Institute of Development Studies
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Browsing Institute of Development Studies by Subject "Africa"
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Item Africa’s Debt Bondage: A Case for Total Cancellation(2001) Rugumamu, Severine M.From the early 1980s to the present, Africa’s external debt burden has become increasingly onerous and unmanageable. The continent’s inability to service its debt is vividly reflected not only by a massive build-up of arrears but most importantly, by the number and frequency of rescheduling. Although most concerned parties agree on the urgent need for creative and innovative approaches to resolve Africa’s debt crisis, opinions differ considerably as to what exactly needs to be done. Recent partial and often disjointed debt relief measures that have been tried to manage the debt crisis have been found largely inadequate. It is hereby proposed that debt should be cancelled for highly indebted poor countries. This is precisely because debt repayment is economically exhausting as it continues to block future development; it is politically destabilising as it threatens social harmony; and, it is ethically unacceptable as it hurts the poorest of the poor.Item Conflict Management in Africa: Diagnosis of Current Practices and Future Prospects(2002) Rugumamu, Severine M.In the realm of peace and security in Africa, the 1990s witnessed dramatic and profound changes throughout the continent. With the conclusion of the Cold War, some of the major tensions between East and West over African battleground were markedly eased. South Africa and Namibia installed democratically elected governments. Relative peace and stability was established in Mozambique after three decades of confrontation between warring parties. Several dozens of African countries held democratic elections. Unquestionably, all these are positive and significant signs toward peace, stability and development. However, while many parts of the world moved toward greater stability and political and economic cooperation, Africa remained one of the cauldrons of instability. Political insecurity and violent conflicts became increasingly persistent realities of the development scene in Africa. Internal conflicts with deep historical roots flared in many countries on the continent. Ironically, while the international community paid less and less attention to African security affairs, the continent's institutional and organizational capacity to manage its pervasive conflicts was not developing at the same pace as conflict escalations. Against such a backdrop, peace and peace making in Africa emerges as one of the critical issues of great importance in global politics.Item Does the UN Peacebuilding Commission Change the Mode of Peacebuilding in Africa?(2009) Rugumamu, Severine M.In December 2005, the United Nations created a high-profile Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) to serve as a dedicated institutional mechanism to fill the gap in the international architecture for post-conflict response. As such the PBC was mandated to link the political, security and economic functions of the United Nations in conflict and post-conflict situations. This paper analyzes the PBC’s own integrated strategies for peacebuilding in Sierra Leone and Burundi, through cumulative performance reports and views of practitioners.Item Globalization Demystified: Africa’s Possible Development Futures(Dar es Salaam University Press (DUP), 2005) Rugumamu, Severine M.This succinct and balanced monograph critically examines Africa's integration - or lack thereof - into the global capitalist system. From historical and interdisciplinary perspectives, it considers how encounters between structurally unequal economies and institutions have shaped the continent's past and exacerbated the exploitation and abject poverty suffered by the majority. Rugumamu analyses how Africa's continued marginalisation stems from the expanding and increasingly divergent international trading and investment systems, and disparities in technological progress. He counters orthodox neo-liberal arguments and unquestioned assumptions of failure to integrate into the world economy. Instead the author asserts that Africa has been asymmetrically integrated into the world economy from the beginnings of modern history, and that the march of global capitalism is further undermining the continent's ability to negotiate a more beneficial position. The author proposes alternatives of collective self-determination, democratically negotiated to empower the under- represented sections of society; but warns that such steps would require new modes of political and economic organisation and structural changes to established patterns.