bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
8 - Subjectivity in Servitude: The Servant and Indigenous Family Arrangement in Written Igbo Drama
Authors: Chukwukere Frances  N.
Published: November 2011

Membership into the African family may be on the basis of natural (birth) or social (marriage, adoption, apprenticeship, etc) selection. The present paper examines the roles of eleven servants in eight plays written in Igbo language by six authors. The work considers the perception of the servant by other charac ters in these works of art, the way in which each of these servants perceives him/ herself, and the roles of the servant in the development of the entire fictional enterprise. Finally, the theory of subjectivity: the conscious and unconscious thoughts and emotions that largely account for the relationship between the in dividual and the society, is used in the present work to explain the authors' presentations of the servants in these dramatic works of fiction.
12 - Book Reviews: Uta Wehn de Montalvo, 2003, Mapping the determinants of Special Data Sharing, Aldershot: Ashgate
Authors: Mine Yoich
Published: November 2011

Abstract
2 - Negotiated Economic Opportunity and Power: Perspectives and Perceptions of Street Vending in Urban Malawi
Authors: Jimu Ignasio Malizani
Published: November 2011

It is least acknowledged in daily discourses that street vending is a very impor tant phenomenon. Little wonder that street vending involves negotiating for space in all its manifestations: physical space, economic opportunity and power. The vendors are coerced by both local urban and national authorities and sometimes the public at large to justify or negotiate acceptance. Very often such intentions are blind to the most basic and yet fundamental aspect that street vending is a pragmatic grassroots response to bleak socio-economic and changing political realities that have not of late spared anyone. Street vending appears in all fair ness a means to legitimate ends. Hence, access to vending spaces should be perceived as a human rights issue. Otherwise, intentions to the contrary over look the needs and capacity of street vendors to communicate, reorient and police each other in various and meaningful ways. Any discussion of the place of street vending in the urban economy of Malawi should therefore consider why and how individual street vendors become what they are - vendors. These perspectives can enrich our defective understanding and parochial pursuits of idealized versions of regulation that are hardly appropriate for a pressurized and underdeveloped country and also for a negotiated idea of the social consumption of space that we should alway aim at.
4 - Oil Minorities and the Politics of Resource Control in Nigeria
Authors: Anugwom Edlyne E.
Published: November 2011

The paper examines the contentious nature of resource control and distribution in Nigeria. It avers that resource control has been a big problem confronting the Nigerian state from inception. This fact has not been helped by the heterogene ous nature of Nigeria, the weak capacity of the Nigerian state, the politics of resource allocation and the primordial bend of leadership. Therefore, the con testations over resources have been heightened in recent years by the politicisation and ethnicization of the resource allocation process by the Nigerian state and its elites. In this situation, the Niger Delta minority ethnic groups have seen them selves as victims of this politicisation of resource control by the dominant ma jority ethnic groups in control of state power. This allegation of marginalization in resource control is given further impetus by the decline of the derivation principle of revenue allocation, over centralization of the resource allocation process and the general socio-economic plight of the region in spite of being the source of the oil upon which Nigeria's monoeconomy has depended in the last three decades. Therefore, the grievance of the Niger Delta minorities and the general conflict and violence over resource control in Nigeria can only be mean ingfully addressed through a committed restructuring of the fiscal system
9 - Colonialism, Customary Law and the Post-Colonial State in Africa: The Case of Nigeria
Authors: Yakubu John Ademola
Published: November 2011

Colonialism became a fact of life in many African countries. An effect of colo nialism especially in the former British colonized countries was the transplanta tion of the British legal system, which led to recognition of both systems and the gradual relegation of the indigenous system otherwise called customary law. The use and effect of these customary laws became dependent on the permis sive extent of the general law. In its regulated state, its operation became de pendent on the satisfaction of the rules of common law equity and good con science. Other rules as to the amenability of customary law and proof became established. Notwithstanding the relegation of the rules of customary law vis-à vis the general law, these rules have survived to date. Islamic law which was usually regarded as a variant of customary law is beginning to have its separate status. This article shall examine the impact of colonialism on customary law especially in the post colonial Nigerian state.
5 - La nouvelle économie politique en Afrique : une analyse des enjeux *
Authors: Ateba Étienne Modeste Assiga
Published: November 2011

L’objet de cet article est d’analyser dans le contexte de régimes politiques non démocratiques, les enjeux – en termes de répartition équitable des revenus – de l’économie politique des réformes structurelles toujours en vigueur en Afrique, en l’occurrence dans la lignée de ce que l’on désigne désormais par « politique de la «seconde génération» des réformes ». A cet égard, l’hypothèse qui sous– tend cette étude est que l’État subit des contraintes de second rang dans ses rapports avec les organisations – nationales et internationales – et les marchés, et ce d’autant que les comportements stratégiques des agents économiques ne convergent pas nécessairement vers un équilibre de Nash optimal. Ces diver- gences affectent d’autant plus la croissance et le développement des pays d’Afrique Subsaharienne qu’un tel équilibre semble plutôt difficile à atteindre. Pour y parvenir, l’État pourrait jouer un rôle décisif en instaurant la concur- rence dans la perspective d’accroître l’efficience organisationnelle de l’économie, mais dont la pertinence reste encore à démontrer en Afrique.
La différence dans le système du même. Contribution philosophique à l’approche genre
Authors: Béatrice Faye
Published: November 2011

