Week 6

  • Approaches to the study of African politics and international relations (1).pptx

    • Modernization School

      • Idea

        • Societies transition from “traditional” to “modern” through industrialization, rational bureaucracy, and scientific logic.

        • Focus on economic development (mechanization, growth) and social transformation (individual mobility over communal identities, more equitable resource allocations).

      • Pro

        • Building rationalized government apparatuses with expanded institutions.

        • Encouraging some mass participation while ensuring concentration of power for a coherent, efficient state.

      • Con

        • Overlooks Africa’s reliance on agriculture; invests too much in rapid industrialization.

        • Underestimates external factors (e.g., colonial exploitation, global market imbalances).

        • Equates Western standards with “modernity,” possibly ignoring local cultural contexts.

    • Dependency/Underdevelopment School

      • Idea

        • Emerged from Latin American critiques, later applied to Africa.

        • Africa’s underdevelopment is largely shaped by external economic exploitation (colonialism, neocolonialism).

        • The global system is structured to keep Africa in a peripheral role (Immanuel Wallerstein’s “world-systems” concept).

      • Pro

        • Places local political developments within a global economic context.

        • Illuminates inequality in the global division of labor, clarifying historical exploitation.

        • Highlights limitations on African autonomy due to external forces (IMF, TNCs, etc.).

      • Con

        • Tends to treat Africa as uniformly “exploited” vs. “exploiter,” oversimplifying internal nuances (ethnic politics, class variations).

        • Can be overly pessimistic, implying little hope unless the entire global system changes.

        • Undervalues internal dynamics like leadership, policy choices, or cultural factors.

    • Statist School

      • Idea

        • The state itself is the main driver of social, economic, and political events in Africa.

        • Analyzes how leaders manipulate the state apparatus (bureaucracy, military, patronage) to maintain power.

      • Pro

        • Highlights the role of African leaders in shaping policy and distributing resources.

        • Explains phenomena like patrimonialism (neo-patrimonial approaches) and how personal rule emerges post-independence.

      • Con

        • Overemphasis on state-centered power can neglect non-state actors (tribes, classes, civil society).

        • Sometimes lumps all African politics under “big man rule,” ignoring successful institution-building.

    • Political Interaction Perspective

      • Not a separate school→perspective

      • Idea

        • The state-society relationship is central to understanding African politics.

        • Politics are the outcome of multiple intersecting social forces (demographics, culture, external environment, technology).

      • Approach

        • Analyzes interactions between formal institutions (government, parties), economic activities, social identities, and values.

        • Seeks to see how historical factors (colonial legacies), ecological conditions (climate, resources), and ideological elements shape policy.

      • Pros

        More holistic, less deterministic, and aims to trace ongoing processes rather than focusing on a single cause (e.g., external exploitation or state power)

    • Comparison

      • Modernization: Looks for transition to Western-style industrial states, sees tradition as an obstacle.

      • Dependency: Sees global capitalism as the root cause of African underdevelopment, downplays domestic agency.

      • Statist: Emphasizes the state apparatus and personal power of leaders in postcolonial societies.

      • Political Interaction: Weaves together multiple internal and external threads—state, economy, society, global environment—into a single tapestry of African politics.

  • Dependency, the International Political Economy, and Economic Collapse..pptx

    • Economic consequences of the slave trade

      • Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade:

        • Largest forced migration from western, central, eastern Africa to the Americas (~1400 to ~1900).

        • Regions that lost the most people were once relatively advanced but became impoverished due to demographic depletion and instability (Nathan Nunn, 2008).

      • Contemporary Effects:

        • Ethnic fragmentation and weaker political institutions in areas heavily raided for slaves.

        • Lack of trust: Individuals from regions with heavy slave-raiding histories are less trusting of neighbors/authorities even today.

        • Counterfactual: Without the slave trade, Africa’s development gap could have been significantly lower.

    • Colonization affected Africa in the same manner as the precolonial slave trade

      • Extractive Economies:

        • Colonial powers built infrastructure (railways, roads) to export raw materials to Europe, not to foster self-sufficient local economies.

        • Example: Baro–Kano line (Nigeria) built to transport tin to Britain.

        • Dakar–Saint Louis (Senegal) connected major colonial ports primarily for exports.

      • Reorganized Trade:

        • African societies forced to import manufactured goods while exporting low-value raw materials.

        • This entrenched an inferior position in the global economy—dependence on external markets

    • Commodity dependence: the resource curse

      • Commodity Dependence

        • Over 83% of African countries rely on a handful of primary commodities (minerals or cash crops) for the bulk of exports (UNCTAD).

        • Price volatility and limited value addition hamper stable growth.

      • Resource Curse (Michael Ross analysis)

        • Price & revenue volatility → unpredictable government budgets.

        • Dutch Disease → currency appreciation and harm to non-booming sectors.

