"Contemporary Oral Traditions of Origin and Migration among the Digo of Kenya"
Jeong Kyung Park, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies
Dr. Park is associate professor of African studies and associate dean of international & area studies. His publications include: “African hip hop as a rhizomic art form articulating urban youth identity and resistance with reference to Kenyan genge and Ghanaian hiplife.” Journal of the Musical Arts in Africa (co-author, 2019); “Blaming the Moi era: Memories of bad governance among Eastlands residents in Nairobi, Kenya.” Memory Studies (2018); and “To Make a Home in Nairobi: Growth in Home Ownership and Suburbanisms among the Residents of Eastlands.” Asian Journal of African Studies (2014).
A reception will follow
Center for African Studies Community News
Accomplishments and Awards
Please send information about awards or other accomplishments by UF Center for African Studies community members to ufcasbulletin@gmail.com for their inclusion in the news bulletin.
Publications
Walther O, Dambo L, Kon頍, van Eupen M. 2019. Mapping travel time to assess accessibility in West Africa: The role of borders, checkpoints and road conditions. Journal of Transport Geography 82.
The paper provides a first estimate of the impact of border delays, checkpoints and the state of deterioration of roads on the accessibility of West Africa. It shows that the accessibility of border cities could increase by 14% if there was no waiting at the borders in West Africa and by up to one-third in some regions. Our analysis also shows that removing roadside checkpoints would increase accessibility of border cities by 12% on average regionally and by more than half for some centers located on the Gulf of Guinea. Assessing how mobility is constrained by road obstacles in West Africa should contribute to highlight the current hurdle of corrupt practices and informal arrangements negotiated between state employees and private-sector actors along regional transport corridors.
Please send citations for your recently published articles, book chapters, book reviews, or op-ed pieces to ufcasbulletin@gmail.comfor their inclusion in the news bulletin.
Recap
Baraza with Goran Hyden
On Friday December 6, Dr. Goran Hyden gave the last Baraza of the semester. Dr. Hyden is distinguished professor emeritus of political science at the University of Florida. His publications include: African Politics in Comparative Perspective (2012); African Perspectives on Governance (co-edited, 1999); No Shortcuts to Progress: African Development Management in Perspective (1983); and Beyond Ujamaa in Tanzania: Underdevelopment and an Uncaptured Peasantry (1980).
Dr. Hyden’s lecture, “Democracy in Africa’s State-Nations: Trying to Fit a Square Peg in a Round Hole,” considered the unique context of democratization in Africa. For the past three decades, research and policy agendas have largely been based on the premise of a global democratic convergence, in which democratization seeks to make democracy ‘the only game in town.’ In recent years, the world has begun to turn attention to the phenomena of backsliding democracy experienced in many countries. However, countries in Africa pose an interesting case, showing minimal change. Dr. Hyden argues that this is for a few reasons. Africa was never really hit by a ‘wave’ of democracy. Democratic sprouts emerged here and there, but with no consistency. Moreover, there was no regional body to enforce a wider transition, nor was there a role model country like Brazil in South America or Poland in Europe. Overall, African countries never really reached a high level of democracy in the first place—thus ‘backsliding’ has been less dramatic.
Dr. Hyden also argued that African states have developed differently than nation-states. In most cases, the state in Africa was formed by colonial powers, rather than forming around a nation. Additionally, African countries have not undergone agrarian or industrial revolutions like other democratic countries around the world. Power dynamics, colonial histories, the relationship between state and citizen, and social formations have all impacted the development of democracy in the African context, separating democratization here from other parts of the world.
On Campus
2020 Carter Conference Call for Posters
The Center for African Studies at the University of Florida is pleased to announce a collaborative conference with the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock System. This year’s Carter Conference will explore how momentum is shifting in African agriculture through research and technologies to improve resilience, livelihoods, and nutrition. We invite poster abstracts for this event from members of the academic, public/government, private and non-for-profit sector. Please forward the call to others in your network. The conference will focus on the role that nutrition, livelihoods and resilience play in societal development. It does so by acknowledging the close relationship between good nutrition, inclusive and sustainable agricultural-led economic growth and strengthened resilience among people and natural systems.
