As Africa enters the 21st century, it faces mounting challenges as well as new opportunities. Unlike in the 1980s and the 1990s, however, the conditions for Africa 's sustained growth and development are more favorable today than ever before. As a result of economic reforms the overall growth has been in excess of 4.5 percent annually since the mid-1990s. There is greater consensus among Africans now than at any previous time on what needs to be done to accelerate growth, reduce poverty and promote sustainable development. The positive response of Africa 's international partners enhances the prospects for sustaining the progress. Africa is also benefiting from a commodity boom and increased investment in infrastructure and the extractive industry sector. But many questions remain unanswered. The most pressing question is how Africa can best benefit from the rise of the Asian giants, China and India.

How can African countries escape from marginalization, deepening impoverishment and state disintegration in the new era of globalization? The author of this book explores a way beyond the simple state-led versus market-driven approaches to Africa's development. He argues that the international financial institutions must stop their own development and that African countries must work within the reality of globalization to renew democracy and improve governance; invest in education; revitalize agriculture, manage their cities, strengthen regional economic integration, and prevent yet more deadly conflicts. Cheru contends how these options would require commonsense and non-dogmatic approaches; a new generation committed to a new kind of politics; and to synergy between the opportunities of the global economy and rebuilding Africa's economies.

The subject of food security and land issues in Africa has become one of increased importance and contention over recent years. In particular, the focus has shifted to the role new Global South donors - in particular India, China and Brazil - are playing in shaping African agriculture through their increased involvement and investment in the continent. Approaching the topic through the framework of South-South co-operation (SSC), this highly original volume presents a critical analysis of the ways in which Chinese, Indian and Brazilian engagements in African agriculture are structured and implemented. Do these investments have the potential to create new opportunities to improve local living standards, transfer new technology and know-how to African producers, and reverse the persistent productivity decline in African agriculture? Or will they simply aggravate the problem of food insecurity by accelerating the process of land alienation and displacement of local people from their land?Topical and comprehensive, Agricultural Development and Food Security in Africa offers fresh insight into a set of relationships that will shape both Africa and the world over the coming decades.

In recent years, China and India have become the most important economic partners of Africa and their footprints are growing by leaps and bounds, transforming Africa's international relations in a dramatic way. Although the overall impact of China and India's engagement in Africa has been positive in the short-term, partly as a result of higher returns from commodity exports fuelled by excessive demands from both countries, little research exists on the actual impact of China and India's growing involvement on Africa's economic transformation. This book examines in detail the opportunities and challenges posed by the increasing presence of China and India in Africa, and proposes critical interventions that African governments must undertake in order to negotiate with China and India from a stronger and more informed platform.

In recent years, China and India have become the most important economic partners of Africa and their footprints are growing by leaps and bounds, transforming Africa's international relations in a dramatic way. Although the overall impact of China and India's engagement in Africa has been positive in the short-term, partly as a result of higher returns from commodity exports fuelled by excessive demands from both countries, little research exists on the actual impact of China and India's growing involvement on Africa's economic transformation. This book examines in detail the opportunities and challenges posed by the increasing presence of China and India in Africa, and proposes critical interventions that African governments must undertake in order to negotiate with China and India from a stronger and more informed platform.

This volume provides an up-to-date and detailed tour d'horizon of the exciting diversity of new proposals and mechanisms currently being discussed in order to raise the necessary financial resources to make the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals a reality by 2015. If the MDGs to halve global poverty and significantly improve the conditions of life of the world's poor are to be met on schedule, putting in place the requisite funding is an essential component. The economists in this volume from WIDER, UNDP, and other leading institutions have contributed their analyses as part of the Helsinki Process on Globalisation and Democracy - a high-level multi-stakeholder initiative to develop new approaches to global problem-solving, a global economic agenda and human security. Key resource flows examined include ODA, foreign direct investment, remittances by migrants, commodity export prices, and new ideas to secure sustainable debt relief, including SDRs, debt cancellation, revaluation of IMF gold reserves, debt arbitration, and other proposals. The statistically rich analyses are presented in the context of the complicated trends in global inequality, the incidence of poverty, and the impacts of globalisation. The editors conclude with a thought-provoking set of ideas about the political requirements for effective global economic governance aimed at achieving the MDGs that the world community set itself at the start of the new millennium. The empirical data in this volume and survey of key new ideas for resource mobilisation will be invaluable to all those concerned with global economic governance, including scholars, diplomats, NGO lobbyists, and students studying development economics.

How can African countries escape from marginalization, deepening impoverishment and state disintegration in the new era of globalization? Fantu Cheru draws on his experience of many different countries to argue for a way beyond the simple state-led versus market-driven approaches to Africa's development. The international financial institutions must stop their heavy handed interventions and let countries decide their own development paths. African countries must work within the reality of globalization to renew democracy and improve governance; invest in education; revitalize agriculture, manage their cities, strengthen regional economic integration, and prevent yet more deadly conflicts. These require commonsense and non-dogmatic approaches, learning from local successes, entrepreneurship, and a new generation committed to a new kind of politics.