Reflections on male–female relations have gone through important stages, each of which corresponds to a specific predominant theoretical model. Starting from a ‘one-dimensional’ model rooted in the biological dimension, researchers devel- oped ‘multi-dimensional’ models to describe the increasing complexity of gender categories and its components. In the history of economics, gender-based divi- sion of labour is seen as natural, just as the biological discrimination between genders. More specifically, it is worth noting that economic theories generally remain silent about how social relations affect economic development. So, it is not surprising that conventional economics is neither well suited to address the most crucial issues of development, nor more relevant either to explain the male–female social relations. It is more of a hindrance than an instrument to analyse such relations. Indeed, by ending discrimination in roles while systematically partici- pating in all the formerly male-reserved activities, women have swept away the universally-assumed characteristic of males: the superiority of men over women. Women could express a sense of belonging to a group defined, for example, not in terms of class distinction, but based on gender categories, although such ‘gender consciousness’ is often articulated around the idea of women’s superiority as household managers, agents of social cohesion, and guardians against stateexcesses.
6 - Genre et commerce équitable au Cameroun *
Authors: Tchouassi Gerald
Published: November 2011

* L’auteur remercie les lauréats de l’Institut du CODESRIA sur le Genre-Session 2002 dont le thème était : « Globalisation, Genre et Commerce » et les évaluateurs anonymes de la revue pour leurs remarques pertinentes qui ont permis d’améliorer la qualité de cet article. Il reste seul responsable des erreurs et omissions qui subsisteraient.

L’objet de cet article est d’analyser la littérature existante sur le genre pour montrer comment les principes de base du commerce équitable peuvent favoriser la révision de la place des femmes dans les transactions internationales ou leur accès au commerce mondial. À cet égard, à partir de l’hypothèse selon laquelle les femmes sont en majorité des créatrices d’entreprises du commerce équitable, nous avons analysé dans cet article les données sur le Cameroun en utilisant une approche socioéconomique. Nous sommes arrivé à la conclusion selon laquelle pour participer au commerce équitable un certain nombre de principes incontournables doivent être respectés dans but d’assurer l’égalité de genre. Le circuit de distribution permet d’établir le « juste prix » du produit éthique fabriqué qui tient compte des coûts réels de production et non de subir le prix des multinationales et des grandes chaînes de distribution.

Gérard Tchouassi, Docteur d’État en Sciences Economiques, Faculté des Sciences Economiques et de Gestion, Université de Yaoundé II, Cameroun.
5 - Capitalism, Globalisation and the Underdevelopment Process in Africa: History in Perpetuity
Authors: Olutayo Akinpelu O. , Omobowale Ayokunle O.
Published: November 2011

Since the incorporation of the Third World nations into the world capitalist system, the underdevelopment process seems to have commenced through the use of liberal economic principles. In spite of the obvious pauperisation of these nations, it seems as if there is no alternative even when indigenous governments are in control of affairs. This paper attempts to show why the underdevelopment process has persisted with capitalism entrenched in the garb of globalisation. It suggests that the way out is for the developing world to control and own their means of survival without which the underdevelopment process shall continue. Of utmost significance however is the need to control the intellectual domain.
7 - Recent Trends and Patterns in Nigeria’s Industrial Development
Authors: Ajayi Dickson Dare
Published: November 2011

This paper analyses recent trend and spatial patterns of manufacturing in Nigeria. In particular, the paper shows that industrial development in the country involved considerable artisanal crafts firms in the early stages and grew progressively in number over the years to large-scale manufacturing. The pattern of the distribution of manufacturing industries at the city level indicates that there is a marked concentration of manufacturing establishments in the southern part of the country, and especially Lagos, Ibadan and Benin in the southwest. Other locations of relative high concentration of industrial establishments are Kano in the North; and Enugu and Port Harcourt in the southeast. Although, this paper shows that production subcontracting increased and varied amongst subcontracting firms, production subcontracting relationships are concentrated in a few locations. The paper concludes that the spatial pattern could change if industrialists adopt the strategy of industrial linkages, and especially production subcontracting which has become a driving force in contemporary industrial development efforts in the world today. It is expected that the situation could be better enhanced given the ongoing privatisation of industrial concerns in Nigeria.
1 - Les fondements de la Socioéconométrie
Authors: Thiombiano Taladidia
Published: November 2011

