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By Samad Behrangi £7.95
Mkuki na Nyota Publ., Dar es Salaam, 2004, 32 pages
This delightful and moving story was written by Samad Behrangi (1939-1968), a teacher in the rural villages in a province in Iran. His stort stories were about powerless people; poor and ignored, who had to survive in very difficult conditions which, for the most part, were a result of a political system that did not care for the people. These conditions were not so different from those existing in many countries in the world today, and in Africa in particular. The Little Black Fish of the story represents courage and the desire for knowledge, against age-old ignorance and fear - even if in the end a high price may have to be paid.
The Sudan Peace Process: Challenges and Future Prospects
By Korwa G. Adar & John G. Nyuot Yoh et.al
Africa Institute of South Africa, 2004, 297 pages
£16.95
A timely and topical publication, this volume documents the complexities and multifaceted nature of the conflict and killings in Sudan. The authors analyse the problems historically: the contributing factors of various regimes of colonial, Arab and African rule to the political and economic imbalances between the north and south at the heart of the present conflict. They deal with the ethnic or racial and religious divergences as tangential to a broader narrative of political power and the accruement of oil wealth. The contributors consider the various agreements and accords, which have been signed by belligerent parties over the past few decades, and conclude by arguing that the peace processes underway in Nairobi between the Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army represent the best hope of resolution.
Inside West Nile: Violence, History and Representation on an African Frontier
By Mark Leopold
James Currey Publishers, January 2005, 288 pages
£16.95
West Nile is best known as the home of Uganda's notoriously violent dictator, Idi Amin. But the area's association with violence goes back much further, through the colonial era, when the district was significantly under-developed in comparison with most of Uganda, and to a pre-colonial past characterised by slave-raiding and ivory poaching. This book examines the relationships between these pasts and the present, between violence, narrative and memory in the former West Nile district. It draws on ethnographic fieldwork and archival research in the district capital, Arua town, during the late 1990s, when a low intensity conflict between the government and local rebels became embroiled in wars spilling over from nearby borders with Sudan and Zanre. The author adopts the unconventional approach of moving backwards from the present through successive layers of the past, developing an anthropological critique of the forms of historical representation and their relationship with the human realities of war and violence, in a border area which has long suffered the consequences of being portrayed as a 'heart of darkness'. The book contributes to current debates in political anthropology on issues such as border areas, the local state, and the nature of the 'post-colonial'. It will also be of interest to historians, political scientists, literary and cultural critics, and others working on questions of violence, narrative and memory.
Clothing & Footwear in African Industrialisation
By Dorothy McCornick & Christian M. Rogerson
Africa Institute of South Africa, 2004, 649 pages
£27.95
There is a broad consensus amongst development specialist that in order to grow and develop, African countries need to industrialise; and at a greater rate than they are doing at present. In searching for the reasons for the disappointing industrial progress so far, observers have tended to take a broad look at the industrial sector as a whole. The work reported in this volume takes a different approach. It sets out from the premise that two industries - clothing and footwear - offer excellent starter opportunities for baseline industrial growth. Garments and footwear are low-tech industries in so far that use stable, well-diffused technology. They generate only low-level research and development needs, require only basic skills, and operate on low economies of scale, whilst having the capacity to absorb large numbers of semi-skilled workers and make extensive use od local resources. Additionally they offer considerable export potential. This collection of papers focuses on the changing role and potential of the clothing and footwear sectors in industrialisation in Africa. The examples elucidated are the clothing and footwear sectors in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa and Tanzania. Taken together, these four countries provide a representative cross sector of African countries and present a range of different issues relating to the continent's clothing and footwear economy. More generally, the volume seeks to contribute to a greater appreciation of the impacts of globalisation on industrial development trajectories.
Rural Resources and Local Livelihoods in Africa
By Katherine Homewood
James Currey, 2004, 224 pages
£16.95
Sub-saharan rangelands and forests have been a playground for western interventions, and something of a bottomless pit for donor funding on both environment and development. Many, if not most, of these initiatives have had poor outcomes. That suggests there is something seriously wrong with western understanding of African environments, of the part they play in people's vulnerability, of the ways that people deal with them and of the impacts those strategies entail. This book seeks to analyse and clarify interactions of environment, land use, livelihoods, and natural resource management in African forests and savannas. It aims to develop a better understanding, an approach and a methodology, which in turn will give insights into people's natural resource use strategies, inform policy and management, and ultimately contribute to more secure livelihoods and welfare for local rural African populations.
Grandma's Sun: A Childhood Memoir from Africa
By Tayo Olafioye
Kraft Books Limited, 2004[1st publ. 2000], 205 pages
£8.95
Tayo Olafioye is a poet, novelist and scholar, active in Nigeria and the united States. He has won prizes for his volumes of poetry, which include Sorrows of a Town Crier (1988) and Bush Girl Comes to Town (1988). His other publications include The Excellence of Silence, the Saga of Sego (1982) and two works of literary criticism: Responses to Creativity (1988) and critic as Terrorist: Views on New African Writings (1989). His most recent collections are entitled A Carnival of Looters (2000) and The Parliament of Idiots (2002), both published by Kraft Books, Nigeria. This is the author's semi-fictional autobiography, written in the third person, following in the tradition of Camara Laye's African Child, Wole Soyinka'strilogy (Ake, Isara, Ibadan) and tanure Ojaide's Great Boys: An African Childhood. The narrative describes the author's birth and childhood inIgbotako, education and career at the University of Lagos and at universities in the States. Throughout, the aythor is concerned with the historical junctures and social and cultural changes in postcolonial Nigeria.
