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Water Scarcity and Food Security along the Nile : Politics, population increase and climate change
No full textIn 2050, the population in all the Nile Basin countries is expected to be ten times higher than it was in 1950. This will put ever increasing pressure on water as a resource for development. The Nile Basin catchment area is shared by 11 countries covering about one-tenth of the African continent. Globally, around 70 per cent of fresh water consumption is used in agriculture. This puts the spotlight on future scenarios regarding food production: will there be enough water for food security in the Nile Basin countries? In this Current African Issues publication, water scarcity and food security are analysed from a range of perspectives. What are the future predictions regarding population increase and climate change, and how will these affect development in Nile Basin countries? What are the current water theories addressing the above issues, and what are the main challenges the Nile Basin countries will face in a context that is also strongly shaped by its history?Contents: Foreword -- 1. Introduction -- 2. The global context: Water and food scarcity? -- 3. The river Nile and the need for water -- 4. Agreements and disagreements -- 5. Climate change, water systems and development -- 6. Water and food production in the Nile Basin -- 7. Virtual water, water wars and water riots -- 8. Future challenges and uncertainties – political implications? -- References</p
From Global Land Grabbing for Biofuels to Acquisitions of African Water for Commercial Agriculture
No full textExpansion of biofuel investment in Africa has been supported by indebted poor governments because of perceived potential benefits such as sustainable energy development, support to poor farmers, development of rural economies and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. However, the intensity of the biofuels political economy in poor countries worsens inequality for the vulnerable poor. This is evidenced by large-scale land acquisitions in Africa for biofuel and crop production primarily for foreign consumption – food, animal feeds and energy crops. The search for land in African countrieshas been triggered by growing concerns over food and energy security in developed countries following the global food crisis of 2008. Moreover, these recent developments in large-scale land acquisitions in Africa are not a new phenomenon, but represent the renewal of old practices incommercial agriculture, which is either conducted through purchases or long-term leases. In addition to biofuel expansion, this study notes that current large-scale land acquisitions in sub-Saharan Africa have been further driven by demands to access water resources for other commercial agricultural crops. The land purchases or leases automatically guarantee access to African water. This demand for water is a response to climate change: most industrialists believe that acquiring land near a main water reservoir will guarantee future agricultural potential. Few analyses have been done on the land-water access nexus. This article considers recent developments in large-scaleland acquisitions in Africa in terms of water security for commercial agriculture to safeguard the production of agricultural crops with a large water footprint. Using political economy analysis, this article examines national policy on these acquisitions, the rights accorded to foreign investors and how land acquisitions undermine indigenous rights to the common resources that have been the mainsource of livelihood in sub-Saharan Africa
Self-Determination and Secessionism in Somaliland and South Sudan : Challenges to Postcolonial State-building
No full textThis paper analyses the notion of self-determination and secession by adopting acomparative perspective on two case studies, namely Somaliland and South Sudan. Somaliland declared its independence in 1991 following the collapse of the Somali state. Since then, Somaliland has been making relentless efforts to secure recognition from the international community. South Sudan successfully negotiated the right to exerciseself-determination, a right that was formalised in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed between the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM). The people of South Sudan held a referendum and voted overwhelmingly for secession, with formal independence being achieved on 9 July 2011. International law may better qualify Somaliland for statehood than South Sudan for three reasons: (i) it was created by colonialism, (ii) it has already been recognised, albeit only for a few days, as an independent state in 1960, and (iii) it has proven to be stable, functional and relatively democratic. Yet Somaliland has failed to achieve international recognition. This paper interrogates this discrepancy. It concludes that the existence of a partner ready to accept the right of self-determination, and geostrategic concerns about security as well a seconomic and political interests, determine international recognition
