Continental Policy Research Articles

Addressing Environmental Protection Gaps in Sino-African Bilateral Investment Treaties

Abstract This article examines the scope and depth of environmental protection in Sino-African BITs. Chinese investment in Africa and the steps taken to include or enhance environmental concerns in these Sino-African treaties are comparatively discussed to show that they are generally as inadequate as other investment treaties to provide the necessary protection. Lessons drawn from the coverage of environmental provisions in nearly 125 BITs, some involving African states, are presented to give context to the key argument in this article. Written in the context of the ‘Africanization’ of international investment law, this article argues, taking into account Africa’s overall capacity as well as the amount of Chinese investment in Africa and its environmental impact, that this concern is best addressed through the adoption of aggressive national reform processes that are built into regional and finally a continental policy for ensuring sustainable development and environmental protection in relation to investments in Africa.

Leveraging Continental Norms and Mechanisms to Enhance Barrier-Free Access for Pedestrians with Disabilities in Kenya

When it is realised meaningfully, barrier-free access enables pedestrians with disabilities to use streets without being impeded by non-existent or poorly maintained sidewalks, inaccessible overpasses or underpasses, crowded sidewalks, lack of traffic controls, lack of aids at street crossings, unsafe motorist behaviour, and poor signage and lighting. While Kenya has laws in place that are intended to facilitate barrier-free access, in reality, these laws are not implemented, resulting in the violations of rights of pedestrians in general, and pedestrians with disabilities in particular. Using the lived experiences of pedestrians with disabilities, this article reflects on the policy, legislative, and practical contexts which undermine access. It shows that despite the range of policy and legal instruments which Kenya has adopted or enacted to ensure the public in general can access streets, pedestrians with disabilities enjoy arising benefits only marginally. The article’s thesis is that continental policy and normative instruments and institutions may impel Kenya towards ensuring that pedestrians with disabilities have meaningful barrier-free access.

Influence of Digital Technologies on Diplomatic Practices within the Framework of Food Sovereignty and Continental Policy in Africa

Influence of Digital Technologies on Diplomatic Practices within the Framework of Food Sovereignty and Continental Policy in Africa

중일전쟁의 개전과 1930년대 동아시아 국제정치

When examining the outbreak and protracted course of the Sino-Japanese War, it is important to note the attitudes of neighboring countries such as the United States and the Soviet Union toward the Sino-Japanese issue, which arose as a result of Japan's aggressive continental policy, and how these attitudes influenced the outbreak of the war. Given that the Sino-Japanese War was a protracted eight-year war fought by the Chinese government with the support of the Soviet Union, the United States, and the United Kingdom, and that it was an international event that directly influenced the outbreak of the Asia-Pacific War, it is necessary to understand the diplomatic process surrounding the war, not just the decision to escalate the war within the Japanese leadership and the decision to wage a protracted global war. After the Manchurian Incident, Japan's East Asian policy included an aggressive expansion of its influence on the Chinese mainland, which was embodied in aggressive public policies such as the army-led campaign to separate Hwaseong from North Korea. In response to these Japanese public policies, the Chinese government actively sought internal and diplomatic means to resist, while the Soviet Union and the United States, both of which were paying attention to East Asian affairs, gradually shifted their policies toward supporting China in the Sino-Japanese conflict and deterring Japanese aggression. The fact that 1935 was the year when Japan's public policy became overtly aggressive, as symbolized by the separation of Hwaseong, and that Sino-Japanese relations began to trend in a friendly direction from this year shows that the attitude of neighboring countries toward the Sino-Japanese dispute had already shifted in a direction favorable to China before the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War.

The Southern African Development Community’s Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM): Policymaking and Effectiveness

ABSTRACT On 23 June 2021, after months of deliberations, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) approved the establishment of the SADC Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM) in response to escalating violent extremism and insurgency by an Islamist armed group, Al-Shabaab or Al-Sunnah wa Jama’ah (ASWJ), in Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province, which posed the risk of regional contagion. SAMIM was deployed under scenario 6 of the African Standby Force (ASF) with a mandate focused on supporting the Mozambican government to combat terrorism and violent extremism in Cabo Delgado. Its mandate also centred on strengthening and maintaining peace and security; restoring law and order; and assisting the government and humanitarian agencies to provide humanitarian relief to the affected population. This paper contributes to raising public understanding of the regional and continental policies and principles underpinning the SADC decision-making process regarding the deployment of peace missions and the effectiveness of SAMIM in fulfilling its mandated tasks until its first anniversary. It identified the relative pacification of Cabo Delgado as a crucial strategic and operational impact of SAMIM’s exceptional military intervention, which facilitated its segue into a multidimensional peacebuilding mission. Six principal constraints-cum-opportunities of SAMIM, which had a significant bearing on its effectiveness, are discussed.

