The Nordic Africa Institute - Newsletter, October 2013

Problems reading the newsletter? Click here!    Send to a friend   |   Newsletter Archive   |   Unsubscribe Facebook Twitter LinkedIn    www.nai.uu.se    Sweden's past colonial links The image of Sweden is one of a small country without the moral burden of a colonial past. However, in NAI's latest Current African Issue this is brought into question. "The big powers in Europe were keen to have Sweden and other small countries onboard. This gave legitimacy to the conference", says David Nilsson who has written the article 'Sweden-Norway at the Berlin Conference 1884-85'. Read the interview. Marginalized African farmers Countries in Africa need to produce more food, not least for the growing urban populations in the cities. However, there is also a global demand for cash crops.  "Agricultural investments don’t necessary have to be bad. It all depends on how they are carried out which in turn depends on the legal framework. Unfortunately, few frameworks are in practice", says NAI researcher Atakilte Beyene. Read the interview.   Africa and the rising powers “The challenge for African nations is to draw relevant lessons from China, India and other rising economic powers,” states Sumit Roy, the latest researcher to join NAI’s African International Links cluster. His research aims to use political economy to make a more balanced analysis of the challenges and the opportunities stemming from the growing ties between Africa and two key Rising Powers-China and India.  Read the interview.  UNACKNOWLEDGED GAP FILLERS Those involved in informal waste management are at the bottom of the waste value chain in Nigeria. People look at waste pickers as poor, dirty or criminal, a view that is often borne out of unawareness. "But the cities would drown in garbage if it wasn’t for the waste pickers. Their work is as important as other professions," says NAI researcher Chidi Nzeadibe.Read the interview. LAND, IDENTITY, POWER IN DR CONGO Professor Koen Vlassenroot is among the world's leading experts on the deep conflict in eastern DR Congo. He is also the first speaker of a new lecture-series at NAI about the relation between land and violence in Africa. His lecture on October 16th is entitled "Land identity and power: land-related conflicts in eastern DR Congo.  Read more.  DIG DEEPER WITH LIBRARY DOSSIER The staff of the NAI Library have compiled a web dossier of literature, publications and web resources with background information for the upcoming lecture series on violent conflicts over land in Africa.    FORMER MANDELA MINISTER TO NAI On 22 October NAI is visited by Jay Naidoo, a prominent political commentator on South Africa. He served as minister in the first post-apartheid government in South Africa under president Nelson Mandela. He is currently chair of the Partnership Council of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN). He is also a board member of Mo Ibrahim Foundation, formed to further the progress of African development through good governance and leadership. Read more (pdf). MELES STILL RULING? When Meles Zenawi died a year ago, many people hoped for a liberalization of state control in Ethiopia, while others feared bloody power struggles and revolts. Both hopes and fears came to naught, writes Cecilia Bäcklander on NAI Forum. ARMED FORCES IN GREAT LAKES A workshop on armed forces and conflict dynamics in the Great Lakes region will be held in Kampala 28-30 October. The Nordic Africa Institute, Uppsala, Sweden and the Refugee Law Project, Makerere University, Uganda are organisers. Read more. ECAS: METHODS FOR CONFLICT SETTINGS Marsha Henry was happy to find several ECAS panels devoted to methodological questions raised by conducting research in conflict areas . Read more on Mats Utas' blog. The Nordic Africa Institute P O Box 1703, SE-751 47 Uppsala, Sweden Visitors' address: Villavägen 6 SE-752 36 Uppsala Org.number: 202100-2726 Telephone: +46 18 471 52 00 Fax: +46 18 56 22 90 E-mail: nai@nai.uu.se Webmaster: webmaster@nai.uu.se www.nai.uu.se