Africa and International Relations in the 21st Century (International Political Economy Series)

This book examines key emergent trends related to aspects of power, sovereignty, conflict, peace, development, and changing social dynamics in the African context. It challenges conventional IR precepts of authority, politics and society, which have proven to be so inadequate in explaining African processes. Rather, this edited collection analyses the significance of many of the uncharted dimensions of Africa's international relations, such as the respatialisation of African societies through migration, and the impacts this process has had on state power; the various ways in which both formal and informal authority and economies are practised; and the dynamics and impacts of new transnational social movements on African politics. Finally, attention is paid to Africa's place in a shifting global order, and the implications for African international relations of the emergence of new world powers and/or alliances. This edition includes a new preface by the editors, which brings the findings of the book up-to-date, and analyses the changes that are likely to impact upon global governance and human development in policy and practice in Africa and the wider world post-2015. Front Matter....Pages i-xvii Introduction: Africa and International Relations in the 21st Century: Still Challenging Theory?....Pages 1-17 Front Matter....Pages 19-19 Africa as an Agent of International Relations Knowledge....Pages 21-35 Collectivist Worldview: Its Challenge to International Relations....Pages 36-50 Authority, Sovereignty and Africa’s Changing Regimes of Territorialization....Pages 51-65 Front Matter....Pages 67-67 Bringing Identity into International Relations: Reflections on Nationalism, Nativism and Xenophobia in Africa....Pages 69-86 Towards New Approaches to Statehood and Governance-Building in Africa: The Somali Crisis Reconsidered....Pages 87-104 Diasporas and African Development: The Struggle for Sustainable Peace and Development in Sierra Leone....Pages 105-120 The Transformation of Sovereign Territoriality: A Case Study of South African Immigration Control....Pages 121-143 Front Matter....Pages 145-145 Transnationalism, Africa’s ‘Resource Curse’ and ‘Contested Sovereignties’: The Struggle for Nigeria’s Niger Delta....Pages 147-161 Security Privatization and the New Contours of Africa’s Security Governance....Pages 162-176 Engendering (In)Security and Conflict in African International Relations....Pages 177-193 Conclusion: What Futures for African International Relations?....Pages 194-209 Back Matter....Pages 210-248 By exploring the many unchartered dimensions of Africa's international relations, the authors present fresh insights on aspects such as power, identity, statehood and sovereignty in the world system. At the start of the second decade of the 21st Century, Africa is viewed in a much more positive light by analysts, investors, observers and policymakers. China's recent closer involvement with the continent has set the tone for new forms of engagement between Africa and the rest of the world. The authors discuss the implications for Africa's future trajectories and how to understand the continent's position in the international system. Furthermore, they demonstrate how the study of shifts in Africa's international relations can help explain broader dynamics and the changing foundations of world order