Cet article se présente comme un approfondissement de la réflexion dans mon œuvre Vers une approche en économie politique : la Socioéconométrie (1997). C’est une réflexion épistémologique relative à la construction de l’économie fondée sur le fait économique. Nous essayons de montrer qu’au regard de la complexité de ce fait économique qui, à l’origine est un acte social, il est impor- tant pour comprendre la réalité économique de se fonder sur la démarche multidimensionnelle. À cet effet, nous avons rappelé quelques constructions de théories économiques et les faits qui ont permis ces constructions. Un examen approfondi de ces théories montre l’importance de l’espace et du temps. Toute- fois, il ne s’agit pas du temps et de l’espace classiques, mais des concepts vus sous l’angle de leur dépérissement ou non dans leur attribution à l’économie. La combinaison espace/temps permet de mieux comprendre la réalité économique en tant que totalité systémique. La systématisation du fait économique conduit à considérer tout fait économique comme ayant des considérations sociologi- ques et tout fait sociologique comme ayant des incidences économiques. Enfin, la réflexion nous a conduit à examiner le rôle de l’Économétrie comme support dans l’approfondissement et la compréhension des théories économiques.
8 - ‘Justice Be Our Shield and Defender’: An Intellectual Property Rights Regime for Africa*
Authors: Mwangola Mshai S.
Published: November 2011

Protecting intellectual property rights has become essential in encouraging cut- ting-edge scholarship that advances the frontiers of knowledge. For a long time, the majority of Africa’s intelligentsia has worked in local and international envi- ronments that have exploited the continent’s intellectual capital. Even in con- texts where intellectual property rights are enforced, certain constituencies re- main at high risk for exploitation. In this paper I use three case studies to argue for a more comprehensive conversation on this issue encompassing intellectu- als working in different contexts and with diverse agendas. The first of these involves the unequal power dynamics between individuals working in different kinds of institutions, in this particular case, complicated by the global North/ South divide. The second explores the dynamics of power in intellectual rela- tionships while the third deals with the challenges emanating from the develop- ment and use of endogenous epistemologies in conversation and confrontation with modes of scholarship traditionally privileged in the western(ised) academy. How do we move towards a comprehensive intellectual property rights regime that does not inhibit intellectual freedom of exploration as it protects even the most vulnerable from exploitation? How do we foster a vibrant intellectual envi- ronment that is especially nurturing to communities traditionally marginalised within the academy?
7 - Horton Revisited: African Traditional Thought and Western Science
Authors: Keita Lansana
Published: November 2011

Over the years Robin Horton has argued for what he refers to as the ‘continuity thesis’ according to which there are theoretical similarities between African tra- ditional thought and modern Western science. Horton’s thesis stands in contrast to the standard Western anthropological appraisal of traditional African thought. The standard appraisal (Levy-Bruhl, Durkheim, Evans-Pritchard, et al.) stated that the two modes of thought were incommensurate. I argue that while the continuity thesis holds for certain aspects of African thought – empirical, proto- scientific and metaphysical – it does not apply to traditional African religious expression. My thesis here is that belief systems founded on magic, religion and their combinations should be understood as belonging to what might be referred to as general metaphysics. I argue too that if the continuity thesis is to apply to the history of thought in Africa then the more apt comparison should be between the different phases of technological and scientific thought of the West. Thus Horton’s claim that traditional African religious thought is configured accord- ing to the goals of explanation, prediction and control thereby putting it on the same epistemic plane as modern Western science is thereby rendered irrelevant. On the other hand the goal of traditional African religion like that of many other religious traditions – including those of the West – has principally been to seek a conscious communion with ancestors and anthropomorphised godheads and spiritual entities of the metaphysical realm.

Lansana Keita, University of the Gambia, The Gambia and BARA, University of Arizona, USA.
5 - Exploring Intersections: The Language Question Again!
Authors: Onoma Ato Kwamena
Published: November 2011

Many African countries have undertaken transitions to democratic rule since the early 1990s. While giving many people the rare opportunity to vote in com- petitive and pluralistic elections, there have been limits to the empowering ef- fects of these transitions for many. The paper argues that the continued use of English, French and Portuguese in state and academic activities has minimised the empowering effects of these democratic transitions. The use of such lan- guages contributes critically to limiting the ability of many Africans lacking fluency in them to participate in two important moments that define the possi- bilities and limits of democratic decision-making. First, it limits their ability to participate in discourses that determine what aspects of social realities should be subjected to democratic decision-making and what aspects should be insu- lated from popular participation. Second, it minimises the ability of many to contribute to discourses that define the appropriate ways of contesting what- ever elements of political economies are included in the democratic space. Inter- national politico-economic institutions and external epistemic communities have had excessive influence on these two moments of decision-making. The paper argues that generations of African scholars have collaborated in this process of disempowerment by refusing to take a concerted and determined stance against the dominant role of French, English and Portuguese on the continent. Because of this role, we should regard African scholarship as a force seeking to create a space for itself within a closed discursive and practical space rather than a radical force seeking to eliminate closure of discursive and practical spaces generally.
1 - Democratization of Science and Biotechnological Development: Public Debate on GM Maize in South Africa
Authors: Mwale Pascal Newbourne
Published: November 2011

