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CIAO DATE: 08/05
June 2005
Table of Contents
Front Cover (PDF, 1 pages, 1.35 MB)
Table of Contents (PDF, 2 pages, 567.5 KB)
From the Editor-in-Chief: Listen to Africa by Dorin Tudoran (PDF, 1 page, 131.0 KB)
Resources for the Professional (PDF, 1 page, 144.0 KB)
In Brief (PDF, 1 page, 193.1 KB)
Thinking Out Loud
Belonging & Citizenship in Africa by Hippolyt A. S. Pul (PDF, 3 pages, 563.5 KB)
The creation of the African Union has revived pan-Africanists' dreams of establishing a continental state and a common citizenship out of the continent's disparate populations. But while such unions are forming at the regional level, the continent simultaneously faces a proliferation of violent ethnic and/or religious conflicts, which are tearing its societies apart. From the politico-religious conflicts in Algeria to the battles for political power in Zimbabwe, Africa finds itself embroiled in wars that have effectively redefined belonging and citizenship in very exclusionary terms.
Cover Story
Building Democracy in Africa's Weak States by Michael Bratton (PDF, 4 pages, 492.9 KB)
What are the prospects for democracy in sub- Saharan Africa? Due to the continent's diversity, the only sensible answer is "It depends." In any given African country, democracy's future depends significantly on whether citizens share a sense of national identity and whether the economy generates wealth that is distributed equitably.
Fieldwork
The Power of Acting Together: National Dialogue and Guinea's Civil Society Movement by Elizabeth Côté (PDF, 2 pages, 224.0 KB)
Through dialogue, IFES' Guinea program brings diverse civil society actors together to work for the country's political, economic and social development.
On The Road To A New Constitution by Heinz Klug (PDF, 2 pages, 315.1 KB)
The drafting of South Africa's constitution—which spearheaded the country's miracle transition from apartheid to democracy—has been heralded as an inspiration and a model. While I am certainly inspired by the process of negotiated constitution-building my country concluded some 10 years ago, my experience of those events leads me to urge caution on those who would hold it up as a model for other countries (like Afghanistan and Iraq). Instead, I suggest that a careful analysis of South Africa's experience provides insight valuable to those who seek to use constitution-making as a means of transcending conflict and achieving democracy. If South Africa's experience offers one simple lesson, it is that the process of negotiating is as important as the mechanisms for achieving agreement or the institutional arrangements finally adopted. As a result, the essential elements in a successful constitution- making process are negotiation, participation, agreed-upon principles, flexible transitional mechanisms and messages of inclusion.
In The Trenches
Measuring Program IMPACT: Lessons In Evaluation from Humanitarian Aid by Steven Hansch (PDF, 2 pages, 303.2 KB)
Within the broad field of international aid, the sub-field of emergency assistance may well have established the most successful policies and practice for monitoring program outputs. Ironically, much of this progress has occurred despite a pervasive and ongoing ethic among emergency aid workers that the urgency of response should be unencumbered by ivory-tower academic studies. In addition, the moral environment of emergencies tends to dissuade responders from considering experimental designs, control groups or informed consent.
Beyond Democracy
Do Oil and Democracy Mix? by Ian Gary (PDF, 3 pages, 600.2 KB)
Over the next decade, oil-rich governments in sub-Saharan Africa will receive well over US$200 billion in revenues from petroleum production. Long-standing producers, such as Nigeria, Angola, Gabon and Congo-Brazzaville, are reaping the windfall from record-breaking world oil prices alongside newcomers, such as Chad, Equatorial Guinea and Sudan. A major challenge for Africa's democratic development in the coming years will be to manage this wealth in a transparent way, ensuring it fosters development that benefits the poor.