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2761. Voix africaines au Forum social mondial de Nairobi. Les chemins transnationaux des militantismes africains

Author:
Marie-Emmanuelle Pommerolle and Johanna Siméant
Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Cultures & Conflits
Institution:
Cultures & Conflits
Abstract:
19 janvier 2007, dans le confortable hôtel Six-eighty , au centre de Nairobi. C'est la soirée du CRID, le Centre de recherche et d'informations pour le développement, un collectif de cinquante-quatre associations de solidarité internationale qui constitue la principale structure de coordination des organisations françaises au Forum social mondial (FSM). Alors que la soirée se poursuit et que chacun présente son organisation et « ses partenaires », tout à coup, un groupe de jeunes Kenyans, aidés par le groupe des No Vox , brandit des pancartes. Une jeune femme kenyane prend la parole au nom du People's Parliament , une organisation dont elle explique qu'elle n'a pas été suffisamment associée au FSM et au travail du comité local d'organisation. Wangui Mbatia évoque le prix de la participation au FSM (500 shillings kenyans, soit, explique-t-elle, une semaine de nourriture pour une famille pauvre). La jeune juriste, comme on l'apprendra par la suite, incarnera tout au long du forum la contestation d'une partie des militants kenyans à l'égard d'un forum souvent dénoncé comme « une conférence internationale de plus ». Pendant tout le forum également se posera la question de la représentativité du People's Parliament : des rumeurs et insinuations circulent sur sa responsable, qui a étudié aux Etats-Unis, et que l'on retrouvera quelques mois plus tard aux protestations contre le G8 de Rostock. Mais la question est plus générale : qui a le droit de parler au nom des pauvres du Kenya et de l'Afrique lors des grands événements militants internationaux ?
Political Geography:
Kenya, Africa, and Nairobi

2762. What Next for Mali? Four priorities for better governance in Mali

Author:
Nicolas Vercken and Surendrini Wijeyaratne
Publication Date:
02-2014
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
The 2013 elections helped to restore constitutional order in Mali and marked the start of a period of hope for peace, stability and development. The challenge is now to respond to the Malian people's desire for improved governance.
Topic:
Civil Society, Development, Diplomacy, Gender Issues, and Governance
Political Geography:
Africa

2763. In the Balance: Searching for protection in eastern DRC

Author:
Hannah Cooper
Publication Date:
01-2014
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
As 2014 starts, there are reasons to hope that peace may be in sight in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). National initiatives and committed regional and international political engagement in 2013 led to important advances and new framework agreements to resolve the conflict and insecurity. However, the people Oxfam talked to across eastern DRC reported that their situation remains precarious, particularly in remote areas where there is little state presence. Ongoing national, regional and international engagement is needed, as well as efforts to ensure that high level agreements and initiatives are systematically linked to community experiences. Without these, it is possible that this rare opportunity will be wasted.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, International Relations, Security, and Peacekeeping
Political Geography:
Africa

2764. Curbing Violence in Nigeria (II): The Boko Haram Insurgency

Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Boko Haram's four-year-old insurgency has pitted neighbour against neighbour, cost more than 4,000 lives, displaced close to half a million, destroyed hundreds of schools and government buildings and devastated an already ravaged economy in the North East, one of Nigeria's poorest regions. It overstretches federal security services, with no end in sight, spills over to other parts of the north and risks reaching Niger and Cameroon, weak countries poorly equipped to combat a radical Islamist armed group tapping into real governance, corruption, impunity and underdevelopment grievances shared by most people in the region. Boko Haram is both a serious challenge and manifestation of more profound threats to Nigeria's security. Unless the federal and state governments, and the region, develop and implement comprehensive plans to tackle not only insecurity but also the injustices that drive much of the troubles, Boko Haram, or groups like it, will continue to destabilise large parts of the country. Yet, the government's response is largely military, and political will to do more than that appears entirely lacking.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Islam, Armed Struggle, Insurgency, and Infrastructure
Political Geography:
Africa and Nigeria

2765. Vivre sur fond de frontières. Les migrants du Mozambique à Johannesburg

Author:
Dominique Vidal
Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Cultures & Conflits
Institution:
Cultures & Conflits
Abstract:
L'étude des migrations contemporaines rencontre la question des frontières sous au moins trois angles. Celui, en premier lieu, des frontières étatiques dont la mise en place et le développement ont été analysés comme l'élément politique permettant de distinguer l'immigration moderne d'autres formes de migrations, lorsqu'un migrant franchit une frontière juridique etdevient un étranger. Celui, en deuxième lieu, de la recherche urbaine quimontre que les grandes métropoles, tout en constituant plus que jamais desdestinations pour les migrants, voient se développer des frontières sociospatiales résultant de l'action de ceux qui cherchent à se protéger de l'altérité. Celui, enfin, des travaux sur l'ethnicité soulignant que des frontières ethniques se construisent dans les relations entre immigrés et populations plusanciennement installées.
Topic:
Development
Political Geography:
Africa

