Inequality and Political Cleavage in Africa
Regionalism by Design

Extensive data, maps, and case histories show how competition between rich and poor regions drives African politics, not ethnic diversity.

Catherine Boone (Author)

9781009441612, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 25 April 2024

350 pages
23 x 15 x 1.8 cm, 0.507 kg

'… a ground-breaking analysis of how spatial inequalities and regional cleavages shape the politics and development trajectories of African nations. Rooted in a comparative political economy framework, Boone challenges conventional narratives that attribute political divisions primarily to ethnic politics, instead spotlighting regional disparities as pivotal drivers of political competition and national integration … this volume offers profound insights, positioning itself as a vital contribution to contemporary African studies.' Sebastian Elischer, Political Science Quarterly

This pathbreaking work integrates African countries into broader comparative theories of how spatial inequality shapes political competition over the construction of markets, states, and nations. Existing literature on African countries has found economic cleavages, institutions, and policy choices to be of low salience in national politics. This book inverts these arguments. Boone trains our analytic focus on the spatial inequalities and territorial institutions that structure national politics in Africa, showing that regional cleavages find expression in both electoral competition and policy struggles over redistribution, sectoral investment, market integration, and state design. Leveraging comparative politics theory, Boone argues that African countries' regional and core-periphery tensions are similar to those that have shaped national economic integration in other parts of the world. Bringing together electoral and economic geography, the book offers a new and powerful map of political competition on the African continent.

1. Economic inequalities and territorial oppositions in African politics
2. Region and regionalism in African politics
3. Endowment, institutions, and spatial inequality: regions by design
4. Regional blocs and bloc voting in national elections
5. Regional hierarchies and winning coalitions
6. Territorial oppositions in African politics
7. Regionalism and the national agenda
Conclusion: inequality and political cleavage in African politics
Appendices.

Subject Areas: Comparative politics [JPB]