An Overview of Carbon Sequestration in Agricultural Soils of Latin America and the Caribbean

A major challenge in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is to determine how to meet the ever-growing global needs for food while preserving natural ecosystems and contributing to climate change mitigation. In the region, continuing land use is occurring and has caused a significant soil organic carbon (SOC) loss. We estimated the SOC reduction in three representative ecosystems of the region: forests (4.21 petagrams of carbon, Pg C, over 30 years), grasslands (1.86−7.32 Pg C, over different periods) and mangroves (0.36 Pg C over 25 years). Increasing SOC stocks in agricultural lands can help to mitigate the SOC loss due to land use change, but multiple factors influence the dynamics and response of the agricultural production and carbon sequestration. Farmers are pivotal actors that contribute to food production and could maintain SOC stocks; however, incentives or fair compensation must be considered to enable this. Moreover, national, and continental policies are needed for land restoration and sustainable management of soil health as a living entity through adoption of nature-positive practices which enhance soil organic matter (SOM) stocks, increase use-efficiency of inputs, and lead to nutrition-sensitive agriculture.

Harmonizing the Electricity Markets in Africa: An Overview of the Continental Policy and Institutional Framework towards the African Single Electricity Market

Africa is a huge continent with an area equal to 30,244,049 km2 and a population of over 1.3 bn. According to the World Energy Outlook 2021, the electrification rate for Sub-Saharan Africa is at 79% for urban areas and only 28% for the rural areas. Given the low electricity infrastructure in Africa in production, transmission and distribution as well as the very low access in rural areas, it is understood that coordinated activities must take place for both on-grid and off-grid electrification activities, if the targets set for 2030 are to be met. This paper aims to present the challenges faced in the harmonization of the electricity markets in Africa due to the complexities of political continental integration, as well as continental economic integration, by performing a review of the progress made so far. It is one of the few efforts that have aimed to present in a single document the institutional framework of the electricity sector in Africa, and how these institutions collaborate in order to form and deploy policies at the continental and regional levels, affecting ultimately the deployment of policies at the national level. It also presents the current status of the continental electricity market policy framework activities towards the achievement of the 2030 goals in line with Agenda 2063, and the crucial role the African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM) is set to play. Finally, it provides lessons learnt and recommendations on facilitating the way forward in terms of the institutional actors’ collaboration, both for Africa and globally, in terms of developing regional energy markets.

Building a Continental Policy: The South American Secretariat of the Communist International (1925–34)

Abstract This paper analyses the history of the South American Secretariat of the Communist International. The objective is to carry out a critical study of the policies and strategy of the Secretariat, considering how its relationship with the Comintern and the South American Communist Parties changed over time. Our hypothesis is that during its first years of existence (1925–8) the Secretariat developed a policy based on the United Front. This changed during a transition period (July 1928–July 1929) in which it developed a stagist programme of bourgeois-democratic revolution, and the implementation of its front tactics was increasingly questioned. From 1929 to 1934, the organisation abandoned all concrete alliance tactics in the workers’ movement and electoral politics while nevertheless proclaiming its advocacy of the ‘United Front from below’. This paper is based on an analysis of primary sources, including the Secretariat’s publications, correspondence, and internal documents.

Examining Nigeria’s Digital Identity Project as Tool for Economic Inclusion and Regional Integration

Access to the digitised economy has an increased penetration across the spectrum of Africa's rural and urban population. In Nigeria, which is the context of this study, there is a long unsettling debate delineating citizens residing within any locality in Nigeria as 'indigenes' or 'settlers'. This is at variance with the concept of 'transnational citizenship', which confers rights to social inclusion in any individual's nation-state. Digital identity registration becomes imperative to preserve social order and broaden the lines of inclusion for access to social services and monitoring access to the digital economy. The National Identity Number (NIN) is the digital identity for Nigerian citizens and residents, which can be leveraged for economic digitisation and regional and continental integration efforts. The research methodology employs descriptive and explanatory analysis of national, regional and continental policy frameworks applicable to Nigeria's digital identity management systems. Boundaries of inclusion, transnational citizenship and the Westphalian Treaty of nation sovereignty form the theoretical underpinning of the study. This is used to present digital identity as a vital tool for socioeconomic inclusion, regional and continental integration. The case study of the Schengen Agreement as a successful integrative digital identity system fostering economic integration in Europe forms the basis of the recommendation. This calls for the ultimate use of digital identity to enhance international operable smart border practice, which would in turn guarantee border security while encouraging the desired free movement of persons and goods within the African continent

Continental Policy of Japan as Seen from France: Japanese Expansion in China and French Political World

Continental Policy of Japan as Seen from France: Japanese Expansion in China and French Political World

Sarah Kinkel. Disciplining the Empire: Politics, Governance and the Rise of the British Navy.

