganda
No full textAnders Sjögren is a researcher at the Nordic Africa Institute, Uppsala and in the Department of Political Science, Stockholm University. He has researched and published extensively on Ugandan and Kenyan politics over the last decade. This book is a revised version of his doctoral thesis. State-civil society relations in Africa have during recent decades been transformed in the context of economic liberalisation and state reform. This study explores state-civil society relations in contemporary Uganda, from 1986 to the present, in order to illustrate and explain the scope for and capacity of different social forces to create access to and democratise the state. The study interrogates state-civil society relations under the incumbent National Resistance Movement government as these are expressed through forms of interest representation and conflict regulation in different political arenas. It analyses this problem through an empirical study of the health sector at both national and local levels. Changes in the health regime – the rules and practices that regulate health politics – are analysed by a historical reconstruction of how different health regimes evolved from demands from social forces on the colonial and postcolonial state, in relation to broader patterns of political change. The ruling political coalition from 1986 has promoted a model for capitalist development based on donor-driven economic growth, institutional reform and political monopoly – what is referred to in the study as technocratic governance. Throughout, however, the technocratic tendency has been shaped in relation to the political economy of militarism as a more openly repressive form of authoritarian rule. The study argues that limits to democratisation of state society relations within the health sector and of Ugandan politics at large are best explained by relations of domination in society, within the state and among external political forces. The main conclusion is that democratisation of the state has been resisted by ruling groups, and therefore restricted.Contents: 1. Introduction -- 2. State and Society: Theoretical Arguments and Empirical Context -- 3. Formation of State and Society 1900-1986: The Roots of Destabilisation and Authoritarianism -- 4. The Transformations of State, Society and Health Regimes, 1986-1992: Regulating Instability -- 5. State and Civil Society since the Early 1990s: Consolidating the “Governance State” -- 6. The Decentralised State: Regulating the Politics of Local Development -- 7. Conclusions: Militarism and “Governance” in Uganda </p
Costly not to consider local resistance : Advice on agricultural investments in Africa
No full textFailures in considering and properly addressing local resistance have become costly for both the local people and the investors. Land acquisition policies need to be accompanied by mechanisms that address local grievances and conflicts. These aspects are crucial not only to alleviate unjust practices, but also to enhance confidence of investors and performance of the investments
Sweden-Norway at the Berlin Conference 1884–85 : History, national identity-making and Sweden's relations with Africa
No full textThe image of Sweden is one of a small, democratic and peace-loving country without the moral burden of a colonial past. However, in this Current African Issues publication, the notion that Sweden lacks a colonial past in Africa is brought into question. At the Berlin Conference 1884–85, the rules for colonisation of Africa were agreed upon among a handful of white men. With the blessing of King Oscar II, the united kingdoms of Sweden-Norway participated in the Berlin conference, ratified the resulting convention and signed a trade agreement with King Leopold’s International Congo Association. Thereafter, hundreds of Swedish militaries, seamen and missionaries took an active part in the brutal colonial project in the Congo. What was Sweden-Norway really doing at the Berlin Conference and in the ensuing Scramble for Africa? Is it now time to re-assess Swedish identity in relation to Africa, an identity so far centered on colonial innocence? Dr DAVID NILSSON is a researcher at the Division of History of Science, Technology and Environment, Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. His research focuses on global longterm perspectives on sustainable development in Africa.CONTENTS: The scramble for Africa from a Nordic perspective -- The United Kingdoms of Sweden-Norway in the run-up to Berlin -- The Berlin Conference from the perspective of Sweden-Norway -- Discussion: What was Sweden doing in Berlin? -- Conclusions: a "new" colonial past for Sweden? -- Literature -- AppendicesSweden and the Origins of Natural Resources Colonialis
Nigeria and the African Union in Light of the Arab Revolts
No full textThis paper analyses Nigeria’s role in the African Union (AU) and con-cludes that the latter is a strategic platform for the conduct of Nigeria’s foreign policy objectives in Africa. The study finds that the country has a ‘manifest destiny’ to play leadership roles in Africa and debunks the perception that Nigeria’s role in the AU is in decline. The paper further explores Nigeria’s AU priorities since the Arab revolts and concludes that the country’s ability to steer a clear course at the AU holds out pro-spects for peace, stability and security in Africa.From the NAI - FOI Lecture series on African Security held 2012.</p