The Mandela government that came into power in 1994 made the democratiza- tion of science and technology a priority in post-apartheid South Africa. At- tendant ideas of Science Communication and Public Understanding of Biotech- nology have hitherto become currency in South Africa’s public sector drive towards the democratization of science. Democratization of science and tech- nology implies that the people, as non-experts, are an integral part of all delibera- tions on policy, regulation and control of science and technology, for example, in debates or controversies on issues arising from biotechnology. Democratiza- tion of science and technology is about the sociopolitical control of science and technology by the wider society. Science and technology must be controlled by the society at large because evil-minded groups of people can ill-use it to inflict harm on other groups of people. Moreover, certain unscrupulous and corrupt business entities can collude with the state and/or powerful and influential sociopolitical figures in societies to exploit and abuse indigenous scientific resources as well as endogenous modes of specialized scientific knowledge. On the latter, for example, they can evoke intellectual property rights (IPR) to patent resources that are not theirs historically. Thus, the ideal-type of democracy makes it imperative for the people of South Africa and of other societies in Africa to understand and actively participate in the development of science and tech- nology. This necessitates increasing scholarly attention to be given to questions of science communication and public understanding of science, arising at the intersection between science, society and politics in South and southern Africa. This paper discusses the role and importance of social movements in science communication and public understanding of biotechnology in South and southern Africa.
3 - Globalization and State–Society Relations in Africa
Authors: Mengisteab Kidane
Published: November 2011

The post-colonial African state has long been viewed as a major culprit in Afri- ca’s socioeconomic crisis. Its failure to coordinate policy with broad social inter- ests and to reconcile its governance system with the institutions and cultural values of its citizens is a major factor. This paper examines if new globalization and its liberalization policies have begun to narrow the discrepancy between policy and social interests and to facilitate the reconstitution of the state by shifting the balance of power between state and society in favor of society. The findings suggest that, despite the apparent spread of democratization during the era of post – Cold-War globalization, the policy mechanisms of globalization have notably worsened the disjuncture between policy and social interests and exacerbated the antagonisms between the state and society in the African continent.
6 - Poverty Eradication Dilemma: Understanding Poverty Dynamics in Nebbi District, Uganda
Authors: Lakwo Alfred
Published: November 2011

This paper addresses a current methodological gap in poverty measurement, which stems from acknowledging the multi-dimensionality of poverty, on the one hand, and using an income/consumption measurement of poverty as the norm, on the other. The current income-based measure of poverty presents only part of measuring poverty status as a whole. The consumption basket is wrongly taken by those of economic inclination to wholly represent the entire, even non- monetary valued, range of poverty. The paper approaches this dilemma using a participatory and community-driven approach where the subjective views of people are used to define and categorize the poor, contrary to the poverty line approach. Such categorization was based on the perceived wellness of life and what made/denied wellness. A survey follows to explore the quantitative scope of poverty. This participatory, qualitative and quantitative mix of method, it is argued, provides for ascertaining organizational accountability in terms of the relevance of programme targeting and outreach as well as performance measurement over time. The method can also be used to deepen current participatory poverty assessments that simply stop at defining and identifying poverty causes, effects and solutions.
3 - Exploring Local Conceptions of Poverty, Wealth and Well-Being: Field Evidence from Mashonaland West Province of Zimbabwe
Authors: Mtapuri Oliver
Published: November 2011

This article presents the conceptions of poverty by the poor in Mashonaland West Province of Zimbabwe. It seeks to broaden the discussion of poverty around the definition of the poor from the perspective of the poor. A cause-effect frame- work for poverty analysis is proposed, as well as the introduction of the notion of ‘enclavity’ within a family in poverty discourse. These are the two primary contri- butions of this paper. The research suggests that, due to deepening poverty, people create enclaves around husband/wife relationships as a new form of resil- ience/collectivity. While the poor suffer from a lack of assets, ethics and networks breakdown as a result of poverty. The results suggest, as elsewhere, that poverty is multifaceted, thus driving to some confluence of conception.
5 - Gaborone is Growing like a Baby: Life Expectancies and Death Expectations in Urban Botswana
Authors: Ritsema Mieka S.
Published: November 2011

