Human Development In Africa Research Articles

Workshop on Open Access Publishing

The African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development (AJFAND), is among the very few internationally renowned peer reviewed journals published in Africa. It was launched in August 2001, as the African Journal of Food and Nutritional Sciences (AJFNS) as a pilot project of the Rural Outreach Programme (ROP) by Hon Prof. Ruth Oniang’o. Its aim was to provide a platform, through which food and nutrition issues and information concerning Africa, and its unique problems could be effectively addressed and disseminated. A second objective of the journal was to provide a capacity building facility in scholarly publishing for budding African scholars. It became evident that these issues were also very closely linked to agriculture and human development in Africa. In recognition of this close linkage, the name of the journal was changed to African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development (AJFAND).

Food Security and Human Development in Africa: Strategic Considerations and Directions for Further Research*

Abstract: This paper argues that food security and human development are intricately linked, and that meaningful progress on the one cannot be sustained without concomitant progress on the other. The paper surveys recent research on various aspects of the linkages between food security and human development and highlights areas where further research would enrich our understanding of the complex interactions and synergies between the two. It concludes by calling for a more systematic investigation of the human development–food security nexus with a view to generating new and practical insights for improving food security and advancing human development in sub-Saharan Africa.

Using VR for Human Development in Africa

Virtual Reality (VR) is often seen as a "First World" technology; however, over the past eight years, the Naledi3d Factory in South Africa has been quietly pioneering the use of VR as an educational & training tool in under-developed communities across Africa.

“In the Public Interest”: Forced Evictions, Land Rights and Human Development in Africa

AbstractThis article discusses the phenomenon of forced evictions in Africa and the implications for land rights and human development. It argues that the “public interest“ justification often proffered for forced evictions by African governments is a myth. The article proposes three alternative explanations for forced evictions: (a) antiquated and inappropriate planning laws of colonial origin; (b) corruption; and (c) failure of development and land reforms. The escalating urban and rural land crises in Africa, the article argues, violate human rights with grave implications for human development and regional security. The article concludes by proposing a new policy direction based on participatory and more inclusive principles.

Nutrition, Health and Human Development in Africa: Breaking the downward trend

As we prepare for the first ever FANUS conference to be held in Morocco from 7 th to 9 th May 2007. We should reflect on this theme:- "Nutrition, Health and Human Development in Africa: Breaking the downward trend". Each time one sees the term Sub-Saharan Africa anywhere, one expects it to be associated with a negative report or a not-so-pleasant orientation.

Educational Development and Knowledge Flow: Local and Global Forces in Human Development in Africa

Both local and global forces impact on educational and human development. This disrupts Africa's capacity to own, generate, and share knowledge. A disorganizing hybridism between African, Eastern and Western heritages exacerbates the difficulty. A social Darwinian perspective disparages but exploits Africanity. Furthermore, no extant theory captures the complex braids of Africanity, which tend to be reduced to evolutionary templates, therein trivializing them and misguiding interventions. We offer the concepts of a learning posture and a diversity paradigm as discovery constructs to bring Africa's hidden knowledge out of the traditional closet; into synergy with new technologies and into application for competency building for local knowledge generation and development.

Human Development in Africa in 2015

The Perspectives editors handed me the following assignment: “Ten years from now, what will be the status of human development in sub-Saharan Africa? What will be the trajectory of the AIDS crisis; what actors—if any—can we expect to address problems of health, education, and poverty? What political changes can we anticipate, and how will these affect standards of living (and vice versa)?” The choice of language is significant. Most studies of development in Africa have focused on growth. However, here the interest is in the degree to which growth and other things, most especially the quality of government, translate into standards of living and aspects of “human development” or “capability,” typically measured by school completion rates, child malnutrition, under age-five mortality, and related indicators.

