Wringing Success from Failure in Late-Developing Countries

Wringing Success from Failure in Late-Developing Countries
Author: Joseph F. Stepanek
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 264
Release: 1999-09-30
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0313389616

Development has alleviated poverty in many countries during the 50 years since the end of War World II, yet half of mankind remains poor; a fifth are very poor. Poverty is not a state of nature, but, as Stepanek shows, can be ascribed to manmade institutions that reflect self-serving and self-indulgent ideologies, poorly tested theories and policies, weak governments, and poverty alleviation programs that are questionably designed and poorly administered. Dr. Stepanek asserts that poverty cannot be alleviated without challenging all of its root causes, and he shows that well-designed development strategies and foreign assistance programs can create growth and reduce poverty. Western governments, international banks, and donor agencies must reexamine how they design and administer foreign aid if they are to be successful. Stepanek explains foreign aid in general and in specific, in history and theory, and in its present and practical forms.

Democracy in Africa

Democracy in Africa
Author: Nic Cheeseman
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 269
Release: 2015-05-12
Genre: History
ISBN: 1316239489

This book provides the first comprehensive overview of the history of democracy in Africa and explains why the continent's democratic experiments have so often failed, as well as how they could succeed. Nic Cheeseman grapples with some of the most important questions facing Africa and democracy today, including whether international actors should try and promote democracy abroad, how to design political systems that manage ethnic diversity, and why democratic governments often make bad policy decisions. Beginning in the colonial period with the introduction of multi-party elections and ending in 2013 with the collapse of democracy in Mali and South Sudan, the book describes the rise of authoritarian states in the 1970s; the attempts of trade unions and some religious groups to check the abuse of power in the 1980s; the remarkable return of multiparty politics in the 1990s; and finally, the tragic tendency for elections to exacerbate corruption and violence.

From Protest to Parties

From Protest to Parties
Author: Adrienne LeBas
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 316
Release: 2013-05-23
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0199673004

From Protest to Parties provides a unique window into the politics of mobilization and protest in closed political regimes, and sheds light on how the choices of political elites affect organizational development. The book draws upon an in-depth analysis of 3 countries in Anglophone Africa: Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Kenya

Religiosity in African Christian Churches

Religiosity in African Christian Churches
Author: C. Mutale
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 203
Release: 2022-04-22
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9956553271

In this book Tresphor Mutale critically examines contemporary African Christianity through the leadership from prophets, men of God, pastors, seers and more. The book looks at the rationality of apparently irrational religious expressions and experiences in the name of religion. It analyses the irrationalities using the spectacles of African Traditional Religions (ATR), especially with respect to the importance of rituals. From the vantage point of rituals, there is sense in nonsense, and some of the irrational religious expressions being experienced today become rational. The book raises the aspect of authority of ritual leadership in ATR and how this symbol holds authority in Christianity today and how it has power to influence believers. Mutale argues that African Christianity and how it is experienced today point to the deeper influence of African Traditional Religions. The book provokes many questions about the power of African symbolisms, their application in Christianity and how Christianity through the lenses of African Traditional Religions is able to relate and influence other areas of society like, economics, politics and sociality. The book draws on and enriches perspectives on religion and religiosity with the depth of Mutale's ability to bring into conversation anthropological, philosophical, sociological and theological approaches.

Betrayed

Betrayed
Author: S. Kaplan
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 200
Release: 2013-11-26
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1137341807

Betrayed takes a new approach to the subject of global poverty, one that doesn't blame the West but also doesn't rely on the West for solutions. Betrayed puts the poor themselves at center stage, and shows how their entrepreneurial energies are shackled by political and social discrimination. When these shackles are removed, as is happening in places such as China and Vietnam, the poor are able to seize opportunities and drive wealth creation. Combining the latest research into poverty and state building with the author's personal observations drawn from years running businesses in the developing world, Betrayed explains how leaders in the developing world can build more inclusive societies and more equitable governments, thereby creating dynamic national economies and giving the poor the opportunity to accumulate the means and skills to control their own destinies. This refreshing new approach will appeal to business people who are fed up with reading critiques of global poverty that see capitalism as the problem, not the solution; people in both the global North and South who want to see attention focused not on Western aid but on what developing countries and their citizens can do to help themselves; scholars and practitioners in the development field who are looking for new, practicable ideas; and general readers who want accessible and engaging accounts of ordinary people struggling to overcome poverty.

Absent Mandate

Absent Mandate
Author: Harold D. Clarke
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2019-09
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1487594801

Absent Mandate develops the crucial concept of policy mandates, distinguished from other interpretations of election outcomes, and addresses the disconnect between election issues and government actions. Emphasizing Canadian federal elections between 1993 and 2015, the book examines the Chretien/Martin, Harper and Trudeau governments and the campaigns that brought them to power. Using data from the Canadian Election Studies and other major surveys, Absent Mandate documents the longstanding volatility in Canadian voting behaviour. This volatility reflects the flexibility of voters' partisan attachments, the salience of party leader images, and campaigns dominated by discussion of broad national problems and leaders rather than by coherent sets of policy proposals. The failure of elections to provide genuine policy mandates stimulates public discontent with the political process and widens the gap between the promise and the performance of Canadian democracy.

A People Betrayed

A People Betrayed
Author: Linda Melvern
Publisher: Zed Books Ltd.
Total Pages: 319
Release: 2014-04-10
Genre: History
ISBN: 1783602708

Events in Rwanda in 1994 mark a landmark in the history of modern genocide. Up to one million people were killed in a planned public and political campaign. In the face of indisputable evidence, the Security Council of the United Nations failed to respond. In this classic of investigative journalism, Linda Melvern tells the compelling story of what happened. She holds governments to account, showing how individuals could have prevented what was happening and didn't do so. The book also reveals the unrecognised heroism of those who stayed on during the genocide, volunteer peacekeepers and those who ran emergency medical care. Fifteen years on, this new edition examines the ongoing impact of the 1948 Genocide Convention and the shock waves Rwanda caused around the world. Based on fresh interviews with key players and newly-released documents, A People Betrayed is a shocking indictment of the way Rwanda is and was forgotten and how today it is remembered in the West.

Corruption and Development in Africa

Corruption and Development in Africa
Author: K. Hope
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 328
Release: 1999-08-18
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0333982444

Bringing together a distinguished cast of contributors, the book provides an authoritative and definitive analysis of the theory, practice and development impact of corruption in Africa. Combating corruption is demonstrated to require greater priority in the quest for African development.