This article examines the paradox of Botswana’s twin reputations: first, success- ful national development and second, premature death from the HIV/AIDS epi- demic. While locating these reputations in the capital city, Gaborone, the article analyzes reflections of people who are themselves the audience for, and partici- pants in, the country’s development. Ethnographic data reveal a dramatic shift in discourse by generational cohort in terms of explaining the apparent contra- diction of successful development in the midst of tragedy. The article shows how official discourses of development and death are appropriated by a younger generation in Gaborone, in ways unanticipated in a meta-narrative of modernity. The emotional anguish of an older generation is absent in a younger genera- tion’s expectation that development goes hand-in-hand with funerals. The shift in perspective that is instantiated in Gaborone, reflects a profound transforma- tion in the relationship between the production of knowledge and the state’s expanding capacity since independence in 1966. This study contributes to the literature on development, modernity, African cities and the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
6 - Children at Risk: A Study of the Psychosocial Impact of HIV on Orphans and other Vulnerable Children in Benin
Authors: Østergaard Lise Rosendal , Meyrowitsch Dan W.
Published: November 2011

This paper describes the effect of parental HIV on the life of children in Benin. A total of 2,043 children aged from 10 to 16 were surveyed on health, diet, violence, school attendance and psychosocial state. The results indicate that, while Beninese children who have had a parent living with HIV are not necessarily subjected to different economic and material conditions than those who have not, they do experience a much greater lack of psychosocial support. In contrast to children whose parents are not known to have HIV, these affected children are less prone to general illness (OR=0.69, 95 per cent CI 0.55-0.86). However, when they are sick, HIV-affected children are significantly more likely to undertake self-treatment (OR=1.38; 95 per cent CI 1.04-1.86) and more likely to work (OR=1.65, 95 per cent CI 1.04-2.60). They are also offered fewer meals than unaffected children (OR=1.94; 95 per cent CI 1.52-2.47). With respect to psychosocial fac- tors, the data suggest that children who have had a parent with HIV have signifi- cantly higher levels of psychological distress than those who have not. Govern- ments and civil society organisations need to address not only the material deprivation, especially hunger, of children thus affected by HIV, but also their need for social services.
2 - Public Sector Reforms In Africa: A Philosophical Re-Thinking
Authors: Omoyefa Paul Sunday
Published: November 2011

Public sector reform (PSR) has been quite popular in African. However, the inadequate understanding of the philosophical basis of the reforms has led to many African countries to equating PSR with privatization and commercialization of public enterprises, downsizing of the public service workforce and the war on corruption. While many African countries are pursuing with the necessary vig- our these policies, which were induced by former colonial masters and so-called development agencies, there has been little or no success as compared with the pre-PSR era. The aim of this paper is to bring out, in clear terms, the fact that the present PSR cannot achieve success because of the threat of sustaining contin- ued control of the African economies and policies by the Breton Woods institu- tions, the sale of public enterprises to multinational companies, the migration of the best African brains to Europe and America, corruption and neo-colonialism. In essence, this paper advocates a philosophical re-thinking of PSR. This will start with reforming the minds of African leaders to reform the body politic. This study shows that PSR in Africa that fail to take note of the ethical and communal values and peculiar situations of various African countries will definitely fail.
4 - Experiences in New Public Management in Africa: The Case of Performance Management Systems in Botswana
Authors: Dzimbiri Lewis B.
Published: November 2011

In his 18-page paper entitled ‘The Challenges of Governance, Public Sector Reform and Public Administration in Africa: Some Research Issues’, Guy Mhone made central to public sector reforms the need to promote procedural rationality in the operation of the public sector and instrumental rationality in terms of economic, social and political outcomes. The present paper contributes to the debate on procedural rationality by focusing attention on performance manage- ment systems (PMS), which has emerged with the advent of New Public Man- agement (NPM). It starts by providing the context of the changing role of the state since the 1980s as a background to public sector reforms in Africa. The paper further clarifies NPM and PMS as applied to the public sector before going on to discuss the experience of Botswana in public sector reforms, with particular emphasis on its performance management system. How PMS emerged, its implementation, its monitoring and evaluation are examined in this paper, along with an analysis of challenges and lessons learnt.
7 - Privatization and ‘Agentification’ of Public Services Delivery in Africa: Extent and Managerial Leadership Implications in Tanzania
Authors: Ngowi Honest Prosper
Published: November 2011

The paper dwells on the very current and topical issue of changing patterns and practices of public service delivery in Africa. The author offers a critical analysis and discussion on the extent to which public service delivery is being under- taken by the private sector (privatization) and executive agencies (‘agentification’) in Tanzania and the related managerial leadership implications. The article evi- dences the fact that over the last decade, Tanzania has taken many and far- reaching bold steps to reform its public sector and improve the performance of civil servants. Among the notable reforms is the participation of the private sector and executive agencies in the delivery of non-core public services through the private sector participation (PSP) initiative. The paper also shows that the privatization and ‘agentification’ of the public service delivery in Tanzania has a number of managerial leadership implications on the part of the public sector, the private sector and the executive agencies involved. Finally, the paper dem- onstrates that good managerial leadership, in the institutions involved in serv- ice delivery, is crucial if the objectives of privatization and ‘agentification’ of public service delivery are to be achieved.
9 - Archie Mafeje and the Pursuit of Endogeny: Against Alterity and Extroversion
Authors: Adesina Jimi O.
Published: November 2011

