Contemporary West African States

A provocative contribution to the debate on the nature of the state and political processes in Africa.

Donal Cruise O'Brien (Edited by), John Dunn (Edited by), Richard Rathbone (Edited by)

9780521368933, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 1 February 1990

236 pages
23 x 15.2 x 1.6 cm, 0.364 kg

"In sum, this superb volume is indispensable reading. Its nine cases are uniformly as excellent in their interpretations as they are authoritative in their information. The simultaneous publication of a paperback will make this book accesible for course adoption; inspection of its content will make it a compelling choice." African Studies Review

The West African states have reached maturity. This new volume - appearing a decade after the successful West African States: Failure and Promise - provides up-to-date studies of nine states, including Chad, Burkina Faso and Cameroon, which were neglected in the earlier volume, and introduces contemporary theories of West African politics. The book reflects changes on the ground and also in academic debate, notably the remarkable retreat of dependency theory and Marxian analysis and the rise of free-market theorising by both governments and scholars. The volume also contains important observations on the political importance of religious fundamentalism in the region, and the growth of sub-national forms of political activity. The writers are well-known scholars in the field, and include contributors to the influential journal Politique Africaine. This will be a useful textbook for everyone interested in African politics, but it is also a provocative contribution to the debate on the nature of the state and political processes in Africa.

List of contributors
Preface
1. Introduction Donal B. Cruise O'Brien and Richard Rathbone
2. Burkino Faso: between feeble and state and total state, the swing continues Rene Otayek
3. Cameroon Jean-Francois Bayart
4. Chad: the narrow escape of an African state, 1965–1987 Robert Buijtenhuijs
5. Cote d'Ivoire: analysing the crisis Yves A. Faure
6. Ghana: the political economy of personal rule Richard Jeffries
7. Liberia Christopher Clapham
8. Nigeria: power for profit: class, corporatism, and factionalism in the military Shehu Othman
9. Senegal Christian Coulon and Donal B. Cruise O'Brien
10. Sierra Leone: state, consolidation, fragmentation and decay Fred M. Hayward
11. Conclusion John Dunn.

Subject Areas: Postwar 20th century history, from c 1945 to c 2000 [HBLW3], African history [HBJH]