Poverty Reduction and Human Development in Africa

This paper uses cross-national data to investigate the extent to which the adoption of human development strategies has resulted in a reduction of poverty in Africa. Inter-country variations in income and human poverty reinforce the established patterns of well-being within the continent, as countries in Northern and Southern Africa have the lowest levels of poverty. The empirical analysis reveals that inter- country differences in poverty levels can be accounted for by variables indicative of the different facets of human development. These include public expenditure on education, primary school enrolment, female educational enrolment, expenditure on health, and good governance. Other significant variables apart from those pertaining to human development are economic growth, high external debt, the prevalence of HIV/AIDS and the geographical disadvantage of being a landlocked country. The paper also shows that foreign aid has had a limited effect on poverty reduction in Africa.

Structural Adjustment as an Inadvertent Enemy of Human Development in Africa

African economies have experienced numerous disruptions since the 1980s, while other parts of the world have significantly prospered. Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has become impoverished in absolute and real terms, and today faces the need for some form of an economic miracle. According to the harsh verdict of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, Africa is unable to point to any significant growth rate or satisfactory index of general well-being in the past two decades. To a substantial degree, these two international organizations have themselves to blame. Following Africa's emergence as independent nations after the collapse of colonialism in 1960, too many African nations immersed themselves in debt, overspending on public enterprises, public employment, excessive military, and, all too often, cronyism and corruption. Their currencies collapsed, and debt repayment ceased. When these troubled nations sought assistance, the international lending agencies justifiably demanded reforms classified as structural adjustment. However, structural adjustment programs (SAPs) and stabilization policies have seldom delivered on their promises. Even worse, the available evidence suggests that they have accentu-

Opportunities and constraints for research on education and human development in Africa: Focus on assessment and special education

The past decade has been an episode of social, economic and political turmoil for sub-Saharan Africa. National economic restructuring programmes informed by the policy orientation of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have intensified both internal inequalities in the distribution of wealth and external dependencies on industrialized countries for the financing of basic infrastructure and social services. In this context, education in general, and higher education in particular, has experienced a general, albeit uneven, decline in quality. Most African

Demobilization of combatants after civil wars in Africa and their reintegration into civilian life

In the past few years, several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa conducted large scale demobilizations. These are positive signs and create opportunities for sustainable peace and human development. However, demobilization appears to be a complex process. It is closely linked to security issues; and the impact of demobilization depends largely on whether the ex-combatants are able to reintegrate. Demobilized soldiers and guerrilla fighters have usually great difficulties re-establishing themselves in civilian life. Frustrated ex-combatants may jeopardize the peace and development process. This paper identifies on the bases of the recent experiences some of the risks that are involved in demobilization and several conditions that have to be met in order for demobilization to attain a lasting positive impact on peace and human development in Africa.

The Reconstruction of Schooling in Africa

Often regarded primarily as a lending institution, the World Bank has increasingly emphasized its role as a development adviser. Few, if any, other international institutions have a comparable concentration of development expertise and experience. Its investment in research surely exceeds that of most African countries and perhaps all of them combined. In some domains-education is a prime example-the World Bank's development advice may have as much influence on programs and policies as its loans. As it plays this role, the World Bank becomes more than a broker of relevant information. Directly and indirectly, it seeks to guide and manage the creation of knowledge and, in doing so, to set the standards for what has come to be called knowledge production. Implicit in the provision of foreign assistance to African education are several broad propositions about the relationships among research, knowledge, and public policy. Generally accepted uncritically, these propositions seem unexceptional, so obvious that they hardly require systematic presentation and supporting evidence. Embedded in these propositions is an increasingly influential conjunction of funding and research that has far-reaching consequences for African education and for African development in general. The understanding implicit in the assistance relationship begins with two related assumptions: education is essential for development, and education in Africa is currently in such disarray that it cannot fulfill its developmental role. From that starting point comes a third widely accepted proposition: foreign assistance is required to support new initiatives in education, to rehabilitate African education systems that have deteriorated in recent years, and to meet recurrent expenditures. A second set of propositions informs the determination of what sort of assistance is to be provided. Although foreign assistance is of course negotiated and thus subject to the exigencies and vagaries of politics, priorities and targets for foreign aid should be determined, it is generally assumed, on the basis of careful research on education and development. That is, reliable knowledge about education, both in general and in its role in African development,