This book provides a detailed account of the lives of the poor, particularly their use of social networks to meet everyday needs. Based on fieldwork in Cameroon, the book provides a distinctive approach that draws on social network theory and insights from economic anthropology to shed light on how the poor make a living. Though embeddedness in social networks is essential to human achievement, we know little about the social and cultural forces and processes that shape poor people’s decisions to seek help from strong, weak, and disposable ties in an African context. Focusing on network practice rather than network structure, the author argues that the ability of poor people to meet their diverse needs rests on several elements, such as favourable interactions and social and cultural forces. He examines various issues crucial to the lives of the poor, such as food, shelter, healthcare, death and funerals, and access to finance. Particular focus is given to the complicated nature of social relationships, the different contexts where these relationships take place, and how these factors shape poor individuals’ decisions regarding whom to turn to when attempting to meet their needs, including how they actually meet those needs. This book will be of interest to researchers, teachers, students, and policy-makers in African Studies economics, development studies, sociology, and anthropology.

Originally presented as the author's thesis (doctoral)--Universiteat Geottingen, 2009.

In sub-Saharan Africa, older people make up a relatively small fraction of the total population and are supported primarily by family and other kinship networks. They have traditionally been viewed as repositories of information and wisdom, and are critical pillars of the community but as the HIV/AIDS pandemic destroys family systems, the elderly increasingly have to deal with the loss of their own support while absorbing the additional responsibilities of caring for their orphaned grandchildren. Aging in Sub-Saharan Africa explores ways to promote U.S. research interests and to augment the sub-Saharan governments' capacity to address the many challenges posed by population aging. Five major themes are explored in the book such as the need for a basic definition of "older person," the need for national governments to invest more in basic research and the coordination of data collection across countries, and the need for improved dialogue between local researchers and policy makers. This book makes three major recommendations: 1) the development of a research agenda 2) enhancing research opportunity and implementation and 3) the translation of research findings.

COVID-19 and the Response of Central Banks analyses the reactions of central banks to the COVID-19 crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa. It focuses on how the pandemic has affected the economic performance of Sub-Saharan African countries, many of which were already struggling with growth and sustainability. The first part of the book covers countries within monetary unions such as Cameroon, Congo, Senegal, and Cote d'Ivoire. In the second half, countries with their own independent central banks, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Ghana, and Sierra Leone, are discussed. Chapters highlights the differences between Monetary Union membership and independent Central Banks in policymaking during health crises and explore the role of central banking in minimizing the deleterious effects.

Challenging the dominant and mainstream views in global development, this pioneering Handbook questions the entirety of the development process in order to outline holistic political economies of development, discontents, and alternatives.

This book highlights the role of community trusts in social licencing through the lens of mining and mining disputes in South Africa. Employing elements of trust, acceptance and elite interaction as a framework, this book critically investigates the underlying dynamics of community development trusts and also the response of host communities to the inherent dilemma of the SLO concept, namely social legitimation versus corporate profits. Looking at formal versus informal regulatory requirements, popular mobilisation, and the interaction between the local population and mining companies, this book constitutes a thorough look at the issues surrounding mining in South Africa and its effect on society. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of African studies, business in Africa, corporate responsibility, and development studies.

This Handbook provides an authoritative and foundational disciplinary overview of African Public Policy and a comprehensive examination of the practicalities of policy analysis, policymaking processes, implementation, and administration in Africa today. The book assembles a multidisciplinary team of distinguished and upcoming Africanist scholars, practitioners, researchers and policy experts working inside and outside Africa to analyse the historical and emerging policy issues in 21st-century Africa. While mostly attentive to comparative public policy in Africa, this book attempts to address some of the following pertinent questions: How can public policy be understood and taught in Africa? How does policymaking occur in unstable political contexts, or in states under pressure? Has the democratisation of governing systems improved policy processes in Africa? How have recent transformations, such as technological proliferation in Africa, impacted public policy processes? What are the underlying challenges and potential policy paths for Africa going forward? The contributions examine an interplay of prevailing institutional, political, structural challenges and opportunities for policy effectiveness to discern striking commonalities and trajectories across different African states. This is a valuable resource for practitioners, politicians, researchers, university students, and academics interested in studying and understanding how African countries are governed.