Participation In Africa Research Articles

Parental perspectives regarding the return of genomic research results in neurodevelopmental disorders in South Africa: anticipated impact and preferences.

Few policies and little research exist regarding the disclosure of genomic results to research participants in Africa. As understanding participant preferences would be pivotal to the success of the feedback process, this study set out to address this issue by engaging with enrolled participants from an ongoing genomics research project on neurodevelopmental disorders with the aim to assess the anticipated impact of receiving pertinent results and explore the preferences for feedback in a South African context. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 parents of children participating in the research study. Transcribed interview data and observational notes were analysed using thematic analysis and framework matrices. Participants linked their own meaning to the impact of receiving a pertinent result and perceived the information as useful for reasons other than only clinical utility. These included closure, improved management of their child's condition and information regarding recurrence risks. In terms of preferences for feedback, an in-person result delivery session, conducted by a member of the study team or medical professional familiar with their child was preferred. In addition, participants felt a sense of ownership over their blood or their contribution to the research study, finding meaning even in non-pertinent results. These findings provide insight into the type of discussions that may be valuable in enabling the development of best practices and guidelines for the return of individual genetic research results, in a culturally appropriate manner, within South African communities.

Parental Perspectives Regarding the Return of Genomic Research Results in Neurodevelopmental Disorders in South Africa: Anticipated Impact and Preferences.

Few policies and little research exist regarding the disclosure of genomic results to research participants in Africa. As understanding participant preferences would be pivotal to the success of the feedback process, this study set out to address this issue by engaging with enrolled participants from an ongoing genomics research project on neurodevelopmental disorders with the aim to assess the anticipated impact of receiving pertinent results and explore the preferences for feedback in a South-African context. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 parents of children participating in the research study. Transcribed interview data and observational notes were analysed using thematic analysis and framework matrices. Participants linked their own meaning to the impact of receiving a pertinent result and perceived the information as useful for reasons other than only clinical utility. These included closure, improved management of their child's condition and information regarding recurrence risks. In terms of preferences for feedback, an in-person result delivery session, conducted by a member of the study team or medical professional familiar with their child was preferred. In addition, participants felt a sense of ownership over their blood or their contribution to the research study, finding meaning even in non-pertinent (secondary findings) or negative results. These findings provide insight into the type of discussions that may be valuable in enabling the development of best practices and guidelines for the return of individual genetic research results, in a culturally appropriate manner, within South-African communities.

Introduction to the Special Issue: Leveraging Global Value Chains for innovation and industrialization in Africa

The global nature of innovation has led to the emergence of Global Innovation Networks (GINs) and Global Value Chains (GVCs), facilitating knowledge exchange and economic activities across borders. GVCs offer platforms for accessing external knowledge and fostering innovation. They have evolved through three eras of innovation models: the Linear and Closed Model (LCM), the Interactive and Closed Model (ICM), and the Interactive and Open Model (IOM). The IOM emphasizes open innovation principles, intersecting with GINs and GVCs. Lessons from East Asian and Latin American countries highlight strategic practices for GVC integration, focusing on export-oriented industrialization, education, technology policies, infrastructure, and SME support. In Africa, GVC engagement spans agriculture, manufacturing, and services sectors, driving economic growth, job creation, and technological advancements. To advance GVC participation in Africa, a research agenda, policy directions, and action plans are proposed. The research agenda emphasizes GVC governance, value addition, sustainability, innovation, and regional integration. Policy directions focus on infrastructure development, trade facilitation, SME support, human capital development, and promoting sustainable and inclusive growth. African businesses are encouraged to conduct value chain mapping, form strategic partnerships, embrace technology, ensure quality assurance, invest in capacity building, and diversify markets to leverage the potential of GVCs for economic transformation and global competitiveness.

Addressing the gender gap: Impact of institutions on women’s political participation in Africa

Women’s low political participation remains a problem in many parts of the globe. Previous research within the African context has examined the gender gap, focusing on individual-level factors. Still, the gender gap persists after controlling for the usual barriers (resource, attitudinal, social, and cultural). We complement prior studies by exploring the impact of an overlooked factor—institutions. We theorize that the gender gap in political participation in Africa depends on the specific institutional context and nature of the institutions themselves. Focusing on electoral systems, gender quotas, and their inclusive outcomes (increase in women’s numbers in national assemblies), we hypothesize that in countries with proportional (PR) electoral systems, gender quotas should encourage higher participation among women and yield small to no gender gap. Using five waves of Afrobarometer data covering 32 African countries, the multilevel regression results reveal nuanced effects of institutions on the gender gap in both electoral and non-electoral participation. First, compared with majoritarian systems, we find that PR electoral systems help erase the gender gap only for electoral participation (voting). In contrast, for non-electoral participation, PR electoral systems show no significant impact on reducing the gender gap. Second, we find no evidence to support the hypothesis that gender quotas reduce the gender gap in electoral and non-electoral participation. Third, where women’s representation in legislatures exceeds 20 percent, there is a reversal of the gender gap for voting. However, for non-electoral activity, improving women’s presence in national legislatures proves more effective in reversing the gender gap only for those belonging to a political party. For other activities, such as joining others to raise issues, protest actions, and attend community meetings, the gender gap persists but diminishes, with women holding 20–45 percent of seats.

