Briefing Notes
After the Promises Re-thinking UK Policy in Africa
19th April 2010In the run-up to a general election on May 6th, all the UK’s main political parties have pledged to increase spending on international development. More aid for Africa is touted as proof of politicians’ compassion and conscience. But the ...
No, Mr President
1st May 2010Multilateral systems to support peace and democracy have evolved faster in Africa than in other regions. In the past decade, diplomatic and military intervention in Africa has become more frequent and more assertive than in Latin Americ...
Waiting for a Green Revolution
9th December 2009Predictions of a Green Revolution in Africa are overstated. Investment in African agriculture has been neglected by governments and donors. The proportion of aid allocated to agriculture fell from 17% in 1980 to 3% in 2005.1 Population growth and ...
Tanzania and Senegal: Inside the Machine
20th October 2009Comparing the Politics of Institutional Reform Tanzania and Senegal have long records of political stability. Both made peaceful transitions from single-party 'African socialism' to multiparty democracy, becoming favourites with foreign donors an...
South Africa: The Next Republic
24th October 2008The resignation of former president Thabo Mbeki can be seen as the ending of a "First Republic" in democratic South Africa. The liberal left tradition of the governing African National Congress is fading, and the "Second Republic" will be shaped b...
Kenya: A nation fragmented
5th February 2008Kenya is effectively partitioned by criminal and ethnic violence, triggered by the December 27th presidential ballot. The unrest threatens Kenya's cohesion as a nation state, with sever consequences for its landlocked neighbours and the East Afric...