Professor Archibald Monwabisi Mafeje passed away on 28 March 2007. The meaning of Archie Mafeje, for three generations of African scholars and social scientists, is profound and about diverse encounters. For some it was personal; for others it was through his works, and for most in the community the encounter via scholarly works became personal and intimate. The meaning of Mafeje for generations of African scholars is found in his uncompromising aversion to the ‘epistemology of alterity’ – the ‘othering’ of Africa and Africans – and the ad- vancement of scholarship grounded in the centring of African ontological expe- riences. It is in this aversion to alterity and pursuit of endogeneity that we locate Mafeje’s lasting legacy for new generations of African intellectuals. This paper, which is personal and intellectual, involves a close and critical engagement with these aspects of Mafeje’s scholarships.
2 - Songs of the King’s Wives: Women, Power and Performance in the Yoruba Public Sphere
Authors: Omojola Bode
Published: November 2011

Indigenous festivals, which rely significantly on music and dance, often constitute the village public sphere and the social arena within which the structures of power are performed and negotiated in tradi- tional African communities. This article discusses two unique musical traditions which feature prominently at annual traditional festivals in Emure-Ekiti, a Yoruba town in Western Nigeria. The musical traditions are orin olori (songs of the king’s wives) and a related ensemble, orin airegbe, a musical tradition associated with female chiefs. Exploring an ethnomusicological approach, this article argues that the complemen- tary relationship between these two all-female musical traditions and the scope of their performance practices draw attention to the ways in which public performance sp aks to the status and agency of women in traditional Yoruba societies.
8 - Les dessous de l’opération Licorne en Côte d’Ivoire : pour une lecture géopolitique nouvelle des interventions françaises en Afrique
Authors: Adjagbe Mathieu
Published: November 2011

Le présent travail porte sur l’intervention militaire française en Côte d’Ivoire. Il s’est donné un double défi théorique et pratique : d’abord analyser les motivations de l’engagement militaire d’une puissance étrangère dans un conflit domestique, élaborer un modèle analytique à partir de la géopolitique nouvelle, puis l’apprécier à la lumière de l’intervention militaire de la France en Côte d’Ivoire. L’intervention française a fait l’objet de moult spéculations pour la plupart narratives voire pamphlétaires. L’originalité de cet article réside dans la capacité de son auteur à systématiser les motivations de la France en s’appuyant sur la dynamique du dehors par une analyse multidimensionnelle et pluri-scalaire. En se focalisant sur des déterminants géopolitiques précis, l’auteur a mis en lumière les considérations idéologiques souvent occultées dans les écrits sur la question. Prenant le contrepied des chercheurs qui tendent à marginaliser le rôle de l’Afrique dans la mondialisation économique, l’auteur a montré l’importance stratégique de l’espace africain, et ivoirien en particulier, pour les grandes puissances qui justifient davantage l’opération Licorne. Il en conclut que cette opération est capitale tant pour la France que pour la Côte d’Ivoire et les pays de la zone Franc CFA.
6 - L’Islam et la femme dans l’espace public au Niger
Authors: Alio Mahaman
Published: November 2011

Le but de cet article est de montrer comment la femme nigérienne a négocié et continue de négocier sa citoyenneté dans un pays à 99 pour cent musulman. Dès l’indépendance, on voit nettement le jeu d’équilibre que faisait le président Diori Hamani pour préserver la laïcité du pays et les droits de chaque composante de la nation. En 1975, à la faveur de l’Année Internationale de la femme, celle-ci entre sur scène et depuis lors, elle revendique quotidiennement ses droits.
La démocratisation de la société nigérienne à partir de la Conférence Nationale de 1991 a amené aussi dans l’espace public les associations musulmanes et chrétiennes, avec leurs revendications propres. Ce qui distingue ces nouvelles forces sociales de celles auxquelles l’Etat nigérien était habitué, c’était que celles-ci posaient des problèmes nouveaux, d’ordre religieux. Le débat a aussi engagé l’intelligentsia du pays, qui éclairait l’opinion. Toutes ces luttes citoyennes ont permis la prise en compte des femmes dans les choix politiques malgré les pesanteurs religieuses.
8 - The Contribution of Women in Influencing Legislation and Policy Formulation and Implementation in Uganda (1995-2005)
Authors: Mushemeza Elijah Dickens
Published: November 2011