Slave trades, kinship structures and women's political participation in Africa

AbstractWe study whether present‐day women's political participation in sub‐Saharan Africa is associated to the temporary gender ratio imbalances caused by the transatlantic and Indian Ocean slave trades, taking into account pre‐existing gender norms influenced by kinship structures. To study the interrelatedness between historical exposure to the slave trades, patrilineality and their association to contemporary women's political participation, we use individual‐level data for 35,595 women from 28 sub‐Saharan African countries from three rounds of Afrobarometer surveys, georeferenced to historical ethnic region kinship and slave trade data. Our findings suggest that a woman's ethnic region historical exposure to the transatlantic slave trade is associated with an increase in her likelihood to vote today, however, only in non‐patrilineal ethnic regions. This effect is mitigated in patrilineal ethnic regions, where women have less decision‐making power. This paper contributes to the literature on the contemporary sub‐national effects of the slave trades and the historical causes of gender gaps in political participation.

Research Ethics in Training Curricula of Cameroon Health Training Institutions: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Introduction The quality of protection for research participants in Africa is still marked by the lack of trained actors in this area. The study was conducted to assess the availability of health research ethics in the curricula of health-related sciences training institutions in Cameroon. Methods The study involved a cross-sectional analysis to describe the training curricula on research ethics in health training institutions in Cameroon. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire that was administered face to face to the heads of institutions in late 2020. Results Twenty-one health training institutions were identified, and 18 (85.71%) participated. Health research ethics courses were present in the curricula of 16 (88.88%) of the institutions. Lectures were either a standalone module or part of a module in 14 (77.78%) institutions. The three first topics covered in the courses were the fundamental principles of ethics, the role of the ethics committee in the protection of research participants, and respect for research participants. A total of 14 (77.78%) institutions declared ethical clearance mandatory before the implementation of students' thesis protocols. Eight (50.00%) training institutions declared having at least one qualified lecturer to deliver training in research ethics evaluation. The organization of the training of lecturers in delivering lectures on research ethics was declared to be the main assistance needed. Conclusions The delivery of research ethics education in Cameroon's healthcare institutions is still limited by the fact that it does not cover all eligible populations, is not standardized, and does not yet promote the practice of requiring all student protocols to undergo preethical review prior to implementation. These points should be taken into account by the authorities in charge.

Size, geography, and GVC participation of firms in Nigeria and Rwanda: Implications for the AfCFTA

Global value chains (GVC) have recently become an important developmental issue and have become prominent within the development community. Empirical studies on the peculiar nature of firms (small-scale) in the GVC are sparse, especially in Africa. Thus, the present study empirically examines whether or not the size of the firm matters in their GVC participation in Africa. It also investigates if a firm’s geographical location spurs GVC participation. The study answers the above research questions using the World Bank's Enterprise Survey database for two African countries, namely: Nigeria, and Rwanda. Adopting a logit regression model, the findings show that firms in Africa are predominantly small-scale and sole proprietorships. The size of the firm, the legal status of the firm, firm access to ICTs, managerial experience, and the geographical location of the firm are crucial drivers of firms' GVC participation in Nigeria and Rwanda. Policy implications and recommendations for the AfCFTA are discussed in the paper.

Symbolic Gestures or Social Impact? The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, Corruption Perceptions, and Political Participation in Africa

Symbolic Gestures or Social Impact? The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, Corruption Perceptions, and Political Participation in Africa

John W. Harbeson & Donald Rothchild (Eds.) Africa in World Politics: Reforming Political Order. Boulder: Westview Press, 2008.ISBN 13: 9780813343648

Sub-Saharan African states have shown signs that they may participate in global politics due to notable economic and political developments that they have attained since their independence in the second half of the 20th century. The end of the Cold War saw African states being integrated into the world economy through multilateral institutions and also applying the new wave of democracy to their systems of governance. This book examines the important trends and developments in the participation of Africa in world politics. The book is divided into 14 chapters. In the first chapter, authors highlights the political and economic challenges that were being faced by sub-Saharan states soon after attaining their independence. States such as Mozambique, Angola, and Rwanda engaged in civil wars for years, while Zimbabwe was resistant to multiparty democracy. The author argues that since 1990, most Sub-Saharan countries have democratized and conducted multiparty elections, as well as opened doors for civil society organizations. The number of democratizing African countries had risen from 2 to approximately a third of all African countries.