        • Policy Myopia → easy short-term revenue undermines long-term diversification.

        • Undermines accountability: leaders rely on rents, neglect broader tax base or inclusive institutions.

      • Conflict

        • Lootable resources (diamonds, coltan) can fuel civil wars (e.g., Sierra Leone, DRC).

        • Government reliance on commodities often excludes citizens from meaningful development.

    • Informal Sector

      • Definition: Economic activities unrecorded and untaxed (e.g., street vending, artisanal work).

      • Scale: Up to 80% of nonagricultural employment in Africa is informal, especially for women.

      • Pros & Cons:

        • Safety net for unemployed or low-skilled workers.

        • Denies government revenue and fosters weaker state-society accountability.

    • African economies and the development agenda

      • Slow Per-Capita Growth:

        • On average, African countries’ GDP per capita in 1994 was roughly the same as in 1965.

        • Only about 1% per year growth from 1960 to 2010—lowest in the world.

        • Current (2023) average of about $1690 GDP/capita (~$2.11/day) still extremely low.

    • Less performance of Africa’s social sector

      Struggling Social Sectors:

      • High infant mortality (72 per thousand live births in 2022), low public health spending (~2% of GDP).

      • Literacy rates remain below global averages, with secondary school enrollment ~33%.

    • Reasons for underpeformance

      • Failure to industrialize economies

        • Manufacturing <13% of GDP since 2010.

        • Agriculture still mostly small-scale, low mechanization.

        • No significant value addition—raw commodities exported with minimal processing.

      • Situation of aid dependency

        • Foreign aid ~5.8% of Africa’s GDP (1960–2010).

        • Aid as a share of GNI (0.36% in 2022) doesn’t always translate into sustainable development.

        • Encourages reliance on donors, limiting domestic accountability and capacity-building.

  • Why Africa has grown slowlypptx.pptx

    • Background+Debates

      • Key Factors

        • During 1960–73, Africa’s growth was relatively strong, but from the mid-1970s onward, economic and political decline set in.

        • Since 1980, per capita GDP in sub-Saharan Africa has declined by ~1% annually, and 32 countries are now poorer than in 1980 (Collier & Gunning, 1999).

      • External Factors

        • Volatile terms of trade (global commodity price swings).

        • International organizations’ interventions (IMF structural adjustments, etc.).

      • “Destiny” Factors

        • Being landlocked with poor transport links,

        • High proportion of remote populations (far from coasts/navigable rivers),

        • Adverse tropical climate,

        • Ethnic diversity complicating policy-making.

    • Domestic Destiny

      • Tropical Climate

        • Disease burden (e.g., malaria) and low life expectancy hamper productivity.

        • Rapid population growth + low life expectancy → low accumulation of human capital.

      • Soil Quality & Semi-Arid Conditions

        • Rainfall cycles are unpredictable, damaging agriculture and creating food insecurity.

        • Low population density in large semi-arid zones → high infrastructure costs.

      • High Natural Resource Endowment

        • Could lead to an appreciated exchange rate (“Dutch Disease”), hurting manufacturing competitiveness.

      • Ethnic Diversity

        • Undemocratic systems struggle to manage diversity, often fueling conflict or factional politics.

      • Colonial Heritage

        • Many small countries with limited internal markets.

        • Artificial boundaries hamper broader economic integration.

    • Domestic Policy

      • Government Capture by Urban-Elite

        • Emphasis on public employment as patronage, ignoring rural/agriculture interests.

        • Taxing agriculture heavily to fund cheap urban food → disincentivizes farmers, lowers yields.

      • Statist Control

        • Price controls, financial regulation, and state enterprises hamper private sector growth.

        • Overregulation of banks often directed credit to public sector or well-connected entities.

    • External Destiny

      • Transport & Landlocked

        • Many African states have high transport costs for exports, especially if landlocked.

        • Surrounded by national borders, crossing each adds trade barriers (tariffs, slow procedures).

      • Commodity Concentration

        • Exports revolve around a few raw commodities → vulnerable to global price shocks.

        • Missed opportunities from foreign aid because export earnings per capita declined (unfair terms of trade?).

      • Debt Accumulation

        • 1980s–90s: unsustainable debts from repeated borrowing (interest on old debts, structural adjustment conditions).

    • Policy or Destiny

      • Landlocked Example

        • Switzerland is landlocked but highly prosperous → good governance & integration with neighbors overcame geographical constraints.

        • Some of Africa’s worst performers are coastal (e.g., certain war-torn states).

        • Conversely, some landlocked countries (e.g., Botswana) have done relatively well.

      • Policy Failures

        • The pivotal moment around late 1970s: African states turned to “statist, inward-looking” policies, severely restricting exports and imposing controls.

        • Even natural disadvantages can be mitigated by the right policies (technological solutions for tropics, vaccines for diseases, improved irrigation).