2766. Central Bank Independence in North Africa

Author:
Bessma Momani and Samantha St. Amand
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centre for International Governance Innovation
Abstract:
Securing CBI has become best practice in global governance. Both the political and economic literatures suggest that CBI facilitates price stability, promotes transparency to citizens and provides accountability toward the public good. CBI is also credited with protecting the economic and financial system from the trappings of regulatory capture. In addition, a number of scholars have argued that CBI is correlated with positive policy outcomes, including balanced long- term economic growth, stable financial markets and a reduced likelihood of publicly funded financial institution bailouts. Moreover, some have suggested that CBI is important for fostering a healthy liberal democracy. As global markets have become increasingly integrated and interdependent, securing CBI is also considered a domestic, regional and global public good.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Globalization, Monetary Policy, Governance, and Reform
Political Geography:
Africa and North Africa

2767. "Grounds for War: The Evolution of Territorial Conflict"

Author:
Monica Duffy Toft and Dominic D.P. Johnson
Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Security
Institution:
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
The Badme region in the Horn of Africa is claimed by both Ethiopia and Eritrea. It contains few natural resources, and neither state considers it to have strategic value. As one local merchant put it, however, "It's territory, you know. We'll die for our country."
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
Africa, Iran, Ethiopia, and Eritrea

2768. Afrique centrale : les défis sécuritaires du pastoralisme

Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
La pénétration du pastoralisme qui s'accentue depuis plusieurs années en Afrique centrale génère des conflits à la fois fréquents et ignorés dans un monde rural où l'empreinte de l'Etat est particulièrement faible. Ces conflits s'intensifient sous l'effet conjugué de plusieurs facteurs: l'insécurité croissante, le changement climatique qui pousse les pasteurs toujours plus au sud, l'éclatement des couloirs traditionnels de transhumance, notamment transfrontaliers, l'extension des cultures et l'augmentation des cheptels qui entrainent une compétition accrue sur les ressources naturelles. Même si les défis sécuritaires du pastoralisme ne sont pas de même intensité dans les trois pays étudiés dans ce rapport (Tchad, République centrafricaine et République démocratique du Congo), ils ont deux dénominateurs communs : l'impératif d'une prise en compte de ce problème par les pouvoirs publics et la nécessité d'une régulation de la transhumance qui inclue les différents acteurs concernés.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Security, Agriculture, Climate Change, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure
Political Geography:
Africa

2769. Launching a New Chapter in U.S.-Africa Relations

Author:
Richard Downie and Jennifer G. Cooke
Publication Date:
02-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Strategic and International Studies
Abstract:
Africa's changing economic landscape is prompting a shift in how U.S. policymakers view the continent. High growth rates, new technologies, and a rapidly expanding consumer class are driving greater global competition for investment and access to potential export markets, and the United States is recognizing that it will need to step up its game to remain relevant and influential in an increasingly crowded and competitive environment. This will mean placing a stronger emphasis on strengthening trade and investment ties and encouraging U.S. companies to take fuller advantage of expanding opportunities. Playing up these opportunities will not only serve long-term U.S. commercial interests in Africa but will serve U.S. development and diplomatic objectives as well. U.S. investments, done right, can have long-term development impacts in Africa, through technology and knowledge transfer, training, systems development, and partnerships. And a new, more optimistic engagement with Africa's citizens and entrepreneurs will have strong resonance with the continent's up-and-coming generation, creating links based on enduring mutual interest.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Economics, International Trade and Finance, Markets, and Foreign Direct Investment
Political Geography:
Africa and United States

2770. The Reinvention of Al-Shabaab

Author:
Matt Bryden
Publication Date:
02-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Strategic and International Studies
Abstract:
The September 2013 attack on Nairobi's Westgate Shopping Center, which left more than 70 people dead, has positioned the Somali extremist group, Al-Shabaab, firmly in the global spotlight. While some observers have interpreted the attack as a sign of "desperation," others perceive it as an indication of Al-Shabaab's reformation and resurgence under the leadership of the movement's Amir, Ahmed Abdi aw Mohamud Godane. The reality is, as usual, more complex. Westgate provided a glimpse of a movement in the throes of a protracted, fitful, and often-violent transition: Al-shabaab is in the process of reinventing itself.
Topic:
Security, Islam, Terrorism, Armed Struggle, and Counterinsurgency
Political Geography:
Africa