Blog

Slaves into Workers

Slaves into Workers

For those interested in the history of slavery in contexts other than the trans-Atlantic slave trade, Ahmad Alawad Sikainga’s “Slaves into Workers: Emancipation and Labor in Colonial Sudan” (1996) provides a detailed account of the rise and demise of slavery within the Sudan. “In the broadest sense”, Ahmad writes, “this book examines slave emancipation and […]

Tags: #Colonial #Colonization #Slavery #South Sudan #Sudan

Thought Provokers
Imagining Ethiopia – Identity in the Horn

Imagining Ethiopia – Identity in the Horn

John Sorenson’s “Imagining Ethiopia: Struggles for History and Identity in the Horn of Africa” (1993) presents portrayals of Ethiopia – domestic and foreign, historical and present – and in some ways is similar to “Famine and Foreigners” (2010) by Gill. The book is partially about identity, but more about portrayals and perceptions of Ethiopia, Ethiopians, […]

Tags: #Eritrea #Ethiopia #History #Identity #Narrative

Thought Provokers

New Publications (2018, Jan-Mar)

New publications from 2018: Cochrane, L, Boulanger, R. F., Sheikheldin, G. H. and Song, G. (2018) The Case for Local Ethics Oversight in International Development Research. Canadian Journal of Bioethics 1: 8-16. [from journal here] Cochrane, L. and Cafer, A. (2018) Does Diversification Enhance Community Resilience? A Critical Perspective. Resilience. [from journal here] Cochrane, L. and Rao, […]

Tags: #Ethics #Ethiopia #Gender #Research for Development #Resilience

Research
A Decade of Ethiopia: Politics, Economy and Society

A Decade of Ethiopia: Politics, Economy and Society

As appears in Progress in Development Studies 18(2): 147-14. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1464993417749150 Abbink, Jon. 2017: A Decade of Ethiopia: Politics, Economy and Society 2004-2016. Leiden: Brill. 253 pp. $24.00. ISBN: 9789004345881. Ethiopia is a country of contradictions. There have been sustained, high rates of macro-economic growth and progress on development indicators, with persistently high levels of poverty […]

Tags: #Abbink #Economy #Ethiopia #Politics #Society

Thought Provokers
The Black Man’s Burden

The Black Man’s Burden

The role of institutions in development has becoming increasingly important, most notably in the recent works “Economic Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy” (2006) and “Why Nations Fail” (2012). Before these books, Basil Davidson wrote “The Black Man’s Burden: Africa and the Curse of the Nation-State” (1992), which places a large emphasis on the role of […]

Tags: #Basil Davidson #Black Man's Burden #Colonialism #decolonization #Institutions

Thought Provokers
The ‘Nelson Mandela’ You Have Probably Not Heard About

The ‘Nelson Mandela’ You Have Probably Not Heard About

Robert Sobukwe (1924-1978). Leader of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) in South Africa, a focal leader in the struggle against apartheid, Sobukwe was so feared by the apartheid government that after he led a mass non-violence protests to break unjust laws, he was jailed indefinitely for fear of what he might do. A law was […]

Tags: #How Can Man Die Better #Robert Sobukwe #Sobukwe #Sobukwe clause #South Africa

Thought Provokers