This paper on impact assessment of the contribution of women in influencing legislation and policy formulation and implementation in Uganda 1995-2005 is premised on the assumption that there is still much more to be done, though women have made some contributions towards the advancement of gender equality and empowerment. This is because the institution of patriarchy is still strong, and sufficient gender mainstreaming in the determination of policy choices and legislations and how these affect the quality of life for both women and men, particularly in the areas of family, health and education, is still lacking. The paper argues that although the government has been implementing a gender sensitive and responsive constitution, and despite the fact that the number of women participating in politics and governance has been steadily increasing, their participation has not had the desired impact on legislations and policies to make them gender sensitive and responsive to women’s rights, interests and needs. The sectors of health, education and family are selected for the analysis because these are where women are affected most. It is presumed that having gender sensitive, responsive and implemented policies, and non-discriminatory laws, in these sectors would go a long way in neutralising patriarchy and promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.
The paper proposes policy recommendations on how to scale up women’s participation, contribution and impact on policies and legislations to the advancement of gender equality and empowerment of women in the entire society.
2 - Rulers against Writers, Writers against Rulers: The Failed Promise of the Public Sphere in Postcolonial Nigerian Fiction
Authors: Kehinde Ayo
Published: November 2011

Various literary critics have dwelt on the nature, tenets and trends of commitment in Nigeria literature. However, there is paucity of scholarly studies on the representations of the failed promise to the public sphere in postcolonial Nigerian fiction. This paper, therefore, examines the strat- egies and technicalities of representing the castrated hope of the public sphere in postcolonial Nigerian fiction, using the templates provided by Chinua Achebe’s Anthills of the Savannah, Ben Okri’s The Fam- ished Road and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus. The methodology involves a close reading of the selected texts, using Jürgen Habermas’s concept of the Public Sphere as the theoretical framework. The paper reveals that the context of the texts (Nigeria) lacks the public sphere, which is supposed to provide a liminal space between the pri- vate realm of civil society and the family, as well as the sphere of public authority. This is disclosed in the refusal of the characters to disregard ‘status altogether’ (Habermas 1991:36).
5 - The African Public Space of Dangarembga’s Neria: A Site for Autochthonous Feminist Agency
Authors: Kapasula Jessie Kabwila
Published: November 2011

The public space is a place where anybody has a right to occupy without being excluded for economic or social reasons. This paper is an attempt to illustrate the ‘westocentricity’ and inapplicability of the term ‘public space’ to the African context. This term is steeped in the discourse of capital, one that profits from proliferating labels like ‘public’, ‘free’, ‘open’, masquerading in appearances that gloss over the hegemonic forces like global patriarchy, capitalism and neo-colonialism that largely govern twenty-first century Africa. An interrogation of the spaces that can be called the ‘commons’ in Dangarembga’s Neria (1986) and Nervous Conditions (1988), (Zimbabwe) and Sene Absa’s Madame Brouette (2002) (Senegal), shows that such spaces are fraught with social constraints that discriminate against access at class and gender levels, just to mention a few. I will illustrate how language constrains poor and illiterate Africans, especially women, from accessing places such as the river, and legal and entertainment public spaces in the literary works outlined above. It is important for scholarship on Africa to emphasize that ‘The African public space’ is an oxymoron, a fallacy that does not exist. There is no space that can legitimately be called ‘public’ in Africa, especially for rural, poor, uneducated, non-Christian/Muslim women.
3 - Repression of Press Freedom in Nigerian Democratic Dispensations
Authors: Akinwale Akeem Ayofe
Published: November 2011

The Nigerian socio-political environment influences press freedom with adverse implications for education, information, entertainment and surveillance. A theoretical recognition of the press as the “fourth estate” connotes the capacity of the press to monitor the tiers of government (the legislature, the executive and the judiciary). However, the state monitors the press in Nigeria in a manner that negates the principle of the fourth estate. This article examines the repression of press freedom in Nigerian democratic dispensations. Using questionnaires and in- depth interviews, data were drawn from 440 members of staff of selected print and electronic press organisations in Lagos and Oyo states of Nigeria. Results showed that although the press facilitated the development of democracy, challenges to press freedom were frequent. Respondents largely confirmed that the press kept the public informed, entertained and enlightened, and it set standards and established values for public conduct. The findings showed that the proposed Freedom of Information Bill (FIB) would empower the press and promote democracy in Nigeria if passed into law and implemented. Therefore, it was recommended that press organisations should pursue their professionalism and the ethics of journalism rather than succumb to socio-political forces influencing the quantity and quality of information made available to the public. Political leaders in Nigeria should accommodate public opinion and press reports on necessities for socio- economic development before making any public interest decision.
4 - Pratiques urbaines et imbroglio spatial : Brazzaville de la fin de la période coloniale au début du XIXe siècle
Authors: Yekoka Jean Félix
Published: November 2011