Does Exposure to Other Ethnic Regions Promote National Integration? Evidence from Nigeria

This paper examines how temporary exposure to a different ethnic region affects national integration, using original survey data from participants in Africa’s largest national youth service program. Seven years later, participants randomly assigned to serve in a state with a different ethnic majority are five times more likely to live all across the country compared to those who served in their ethnic region. They have more interethnic romantic relationships and express greater national pride. Nevertheless, immersion in a different region strengthens participants’ ethnic pride and favorable attitudes toward co-ethnics. The results suggest that national and ethnic identity can thrive together. (JEL D12, D91, J13, J15, O15)

RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY TOWARDS AFRICA: HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND FUTURE PROSPECTS

The purpose of this research is to give a thorough analysis of Russian foreign policy toward Africa by investigating the historical context and future possibilities of this engagement. It will examine the origins of Russian participation in Africa, the causes that have led to its revival, the attitude of Western nations, and the current state of Russian-African relations. The research will also analyze the constraints of Russian participation in Africa, as well as prospects for further cooperation and collaboration on mutually beneficial subjects. The research will help us comprehend world politics and international relations in the twenty-first century.

The African Continental Free Trade Area and Financial Development for Female Labour Force Participation in Africa

The study assesses how financial development dynamics can moderate the incidence of African trade integration on female labour force participation. The focus is on 47 African countries for the period 1995 to 2019 and the empirical evidence is based on Fixed Effects regressions. The findings show that financial development moderates African trade integration to engender an overall positive effect on female labour force participation. Moreover, financial depth proxied by liquid liabilities should reach a threshold of approximately 14.304 (% of GDP) in order to completely dampen an initial negative incidence of intra-African trade integration on female labor force participation. It follows that financial development becomes a necessary and sufficient condition to moderate intra-African trade integration in order to positively affect female labor force participation only when the established threshold of financial depth is attained. Other policy implications are discussed.

Business climate and global value chains: Insights from Africa

This paper provides insights on how business climate affect global value chains (GVC) participation in the panel of African nations. The study explores country-level data spanning over a period of 2006–2018. Using the novel method of moments (MM)-Quantile regression, system generalized methods of moments (SYSGMM) and Panel spatial consistent correlation (PSCC) techniques, the study finds that all aspects of business environment have significant impacts on GVC participation in Africa. In specific, information and communication facilities, getting electricity, getting credit, trading across border, enforcing contract, protecting investors and business start-up registration have positive and significant impact on GVC. We also discover that tariff reduces GVC participation while strong political institutions enhance participation. The study concludes that business environment factors are fundamental to ensure high level of GVC participation. Political institutional framework needs to be strengthened to further encourage GVC participation in Africa.

An analysis of value chain trade in Africa

AbstractAfrica's participation in global value chains (GVCs) is not well documented compared with the developed world. Clearly understanding GVC participation levels is critical to enable evidence‐based policy. This paper uses two sources of data to assess Africa's GVC participation and empirically estimates determinants of GVC participation across the data sets. The analysis relies on databases based on customs‐level data (firm and country) and firm survey data from which measures of GVCs are constructed. We find that aggregate GVC data mask disparities, as Africa's proportion of firms participating in GVCs is comparable to other regions, but Africa's GVC trade is much lower. A common theme in the multi‐country empirical results is the positive relationship between political stability and GVC participation of African countries. For single‐country analyses, the consistent result is that FDI is positively associated with backward GVC participation, both at the firm level and country level of analysis. This highlights how much institutions and the need to attract FDI are relevant in promoting Africa's future engagements in GVCs. The consistency in GVC participation rates across the two data sets at the country level indicates their suitability in GVC studies in Africa and expanding their country coverage can enable policymakers to make informed decisions.

Global value chains in sub-Saharan Africa: The role of business regulations, policies and institutions

This paper investigates the impact of business regulations, policies and institutions on global value chains (GVCs) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). It uses the latest release of the Eora MRIO IO database to compute the GVC indictors. The World Bank's doing business indicators are used as business regulatory measures and the Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) indicators are also used as policies and institutional quality measures. The empirical evidence is based panel data analyses and panel quantile regressions as the estimation techniques. The findings show that business regulations, institutional and policy initiatives are critical factors in determining the level of GVC participation in Africa. The results also provide evidence that Africa countries could enhance their participation in the global value chain through improved business regulations, policies and institutions.

