Monday, May 5, 2014

New Africa Book of the Day - 5 May 2014

Displacement Economies in Africa edited by Amanda Hammar

Release Date: May 8, 2014
Publisher: Zed Books [Kindle Edition]


Large-scale displacement - whether caused by war, state-related political or development projects, different forms of political violence, structural crisis, or even natural disasters - evokes many stereotypes about those forcibly displaced or emplaced. At the same time there is a problematic lack of attention paid to those who benefit economically from, manage or in various unexpected ways are affected by processes of displacement. In this highly original volume, based on empirical case studies from across sub-Saharan Africa, the authors provide fresh insights into the unexpected changes, complex agency and persistent dynamism entailed in displacement processes. In doing so, the book explores the diversity of actors, strategies and practices that reshape the world in the face (and chronic aftermath) of dramatic moments of violent dislocation and/or enclosure.

An important contribution to a topic of growing scholarly and policy interest.
Amanda Hammar is author of Zimbabwe and Norway (1996) and co-editor (with Brian Raftopoulos and Stig Jensen) of Zimbabwe's Unfinished Business (2000). She is professor of African studies at Copenhagen University.





Africa News Headlines for 5 May 2014

Gabon expects output boost
Source: Upstream

China vows to avoid 'colonial' path in Africa. What will it do instead?
Source: Christian Science Monitor

An Unholy Alliance in East Africa
Source: POLITICO

Trade with Africa will double by 2020, Li Keqiang tells Ethiopia conference
Source: South China Morning Post

China, Ethiopia PMs launch Ethiopia's 1st-ever expressway
Source: Turkish Press

Kenya’s Polygamy Problem
Source: Slate

Microfinance: A little goes a long way
Source: The Daily Progress

Japan, African nations renew vow to join hands in developing Africa
Source: Kyodo News International

The Green War on Africans
Source: National Review Online

Thousands gather for Africa Bike Week
Source: IOL

Beer, banks and cement: Global companies tapping into Africa’s emerging growth pole
Source: Business Day

Inventor battles unsafe drinking water in Africa
Source: USA Today

Africa and Europe need a stable Libya, seminar told
Source: The Irish Times

What role for US in efforts to rescue Nigeria's kidnapped girls?
Source: Alaska Dispatch

African nations assured of continued flow of aid
Source: The Japan Times

US Signs Long-Term Lease for Military Base in Djibouti
Source: Voice of America

DHL optimistic about Africa's retail industry future
Source: New Business Ethiopia

Etisalat to sell African business for $650m
Source: The Peninsula

Apollo signs farm-in over Gabon gold project
Source: Creamer Media's Mining Weekly

Bomb attacks: Kenya deputy president blames judges
Source: Washington Post/AP



Sunday, May 4, 2014

New Africa Book of the Day - 4 May 2014

Agricultural Land Redistribution and Land Administration in Sub-Saharan Africa: Case Studies of Recent Reforms edited by Frank F. K. Byamugisha

Release Date: May 5, 2014
Publisher: World Bank Publications [Kindle Edition]


Agricultural Land Redistribution and Land Administration in Sub-Saharan Africa: Case Studies of Recent Reforms focuses on “how” to undertake land reforms in Sub-Saharan Africa, but with relevant lessons for other developing countries. It provides details, with case studies, on how reforms were undertaken to address a pressing and controversial development challenge in Africa – land ownership inequality – and an intransigent development issue – inefficiency and corruption in land administration. An equally important contribution of the book is assessing reforms and highlighting valuable lessons for other countries contemplating reforms.

The six case studies collectively cover two main areas of land governance: reforms in redistributing agricultural land and reforms in land administration. The first two case studies discuss reforms in redistributing agricultural land in Malawi and South Africa, part of the southern Africa region where land ownership inequalities rival those in Latin America. The remaining case studies, four in number, are focused on addressing corruption and inefficiency in land administration in a variety of contexts of governance including stable and post-conflict countries. The case studies cover:

• Decentralizing land administration with demonstrations from Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Ghana;
• Developing post-conflict land administration systems with examples from Liberia and Rwanda;
• Re-engineering and computerizing land information systems with examples from Ghana and Uganda; and
• Improving management of government land through land inventories with examples drawn from Ghana and Uganda.

The common elements between sometimes disparate experiences provide lessons of relevance to African and other developing countries contemplating similar reforms. The rigorous analysis and yet down-to-earth lessons of experience are a reflection of the authors’ deep global experience underpinned by personal participation in the reforms covered by the book. This volume will be of interest to a wide audience including land specialists and practitioners, African policy makers, experts and managers in the international development community, and the academia.

Frank F. K. Byamugisha is author of Securing Africa's Land for Shared Prosperity: A Program to Scale Up Reforms and Investments (2013) and The effects of land registration on financial development and economic growth: A theoretical and conceptual framework (1999).


