Africas of the MindModule Details

Rationale

Most African colonies became independent in the 1950s and 1960s amid hopes that this would be the prelude to an era of democracy and development. By the end of the 1980s, the continent was characterized by instability, authoritarianism, poverty, war and famine. In a small number of countries, the state itself had begun to disintegrate. And yet, a popular narrative that has emerged in recent years has been that of ‘Africa rising.’ In the wake of crisis and stagnancy in the Western world, positive GDP growth rates and the increasing frequency of elections in African countries are argued to herald an ‘African renaissance’. The course is an evaluation of the credibility of the independent Africa, pausing the question of the meaning of independence within the context of the events prior and post-independence period.
The aim of this course is to equip students with the knowledge and analytical skills necessary to examine the economic status of African states given their break and independence from the Western states as colonial masters.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course students will be expected to:
(i)    Analyse the nature of the post-colonial state in sub-Saharan Africa, the factors which differentiate it from other kinds of state, and the implications this has for understanding politics in Africa. 
(ii)   Participate in debates about neopatrimonial ‘Big Man’ politics, where states are run to serve the private interests of globally connected African elites.
(iii)  Explain how a range of issues are threatening (or, in some cases, entrenching) the social and political status quo in African countries. Such issues will include democratisation, economic reforms, ethnic/racial politics, corruption, violence and civil society activism. 
(iv)  Demonstrate the nature and implications of external interventions on the continent, including those of the Western powers and, more than ever before, China.