Albert Luthuli and Dag Hammarskjöld - leaders and visionaries : symposia in commemoration of the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Chief Albert Luthuli and Dag Hammarskjöld
No full textTwo symposia in Uppsala and Oslo during November 2011 marked the 50th anniversary of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Chief Albert Luthuli and Dag Hammarskjöld at the same ceremony for 1960 and (posthumously) 1961, respectively. The deliberations, which involved close family members of the late Chief Luthuli, commemorated and honoured two outstanding leaders of the 20th century. While they never met personally, they shared principle values and ethics rooted in a firm belief in the equality of people, human rights, justice and peace at a time of decolonization and apartheid. This booklet compiles a summary of the various presentations in Uppsala and Oslo, which paid respect to the two role models in their relevance also for today. It is published during the year, in which the two Uppsala based institutions celebrate their 50th anniversary.Contents: Preface / Carin Norberg and Henning Melber -- Welcoming address in Uppsala / Carin Norberg -- Reflections on Africa in the light of the legacies of Dag Hammarskjöld and Albert Luthuli / Albertinah Luthuli and Ayanda Ntsaluba -- Chief Albert Luthuli and the struggle for national liberation in South Africa / Jabulani Sithole -- Hammarskjöld and apartheid South Africa: mission unaccomplished / Tor Sellström -- Chief Luthuli’s unofficial visit to Sweden / Evert Svensson -- What would Chief Albert Luthuli say about South Africa, Africa and the world today? / Jabulani Sithole -- Hammarskjöld and Luthuli showed the way / Gunnar Garbo -- Dag Hammarskjöld stood up for the United Nations on development / John Y. Jones -- Norway will work to strengthen the UN / Ingrid Fiskaa -- Closing remarks in Uppsala / Henning Melber -- Vote of thanks and concluding remarks in Oslo / Carin Norberg</p
Africa's changing societies : Reform from below
No full textIn NAIs Annual Report 2011 you can read about how military structures lingers in Liberia, about the global rush for land, the importance of understanding local farming techniques, about how African cities drive change, and much more
Self-determination and secession : A 21st Century Challenge to the Post-colonial State in Africa
No full textTwo approaches have characterised analysis of the postcolonial state in Africa. One emphasises the territorial integrity of the postcolonial state, with inherited colonial borders being viewed as sacrosanct and state-centred rights being given primacy. The other questions the sacrosanctity of colonial borders and seeks to promote the primacy of people-centred rights. The increasing frequency in recent years of quests for self-determination and secession in Africa poses an existential challenge to the postcolonial state on that continent. This Policy Note addresses this emerging trend
Researching Africa : From individual efforts to structured programmes. The role of the Nordic Africa Institute
No full textThe Nordic Africa Institute started on a modest scale back in 1962 by awarding three travel grants to young Nordic scholars with an interest in Africa. Fifty years later, the institute has become an internationally renowned centre of research, documentation, publishing and networking. By coordinating coherent programmes spanning multiple researchers and several subtopics NAI has helped to strengthen capacity among young academics in Nordic countries by providing travel grants for field research and an academic platform for communicating and discussing research findings. NAI has thus been a key catalyst in social science research on Africa. In this publication, Michael Ståhl contextualises, reviews and reflects on five innovative research programmes undertaken at NAI from the late 1980s into the 1990s. Through these thematic, collaborative programmes, NAI complemented its already established support for individual academic projects. In order to place the five programmes in larger context, brief accounts of the earlier research support provided by NAI are given as is an overview of the subsequent research profile and administration of NAI up to 2012.Table of Contents: I. Building Research Capacity at NAI -- 1. From Individual Projects to Consolidated Programmes -- 2. Organisation of the Research Programmes -- II. Review of Five Research Programmes on African Development -- 3. Human Life in African Arid Lands (1987-93) -- 4. Urban Development in Rural Context in Africa (1989-95) -- 5. The Political and Social Context of Structural Adjustment in sub-Saharan Africa (1990-2001) -- 6. Poverty and Prosperity in Africa “Local and Global Perspectives (1994-99) -- 7. Cultural Images in and of Africa (1995-2010) -- 8. Reflections on the Five Research Programmes -- III. Continuation and change - NAI Research in the New millennium -- 9. A Widely Expanded Research Agenda -- 10. The Legacy Today</p