Africa News Headlines for 4 May 2014

US offers $30M to Congo for upcoming elections
Source: Herald-Standard

FedEx acquires Supaswift businesses in Southern Africa
Source: Arabian Supply Chain

Retro rhetoric keeps red flag flying in South Africa
Source: DAWN

Kenyan Capital Hit by Blasts a Day After Explosions in Port City
Source: Bloomberg Businessweek

Nigeria’s homegrown hydrocarbons sector needs international capital to grow
Source: Financial Times

Nigeria Becomes Biggest Importer Of Kerosene From US
Source: Ventures Africa

DR Congo opens one of Africa's largest gold mines
Source: New Vision

‘Theft and sabotage’ lead Nigeria into an oil crisis
Source: Financial Times

Childhood fascination with Africa becomes annual trek for Tucson woman
Source: Arizona Daily Star

Once lauded as model, Turkey's Africa initiative loses momentum
Source: Today's Zaman

McCarrick on a mission for peace in Africa
Source: Washington Post/AP

THE CHATTER: It doesn't pay to connect Africa's poor to the grid
Source: BDLive

Museveni receives award for promoting trade
Source: New Vision

IGAD firmly in control of South Sudan talks, says President Uhuru Kenyatta
Source: Standard Digital

Japan vows to steadily implement $32 billion in aid for Africa
Source: Global Post

China Premier Arrives in Africa Eyeing Better Ties
Source: ABC News/AP

After Kerry talks, Kiir briefs Uhuru in Nairobi
Source: News Kenya

This Troubling Image Explains Why So Many People Are Angry With Erykah Badu
Source: PolicyMic



Saturday, May 3, 2014

New Africa Book of the Day - 3 May 2014

African Development Finance and Business Finance Policy edited by Atsede Woldie and Victor Murinde

Release Date: May 1, 2014
Publisher: Routledge [Kindle Edition]


Financial plans that stimulate growth and eliminate poverty in developing African countries!

African Developmental Finance and Business Finance Policy presents theoretical/conceptual and empirical articles that provide invaluable insights into successful business techniques and strategies for the African business arena—the last great frontier of international business expansion. Researchers and practitioners in the field of developmental finance discuss the design and implementation of financial policies for pro-poor growth and poverty alienation in developing countries, including Kenya, Zambia, Nigeria, Mauritius, and Zimbabwe. The book focuses on banking, business finance, and investment, detailing strategies for coping with a small financial system, bank licensing policies, correction action rules, quality of banking services, and the revitalization of the African stock exchange.

African Developmental Finance and Business Finance Policy
features papers presented on key policy issues addressed at the April 2001 international conference of the Institute for Developmental Policy and Management at the University of Manchester in England...

Topics addressed include:

- financial regulation, interest rates
- bank ownership
- regulatory forbearance
- emerging stock markets
- determinants of capital structure
- financial reform
- and much more!

Targeted to policymakers in government and international agencies, academics, consultants, and executives, African Developmental Finance and Business Finance Policy is an essential resource for advancing and communicating research on developmental policy in developing countries.
Victor Murinde is author of Bank Regulatory Reforms in Africa (2012) and Macroeconomic Policy Modelling for Developing Countries (1993).  Atsede Woldie is principal lecturer in the faculty of business and society at the University of South Wales.



Africa News Headlines for 3 May 2013

Anti-poaching plan wins Eton boys trip to Africa
Source: Windsor Ascot & Eton Express

Gabon oil minister sees rise in 2014 output
Source: Reuters

Zimbabwe, Burkina Faso top African mobile phone growth
Source: Star Africa

Ivory Coast tries ecotourism to save chimpanzees
Source: Appeal-Democrat

Rwanda behind killings of Kagame’s critics
Source: SAPA-AFP

Kenya's trade ties with Nigeria expected to grow
Source: Standard Digital

Pictures: Myleene Klass sends temperatures soaring in South Africa as she models bikini from her own range
Source: Daily Mirror

Responsible Tourism hot on WTM Africa's agenda
Source: eTurbo News

Renewable energy will power Africa’s ambitious future
Source: The National

US Deployments to Africa Raise a Host of Issues
Source: Defense News

Why Ebola isn't just Africa's problem
Source: Detroit Free Press

Premier Li’s visit to boost China-Africa economic ties
Source: CCTV

Kerry Calls for U.S. Investment in Africa, Warns on Corruption
Source: Bloomberg

Africa is on the Rise, and We Need To Help Make Sure it Continues
Source: U.S. Department of State

Envoy warns West to respect Kenya as independent state
Source: Standard Digital

East African leaders launch projects to speed up cargo clearance
Source: Coastweek




Friday, May 2, 2014

Africa News Headlines for 2 May 2014

Africa, India cultivate agricultural research ties
Source: Manica Post

Media Freedom Loses Ground in 2013
Source: Gallup World

Japanese Oil Refiner Opens Office In South Africa
Source: Ventures Africa

Kenya launches electronic system to cut trade red tape
Source: Reuters

President Uhuru Kenyatta's Speech On World Press Freedom Day
Source: The Star

Museveni travels to Kenya for Northern Corridor infrastructure summit
Source: New Vision

