Despite two-and-a-half decades of black majority rule after 1994, much of South African higher education in the area of humanities continues to embrace European models and paradigms. This is despite concepts such as Africanisation, indigenisation and decolonisation of the curriculum having become buzzwords, especially after the #MustFall campaigns, student-led protests from 2015.

This book argues that, beyond the use of internally constructed strategies to foster curriculum transformation in South Africa, it is important to draw lessons from the curriculum transformation efforts of other African countries and African-American studies in the United States (US).

The end of colonialism in Africa from the 1950s marked the most important era in curriculum transformation efforts in African higher education, evident in the rise of leading decolonial schools: the Ibadan School of History, the Dar es Salaam School of Political Economy and the Dakar School of Culture. These centres used rigorous research methods such as nationalist historiography and oral sources to challenge Eurocentric epistemologies. African-American studies emerged in the US from the 1920s to debunk notions of white superiority and challenge racist ideas and structures in international relations. The two important schools of this scholarship were the Atlanta School of Sociology and the Howard School of International Affairs.

This book focuses on southern Africa by engaging with ‘norms’ from various perspectives and how they have proliferated within a neo-liberalising context since the 1990s. It particularly examines gender norms in relation to agency, influence and their impact. Despite growing transnational activities, regional studies analyses have so far maintained a primarily linear logic not incorporative of the increasing interface between state and non-state regionalism in a transnational context since the advent of liberalisation and democratisation. Increasing non-state activities, and their connection to state processes involved in norm creation, adaptation, diffusion and implementation around broad questions of security (including gender security), amount to regional thickening. The book’s analytical approach is informed by alternatives to mainstream approaches, emphasising processes rather than linearity inherent in regional international relations studies. The research reveals that transnational activities and regionalisation of gender and women-focused civil society actors are critical for advocacy and diverse representation within intergovernmental policymaking structures at the regional scale.

This edited volume explores Nigeria's domestic and international politics and its implications for the country's national development and international status. Coinciding with the twenty year anniversary of Nigeria's return to democratic rule, this volume considers the state of democracy in Nigeria and examines its successes and challenges with a view towards offering possible solutions for the country's future development. The first half of the volume addresses domestic politics, focusing on current issues such as the 2019 elections, Nigerian federalism, media, state-civil society relations, and Boko Haram terrorism. The second half looks at Nigeria's relations with its African neighbors, discussing the relationships between Nigeria and South Africa, Egypt, Ghana, and Cameroon, among others. Engaging the full spectrum of the politics of a rising African power, this volume will be of interest to students and researchers of comparative politics, international relations, foreign policy, African studies, regional politics, peace, security, conflict, and development studies, as well as African policymakers.

This book examines the relations between Nigeria and South Africa and their implications for regional influence across the African continent. With the largest and third largest economies in the region and a historical status as the major peacemakers on the continent, it is often argued that Africa's fate is directly linked to the success or failure of these regional powers. While there is widespread reference to each state's capabilities and regional influence in the extant literature, little analysis is offered on relations between Nigeria and South Africa and their impact on regional governance and provision of public goods on the continent. This book attempts to fill the gap by engaging issues such as the hegemonic competence of the states, their credentials for a permanent seat at the UNSC, their efforts towards regional integration, and their efforts towards combating the dark side of globalization including climate change, drug trafficking and xenophobia. It also engages a gender perspective to these states' relations as well as their experiences of transitional justice. Providing an in-depth comparative analysis of the two so called African powerhouses, this volume will be of interest to policy-makers, academics and students interested in Nigeria and South Africa's foreign policy, regional powerhood, and the African peace, security, and development agenda.

This book investigates the ways in which soft power is used by African countries to help drive global influence. Selecting four of the countries most associated with soft power across the continent, this book delves into the currencies of soft power across the region: from South Africa’s progressive constitution and expanding multinational corporations, to Nigeria’s Nollywood film industry and Technical Aid Corps (TAC) scheme, Kenya’s sport diplomacy, fashion and tourism industries, and finally Egypt’s Pan-Arabism and its reputation as the cradle of civilisation. The book asks how soft power is wielded by these countries and what constraints and contradictions they encounter. Understandings of soft power have typically been driven by Western scholars, but throughout this book, Oluwaseun Tella aims to Africanise our understanding of soft power, drawing on prominent African philosophies, including Nigeria’s Omolúwàbí, South Africa’s Ubuntu, Kenya’s Harambee, and Egypt’s Pharaonism. This book will be of interest to researchers from across political science, international relations, cultural studies, foreign policy and African Studies. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/ 9781003176022, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license

This book investigates the ways in which soft power is used by African countries to help drive global influence.

Selecting four of the countries most associated with soft power across the continent, this book delves into the currencies of soft power across the region: from South Africa’s progressive constitution and expanding multinational corporations, to Nigeria’s Nollywood film industry and Technical Aid Corps (TAC) scheme, Kenya’s sport diplomacy, fashion and tourism industries, and finally Egypt’s Pan-Arabism and its reputation as the cradle of civilisation. The book asks how soft power is wielded by these countries and what constraints and contradictions they encounter. Understandings of soft power have typically been driven by Western scholars, but throughout this book, Oluwaseun Tella aims to Africanise our understanding of soft power, drawing on prominent African philosophies, including Nigeria’s Omolúwàbí, South Africa’s Ubuntu, Kenya’s Harambee, and Egypt’s Pharaonism.

This book will be of interest to researchers from across political science, international relations, cultural studies, foreign policy and African Studies.

This edited volume explores Nigeria's domestic and international politics and its implications for the country's national development and international status. Coinciding with the twenty year anniversary of Nigeria's return to democratic rule, this volume considers the state of democracy in Nigeria and examines its successes and challenges with a view towards offering possible solutions for the country's future development. The first half of the volume addresses domestic politics, focusing on current issues such as the 2019 elections, Nigerian federalism, media, state-civil society relations, and Boko Haram terrorism. The second half looks at Nigeria's relations with its African neighbors, discussing the relationships between Nigeria and South Africa, Egypt, Ghana, and Cameroon, among others. Engaging the full spectrum of the politics of a rising African power, this volume will be of interest to students and researchers of comparative politics, international relations, foreign policy, African studies, regional politics, peace, security, conflict, and development studies, as well as African policymakers.