Introduction to symposium supply chain trade in Africa: Retrospect and prospect

AbstractThe symposium focuses on the evolution and determinants of Africa's participation in Global Value Chains (GVC) through comparisons with other continents, but also across countries within Africa. Using firm, sector and country‐level data they provide a comprehensive micro and macroeconomic analysis of GVC in Africa that helps inform policymakers aiming at increasing Africa's participation in GVC. Three policy areas are identified. First, encouraging FDI and better governance are important drivers of GVC participation through vertical and horizontal linkages. Second, promoting production capacity through industrial policies that aim at learning by exporting and internet connectivity can help diversify African GVC, which is heavily concentrated in the commodity sector, towards the manufacturing and services sectors with higher value‐added. Finally, there is a need to increase the downstreamness of Africa's participation in GVC, not only because it moves Africa towards sectors with high value‐added but also because it would make Africa's production more environmentally sustainable.

Assessing the relationship between digital divide and citizens’ political participation in Africa

ABSTRACT The proliferation of access to digital technology has raised remarkable interest regarding its various effects on everyday life, with recent studies largely focusing on financial inclusion. This study examined the influence of digital inequalities on political participation in Africa’s nascent democracies using the sixth wave of Afrobarometer data covering 36 countries and involving 49 896 respondents. The descriptive analysis shows that nearly 70 per cent of the respondents voted, were interested in public affairs, and took part in political discussions. Furthermore, digital inequalities were found to be geographically correlated, with the highest prevalence in Southern Africa. Using the OLS regression technique, we observe that access to the internet and mobile phones and usage thereof have strong positive relationships with various aspects of political participation, among others. Our results suggest the need to promote policies directed towards reducing digital inequalities, including internet usage subsidies, to engage citizens in political participation.

Translating Ethics into Practice: Providing Long-Term Cardiometabolic and Cardiovascular Disease Care for Research Participants in Africa.

Translating Ethics into Practice: Providing Long-Term Cardiometabolic and Cardiovascular Disease Care for Research Participants in Africa.

The impact of China's trade and FDI on Africa's GVC participation and economic upgrading

PurposeThis study examines the impact of China's trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) on Africa's global value chain (GVC) participation and economic upgrading.Design/methodology/approachThe study covered 48 African countries, cutting across the western, eastern, central, southern and northern subregions to cover the heterogeneity of the continent. The study adopted feasible generalized least squares panel VAR-Granger causality Wald test and system generalized methods of moments techniques for estimation.FindingsOverall, China's FDI to Africa and US-Africa trade have a linear relationship with Africa's GVC involvement and economic upgrading. The findings suggest that although China-Africa trade has a positive impact on GVC engagement and upgrading, the marginal effect decreases in the face of US-Africa and EU-Africa trade.Originality/valueThis study provides new evidence on the impact of China's FDI and trade on African economies' GVC participation and economic upgrading. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to empirically explore the effects of China's FDI and trade on Africa's GVC integration and economic upgrading as well as from the perspectives of backward and forward GVC participation. Furthermore, the study empirically examines whether the effects of Africa's economic cooperation with China relative to its GVC engagement differ from those of Europe (EU) and the US via a comparative regression.

Unemployment and political participation in Africa: a study of Nigeria

The rate of unemployment in Africa and particularly Nigeria is increasing at a geometrical progression. This apparently spells doom for the future generation if not checked as a matter of urgency. In the case of Africa and Nigeria in particular, evidences abound to buttress the interconnectedness among unemployment, economic inequality and political participation. This scenario has overwhelming implications for sustainable political development of Nigeria. This paper undertakes to unearth the interactions between unemployment and political participation in Nigeria adopting the Marxist theory of post-colonial state which underlies the political economy approach. Data are drawn from secondary sources which, to a large extent, brings to the fore that the unemployed become victims of economic inequality, and given the high stakes in Nigeria politics, are prone to political apathy, frustration and hopelessness. The paper vehemently proposes that government should exercise the political will to engage constructively in dismantling all seemingly governance and institutional hindrances to popular participation. It is therefore, recommended that money politics be discouraged using appropriate legal measures. Various empowerment and job creation programmes should be objectively implemented to ameliorate the high incidences of economic inequality as a result of unemployment thereby encouraging greater political participation in Nigeria.