Africa Continues Going Mobile
Source: Gallup World

Africa Travel Market opens in Cape Town
Source: News24

Inside China: General hits U.S. in Africa
Source: Washington Times

African hipsters take vintage fashion back to the future
Source: CNN

Many Consider Media Freedom on the Decline
Source: FishbowlNY

Africa benefits from China's Growth: AU
Source: Xinhua

FedEx comes to Malawi, southern Africa
Source: Nyasa Times

Guest post: for growth to count, Africa must industrialise
Source: FT.com

A surprise: Bush is respected in Africa for launching huge campaign against AIDS
Source: Mondoweiss

Spectacular Kenya basks in Lupita Nyong'o's light
Source: Mail & Guardian

Purveyors of luxury goods have one eye set on Africa

Source: BDLive





Thursday, May 1, 2014

New Africa Book of the Day - 1 May 2014

The Trans-Oceanic Marketing Channel: A New Tool for Understanding Tropical Africa's Export Agriculture by H. Laurens van der Laan

Release Date: May 1, 2014
Publisher: Routledge [Kindle Edition]


If you feel you have a disjointed, or unbalanced, view of the global system of demand and supply, you are probably correct. Most studies leave out a very important part of the system--the marketing channel. That is why Laurens van der Laan developed and wrote this book, The Trans-Oceanic Marketing Channel. To help you understand what happens to export crops, such as cocoa, coffee, cotton, groundnuts, tea, and tobacco, between their country of origin and consumer markets, this book analyzes the roles of different actors in trans-oceanic trade, inherent differences between world markets, export diversification policies, and the commercial and institutional forces at play.

The Trans-Oceanic Marketing Channel will give you a strong background in marketing channel concepts, and because of its focus on the exporter rather than on the government, it will provide you with an excellent model for microanalysis. As you read about the special features of trans-oceanic trade, you will also learn about:

- trade associations and their role in shaping world markets for trans-oceanic crops
- the uneasy relationship between exporters and shipping companies
- the selling conduct of agricultural exporters in Africa
- the tendency of actors in Africa to accelerate the trans-oceanic product flow
- the effectiveness of export marketing boards as channel leaders
- private enterprise, the chief agent of development
- the theory of “exporter preference”

The Trans-Oceanic Marketing Channel invites policymakers, international businessmen, professors, and students to examine the opportunities, problems, and policies that confront the various players in trans-oceanic trade, especially the exporters. As the book discusses the divergent institutional arrangements in the world markets for agricultural products and their differential effect on African exports, you will become keenly aware of how vertical marketing systems differ from conventional marketing channels. No other book brings together the three fundamental sections of export agriculture, the country of production, the channel through which the products flow, and the country of destination, to provide you with a complete understanding of trans-oceanic marketing.

H. Laurens van der Laan is author of Dutch Enterprise in Colonial Africa: Some Notes and Comments (2003) and The Ambivalent Relationship Between Agricultural Cooperatives and the Marketing Board ONCPB (1988).


Africa News Headlines for 1 May 2014

Africa: homophobia is a legacy of colonialism
Source: The Guardian

Africa set to gain $3bn infrastructure fund
Source: Financial Times

Public Health a Major Priority in African Nations
Source: Pew Research Global Attitudes Project

Beautiful dew-collection tower could help resolve water crisis in Africa
Source: The Weather Network

African Sugar Producers: Smuggling a Major Problem
Source: Voice of America

Tanzania Launches First Ever Private Equity Fund
Source: Ventures Africa

Gabon: Strong Government Support for Developing Telecom Sector Through 'Digital Gabon' Plan
Source: Digital Journal

Dos Santos meets African ambassadors in Vatican City
Source: Star Africa

Airtel Gabon to invest USD 125 mln in expansion
Source: Telecompaper

MSF: West, Central Africa Lagging in HIV Care
Source: Voice of America

South Africa’s townships - a magnet for entrepreneurs
Source: BBC News

Nigeria's "African Davos" will focus minds on problems, as well as potential
Source: Reuters

Chinese premier’s Africa tour set to promote China-Africa relations
Source: Xinhua

Mohammed "Mo" Dewji, Youngest Member On Africa Richest List Launches Beverage Line - "Mo COLA"
Source: Forbes

New U.S. Trade Offices in Africa Will Support New Opportunities
Source: IIP Digital

Remarks at Embassy Addis Ababa and the U.S. Mission to the African Union
Source: U.S. Department of State

Remarks at the U.S.-African Union High-Level Dialogue
Source: U.S. Department of State

President Uhuru Kenyatta asks EAC members to prepare to adopt single currency
Source: Standard Digital

President Barrack Obama and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, have 21 striking Similarities
Source: Bubblews

"A Song for Naija" Documentary Premieres
Source: International Republican Institute

Africa Experts Debate Legacy of Rwanda’s Genocide
Source: Diplomatic Pouch