By Alex Agyei-Agyiri
Sub-Saharan Publ., 2004, 319 pages
£9.95
'Fifteen years ago, Mama said, starting her story, I came to Lagos from Ghana. I came to Nigeria because I was considered an alien in that country. The government of Ghana passed a law asking all aliens without resident permits to regularise their stay in the country. You see, my great, great grandparents had migrated to Ghana several years before, and regarded Ghana as their home...as for the reason possibly, it was because the opposition party then had hyped to monstrous heights that aliems were ruining the country; or the government of the time...blamed their failure to do things right on us 'alien' scapegoats... It was difficult to start life all over again, and even more difficult to learn that we were unwanted in a country we had come to regard as our own.' This story of migration, identities and lives undermimed by cynical and xenophobic politics pushed to its logical and terrible conclusion pertains to the Ghanaian orders of 'alien compliance' issued in 1970-1971, which determined to force all non-ethnic Ghanaians, so called illegal immigrants, to return to their - so stipulated - 'home'. the novel thus touches on concerns of deeper relevance to the politics of race and migration in the twenty first century. The author is a poet, playwright and short story writer. He has previously won the BBC Arts and Africa poetry Award, the Ghana Association of Writers' Literary Prize and the Valco Award for Literature. This is his first full-length novel.
Readings in Language and Literature
By Lekan Oyeleye & Moji Olateju
Obafemi Awolowo Univ. Press, 2003[publ. 2004], 290 pages
£14.95
A compendium of scholarship on the English language and literature in te Africa, and especially, the Nigerian contexts. Some of the contributions consider the co-existence of English with indigenous Nigerian languages and the contemporary relevance of English in developing countries. The essays on emergent African literatures cover drama and prose, particularly from global and cross-cultural perspectives. Some examples of subjects addressed are communicative competence and academic discourse in an ESL university setting, multilingualism and national development, and the influence of Yoruba on secondary school English in Nigeria. The volume also contains several chapters on humour in Achebe's Anthills of Savannah and the tragic hero characterisatioms of Ola Rotimi. Lekan Oyeleye is Associate Professor at the University of Ibadan. Moji Olateju is a lecturer at Obafemi Awolowo University.
Realising Democracy and Legitimacy in Southern Africa
By Kenneth Good
Africa Institute of South Africa, 2004[1st publ. 1997], 196 pages
£16.95
In many African countries, the possibilities for democratisation are being strongly opposed by authoritarian and corrupt tendencies from within inherited institutions and new ruling elites. This volume interrogates the structures of social change, civil society, the working classes and ruling and competing elites in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. It considers positive and negative examples of accountable, open and ethical government and the arguments that are presented to explain the distinctions, which have emerged between Botswana and its neighbours. It further posits that whilst the south may be described as the most liberaly democratic region of Africa, this does not obscure the limitations of the liberal model, and the need to broaden the definition and practice of democracy in the region. The author is Associate Professor of Political Studies at the University of Botswana.
The Crop Conundrum: The Debate on Genetically Modified Food in Southern Africa
By Siphamandla Zondi
Africa Institute of South Africa, 2004, 49 pages
£8.95
Controversy arose in August 2002 over the arrival on the shores of Southern Africa of a consignment of food aid from the United States that contained genetically modified maize. One African country after another rejected the shipment, citing a variety of concerns. This led to dispute between certain donor agencies and several Southern African governments over the safety of genetically modified food. This study analyses the conundrum facing southern African countries over whether they should accept genetically modified food crops as a component of food aid. It sketches the evolution of the debate that has been dominated by the global, scientific and development media, giving an in-country perspective. It defines the stakeholders and their roles, and details the experiences of Lesotho, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Finally, it considers possible policy interventions, and the policy frameworks required at national and regional levels.
A Round Half-Dozen
By Adebayo Lamikanra
Kraft Books Limited, 2002, 156 pages
£6.95
In this collection of six short stories, the author portrays his homeland of Nigeria as a jungle, insane and inharmonious. It is a cauldron of chaos, seething with socio-economic injustice, with an ethos of corruption. Against the backdrop, he tells a story of survival by stealth, hinting at some glimmers of achievement against the odds. Adebayo Lamikanra is the author of Heart Sounds (Kraft 2003), a collection of poetry.
Contemporary Obstretics and Gynaecology for Developing Countries
By Friday Okonofua & Kunle Odunsi
Women's Health & Action Research Centre, 2003[publ. 2004], 702 pages
£49.95
This publication was prepared to document recent changes in obstetrics and gynaecology from a developing country perspective. Previous publications on these subjects have tended to focus on illnesses and diseases, which are prevalent only in developing countries - malaria, severe anaemia etc; however this book has taken care to bring in the issues that are universally relevant to gynaecology and obstetrics, but of which the application to developing countries remains largely unexplored. The book is divided into two secctions, one taking gynaecology, the other obstetrics. Chapters in the first section are included on: clinical diagnosis in obstetrics and gynaecology; the role of ultrasound in tropical obstetrics; pelvic infections, ectopic pregnancy; amenhorrhoea; advances in contraceptive development; infertility in sub-Saharan Africa; the role of assisted reproductive technologies in developing countries; abortion; hysterectomy; and urgynaecology. Chapters in the second section cover: evidence-based antenatal care; management of labour and the partograph; post-term pregnancy; malaria during pregnancy; sickle cell disease in pregnancy; hypertension in pregnancy; HIV and concurrent infections during pregnancy; preventing maternal mortality in developing countries; and preventing perinatal mortality in developing countries. Friday Okonofua is a Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Kunle Odunsi is an academic and medical doctor, based in Buffalo, New York. The contributors are an experienced international team of obstetricians and gynaecologists with expertise in developing country medicine.