Sarah Kinkel. <i>Disciplining the Empire: Politics, Governance and the Rise of the British Navy</i>.

Designing an AfCFTA-Driven Continent-Wide Competition Policy Around the Regional Economic Communities

Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement will lead to liberalization of trade in Africa, thus expanding the market for African products and services. Expansion of markets necessitates development of a regulatory framework that will promote healthy competition among businesses and protect consumers’ welfare. The Agreement recognizes this fact and has set out the Competition Protocol among the key enablers of its success. Since the regional economic communities (RECs) are the building blocks of the continental wide free trade area, the analysis of their regional competition regime is paramount for providing insight that will guide the development of the Competition Protocol. This article responds to this need by analyzing Africa’s four largest RECs and providing policy proposals on how the continental competition policy should be fashioned. Specifically, this article looks at the RECs’ institutional structure, principles, and carries out a legal, economic, and political analysis on the same. It examines how these laws relate to the three elements (abuse of dominance, anticompetitive mergers, and acquisitions) of competition policy and the challenges that they pose in achieving AfCFTA’s goal. It also looks into the challenges that affect trade and fair competition in the region. Finally, it offers proposals on the competition framework that bridge the gap between the AfCFTA Agreement objectives and the African economic, political, and legal realities.

Eurasian Vector of Foreign Policy of the Republic of Korea: the Factor of Central Asia

The article studies the role of cooperation between the Republic of Korea and Central Asian countries in the context of a continental strategy for Korea’s New Northern policy. The authors consider the main political discourses of the continental policy of the Republic of Korea, such as the problem of resolving the “Korean issue”, the problem of balancing interests in the East Asian region, and the problem of diversifying traditional partnerships. Korea’s foreign policy is interpreted within the framework of the “middle power” concept. An important part of the study is the analysis of cooperation between RoK and Central Asia both on a multilateral and bilateral basis. It is obvious that uneven two-way interaction of Korea with the Central Asian countries, encourages the RoK to implement specific projects relevant to the partners, at the same time, the RoK uses multilateral cooperation, to predict the cooperation prospects in the most relevant areas of cooperation — health, environment, digital policy. Attracting data of the current situation in the region and the world, the author notes important changes in the foreign policy of RoK, first of all, the ODA strengthening as an important tool for strengthening Korea in a specific region, as an important resource for solving problems of the pandemic COVID-19 impact. As the research result, the author comes to the conclusion that the implementation of the Eurasian vector in Korea’s foreign policy is a natural and necessary condition for the further development of Korea as a regional and global player. Cooperation with Central Asia is a priority resource for developing RoK’s international influence and an important component of the new Northern policy.

Continental Policy of Japan as Seen from France: From Manchurian Incident to China Incident

Continental Policy of Japan as Seen from France: From Manchurian Incident to China Incident

Mining-induced violent resistance: the case of salt mining near Keta lagoon

ABSTRACT There has been an upsurge in mining-induced violent resistance within the vicinity of Keta lagoon in Ghana that questions the legitimacy of ongoing large-scale salt production by Kensington Salt Industries Ltd. Between 2013 and 2017, there was a series of violent protests and clashes at Adina and adjoining communities at the eastern banks of Keta lagoon, leading to deaths and to destruction of the company’s property and equipment. The upsurge of mining-induced violent resistance in Keta follows the displacement of thousands of indigenes and growing state preference for large-scale projects in the salt sector. The article thus questions the credibility of the company’s permits and calls on relevant state agencies to engage Kensington and the affected communities to address the outlined factors responsible for the resistance and conflict. This must be done in accordance with the minerals and mining policy framework as well as regional and continental policy initiatives that the government has committed to.

CHARTING SOUTH AFRICA’S GLOBAL MARITIME FOREIGN POLICY AND ITS GLOBAL AND REGIONAL MEMBERSHIPS IN THE MARITIME REALM

South Africa’s re-entry into the international arena has led to the ratification of several global and regional maritime instruments. In addition, South Africa has been admitted to various international institutions and fora in the maritime space. A key consideration in this regard is whether there is an underlying global maritime foreign policy that underscores South Africa’s contributions, interactions and responsibilities in these fora. South Africa does not have a global maritime foreign policy which is contained in an explicit policy document. This article therefore charts how various domestic and continental policy documents and ministerial statements thread together a foundational base for a global maritime foreign policy. What emerges is the primacy of African interests as the golden thread of this foundational base. The article then considers South Africa’s practical engagement through a description and categorisation of its membership of global and regional organisations in the maritime realm. The article finally narrows the focus to one organisation, the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) as a platform to consolidate the foundations for a global maritime foreign policy for South Africa. The article concludes by pointing out nuanced factors that should be acknowledged for South Africa to exercise strategic power and influence over policy in the global and regional maritime realm.