Née de la volonté coloniale à la fin du XIXe siècle, Brazzaville présente l’image d’une ville artificielle. Son hyper croissance spatiale, qui n’est nullement le résultat d’une quête populaire à optimiser ou à satisfaire le besoin d’habitation, renforce sa fragmentation.
Ville macrocéphale, Brazzaville intègre dans son tissu urbain une gamme d’activités (jeux des propriétaires fonciers, petit commerce, petite agriculture, parkings, lavages auto, maraîchages, marquages, campagnes d’évangélisation, kiosques de téléphonie mobile, etc.) qui prennent d’assaut l’espace public. Il s’affiche à l’intérieur de ces pratiques une dynamique conflictuelle entre différents acteurs en présence, une course effrénée à l’espace public. Ce qui entraîne l’aliénation de celui-ci. Cette aliénation induit une confusion dans l’administration de l’espace public. Au regard des différents enjeux et aux défis auxquels les pouvoirs publics sont confrontés, en matière d’espace public urbain de Brazzaville, des scénarios sont envisageables dans la longue durée.
7 - Lieux de vente de vin de palme et débats publics : une autre face de l’espace public à Kisangani
Authors: LIpambala John Nkoko
Published: November 2011

A Kisangani, les conditions socio-économiques défavorables poussent certains individus à se défouler dans les lieux de consommation de vin de palme appelé « libondo » en jargon local. Ces lieux sont devenus des sites où les hommes et les femmes se rencontrent après le marché, le service ou les travaux de champs. Au-delà de la prise du vin de palme dont le coût répond bien à la bourse de chacune d’entre elles, les personnes qui fréquentent ces lieux profitent de l’ambiance qui y règne pour s’exprimer sur les grandes questions de la ville, de la province, du pays voire même de la planète. Car, les bonnes informations, estiment-elles, sont celles qui sont transmises dans de tels endroits.
Ainsi, les points de vente de « libondo » sont devenus à Kisangani des espaces publics où s’organisent les débats et discussions, de façon spontanée et sans aucune formalité, sur les questions d’actualité. Tout peut donc se dire dans ces sites et il n’existe pas de sujet tabou ni de contrainte sécuritaire. Cela parce qu’on se croit être en face de celui ou de celle avec qui on partage le même niveau de vie et par conséquent les mêmes difficultés. L’on ne devrait donc pas se créer de problèmes ; au contraire on doit considér r ce cadre comme la seule chance où la libre expression est permise.
9 - La formation d’un espace public camerounais à l’épreuve de la construction des réseaux routiers de communication
Authors: Keutcheu Joseph
Published: November 2011

La question centrale de notre communication est donc la suivante : peut-on construire et consolider un espace public au Cameroun sans une intégration physique de son territoire, sans les réseaux de communications ? La réponse à cette question nous amènera à envisager ces réseaux de communication comme vecteurs de l’imposition de l’ordre étatique sur le territoire et, simultanément, comme le moyen de mise en réseau d’acteurs d’une société civile très souvent contemptrice de la puissance publique. Ce faisant, à travers la l’inégale distribution spatiale des réseaux de communication et la révélation d’une société en archipel, on met en exergue la configuration baroque de l’espace public camerounais.
4 - Économie solidaire et espace public en Afrique : le cas de la région de Marrakech
Authors: El Morchid Brahim
Published: November 2011

L’interaction entre l’économie solidaire et l’espace public suscite de plus en plus d’intérêt tant par les débats théoriques qu’elle implique que par les réalités socio-économiques qu’elle recouvre. Cette présente contribution ne vise pas à dresser un panorama exhaustif des débats suscités par ce thème. Aussi, après avoir expliqué le rôle capital de l’espace public dans la compréhension de l’économie solidaire, notre propos visera à expliquer les mécanismes par lesquels les activités relevant de l’économie solidaire dynamisent l’espace public. Et à travers une étude de type monographique, nous mettrons à l’épreuve les apports de la littérature se rapportant à cette question.
5 - Housing Cape Town’s Forgotten Dead: Conflict in the Post-apartheid Public Sphere
Authors: Green Louise , Murray Noëleen
Published: November 2011

On 28 May 2008, the Cape Town Partnership Company Executive Officers’s newsletter reported on an ‘Interfaith ceremony at Prestwich Place [sic]’ to ‘consecrate’ a new ossuary building recently completed in Cape Town’s central business district. The announcement placed the Ossuary alongside other Partnership initiates and events such as the Harvest Festival, the Creative Cape Town initiative, and the upgrading of the Cape Town Station and the Grand Parade managed through the Partnership and the City Improvement District. The building of the Ossuary is intended to memorialise and bring closure to the contestations over the re-emergence of burial spaces in the city that have taken place in Cape Town since 2004. Presented as a successful ‘partnership’ between the Prestwich Place Project Committee, the City of Cape Town, the South African Heritage Resources Agency, the District Six Museum and Heritage Western Cape, this symbolic act of closure has been hailed a breakthrough in terms of heritage practice by practitioners and city officials alike. In this paper we visit the space of the Ossuary and its associated exhibition in the city, and reflect on the relationship between life space and burial space in Cape Town. Following the official path of the exhibition we pause to attach our own notes – a series of fragmentary interventions which trouble the smooth surface of containme t. We use the experience of walking to reflect on the architecture of closure.