Japan's Continental Policy for a Changing World Order: Past and Present - Imperial Eclipse: Japan's Strategic Thinking about Continental Asia before August 1945. By Yukiko Koshiro. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2013. xvi, 311 pp. ISBN: 9780801451805 (cloth, also available as e-book). - Intimate Rivals: Japanese Domestic Politics and a Rising China. By Sheila A. Smith. New York: Columbia University

Japan's Continental Policy for a Changing World Order: Past and Present - Imperial Eclipse: Japan's Strategic Thinking about Continental Asia before August 1945. By Yukiko Koshiro. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2013. xvi, 311 pp. ISBN: 9780801451805 (cloth, also available as e-book). - Intimate Rivals: Japanese Domestic Politics and a Rising China. By Sheila A. Smith. New York: Columbia University

TrIAS, leveraging citizen science data to monitor invasive species in Belgium

Reducing the damage caused by invasive species requires a community approach informed by rapidly mobilized data. Even if local stakeholders work together, invasive species do not respect borders, and national, continental and global policies are required. Yet, in general, data on invasive species are slow to be mobilized, often of insufficient quality for their intended application and distributed among many stakeholders and their organizations, including scientists, land managers, and citizen scientists. The Belgian situation is typical. We struggle with the fragmentation of data sources and restrictions to data mobility. Nevertheless, there is a common view that the issue of invasive alien species needs to be addressed. In 2017 we launched the Tracking Invasive Alien Species (TrIAS) project, which envisages a future where alien species data are rapidly mobilized, the spread of exotic species is regularly monitored, and potential impacts and risks are rapidly evaluated in support of policy decisions (Vanderhoeven et al. 2017). TrIAS is building a seamless, data-driven workflow, from raw data to policy support documentation. TrIAS brings together 21 different stakeholder organizations that covering all organisms in the terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments. These organizations also include those involved in citizen science, research and wildlife management. TrIAS is an Open Science project and all the software, data and documentation are being shared openly (Groom et al. 2018). This means that the workflow can be reused as a whole or in part, either after the project or in different countries. We hope to prove that rapid data workflows are not only an indispensable tool in the control of invasive species, but also for integrating and motivating the citizens and organizations involved.

Who is in the ‘‘We’’? Interrogating the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and Youth Political Participation

Most analyses of the African Union (AU) have focused on the politics of the state and the presidents. There are very few analyses that have focused on aspects such as youth development. The point of departure for this article therefore, is youth development. I argue that although the youth were always part of important historical developments in Africa, they remain on the periphery. In recent times, particularly since the transformation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) into the AU in the 2000s, the youth development agenda has begun to receive the attention at policy level. In 2015 the AU, through Agenda 2063 went a step further by including youth development into mainstream continental policy frameworks. While we welcome all these developments it has emerged that the continent remains hesitant in the area of youth development. Where the AU and its member states have adopted the discourse of youth inclusion—in cases where youth political participation is often limited, such efforts are not met with fitting institutional and practical policy arrangements. The article posits that the African elite is in for a rude awakening as we have witnessed—since 2011—given the discovery by the African youth of new methods of political participation in post-colonial Africa. The article advocates for the adoption of the African community outlook to youth state policy, argues for the youth to be linked to the project of economic freedom, and implores the African elite to embark on the decolonial project to resolve the bearing coloniality of being, power and knowledge.

Policy and Backwardness of Maritime Society Case Study on Community Maritime Affairs Bugis Makassar South Sulawesi

This research is motivated by a concern to the maritime community in Indonesia and South Sulawesi in particular, which is still very behind compared with other communities on the mainland or degenerate far backward compared with the maritime community in the past royal era (VIII century - XVII century: Sriwidjaya, Majapahit, and Gowa-Makassar). This study aims to reveal the concern of the government on maritime development in the State Bugis Makassar of South Sulawesi. This study uses Verstehen method was conducted through "historical approach" since the period of the kingdom until the reform period. The results showed that the retardation of Bugis-Makassar Maritime Communities in the Bugis-Makassar State was started in inattention government or precisely turned attention both central and local governments from land to sea. Since independence era or period of the republic, government policy in general more focus on the continental policy (to the mainland) in terms of physical potential of this nation is dominant on the maritime potential and this nation has historically also known as the nation's oceans (maritime) than the nation's land. The study recommends to realize what has been painstakingly formulated in Repelita VII up to X, a formula that relies on modernization alignments according to the great potential of maritime nations.