Position In Africa Research Articles

Digital currency adoption in Africa: A critical review and global comparison

This study critically examines the landscape of digital currency adoption in Africa, providing a comprehensive analysis that juxtaposes the region's progress against global trends. As the world witnesses an accelerating shift towards digital currencies, Africa stands at a crucial juncture in its financial evolution. This research delves into the factors influencing the adoption of digital currencies in various African nations, exploring the socio-economic, technological, and regulatory dimensions that shape their trajectory. The study employs a comparative approach, drawing parallels between Africa's digital currency adoption and global patterns. By examining successful case studies and identifying challenges unique to the African context, the research sheds light on the diverse experiences within the continent. Factors such as financial inclusion, regulatory frameworks, technological infrastructure, and cultural perceptions are scrutinized to unravel the complexities surrounding digital currency adoption. Furthermore, the study investigates the impact of global trends and initiatives on Africa's digital currency landscape. The analysis encompasses the role of international collaborations, regulatory harmonization efforts, and the influence of major digital currencies in shaping the African narrative. By identifying both opportunities and challenges, the research aims to offer insights that can inform policymakers, financial institutions, and stakeholders in fostering a conducive environment for digital currency adoption in Africa. The findings of this study contribute to the academic discourse on digital currency adoption, providing a nuanced understanding of Africa's position in the global digital financial ecosystem. In an era where technological advancements redefine traditional financial paradigms, this research aims to inform strategic decision-making processes that can unlock the transformative potential of digital currencies in the African context.

Pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism — current trends of the XXI century: the potential of symbiosis

The object of the study is the movement of pan-Africanism, which arose at the end of the XIX century and the concept of afrocentrism, at the end of the XX century. The first concept, pan-Africanism, turned into a powerful socio-political movement aimed at the national liberation, political struggle of the peoples of Africa against the metropolises, colonialism, as well as other forms of oppression. Afrocentrism was also formed as a tool to combat colonialism, but mentally, spiritually, and culturally. It was created as a tool to support and fight African Americans, the peoples of Africa and representatives of the African diaspora living around the world against the dominance of the Eurocentric model of the world. The subject of the study is the study of the formation of these concepts and the main ideological positions that formed the basis of their ideological foundation. The author examines in detail such aspects as spiritual decolonization, cultural decolonization, and the African personality. Special attention is paid to the study of the semantic core of pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism, the influence of European culture and the position of Africa as an object rather than a subject of history. The purpose of the work is to establish common ideological positions, as well as the possibility of symbiosis to solve the current challenges of the African continent. The methodological basis of the study was the historical approach necessary to restore the picture of past events, which were the basis for the formation of the ideological base of pan-Africanism, Afrocentrism, as well as the emergence of certain provisions. A systematic approach is used to carry out a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between ideological trends and determine the main trends in the development of these relations, methods of deduction, induction and synthesis. The novelty of the research lies in considering the concepts of pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism as complementary and mutually reinforcing parts. Both concepts were born almost a hundred years apart, but their similarity and relevance of ideas remain to this day. About 100 years ago, pan-Africanism called for the decolonization of African countries, and today for the eradication of neo-colonialism. Afrocentrism has common roots with pan-Africanism. The main conclusions of the study showed the possibility of a symbiosis of pan-Africanism and afrocentrism. It can become an effective tool for strengthening African society and obtaining the necessary energy to implement national strategies and protect the interests and values of both individual States and the continent as a whole.

Aligned or non‐aligned: South Africa's response to the war in Ukraine

AbstractThis contribution explores South Africa's position in the war in Ukraine. As a major African player, member of BRICS, the G20, and frequent UN Security Council member, the country is a globally engaged and regionally leading actor. Since the beginning of the conflict, South Africa has declared itself as non‐aligned; however, its close political relations with Russia and disinclination to condemn the invasion have raised the issue of whether the country is only declaratory neutral. Although South Africa is only indirectly affected by the war, it was chiefly involved in the first major peace initiative spearheaded by a select group of African countries. This contribution traces South Africa's official state response to the war, exploring its narrative of the conflict and is interrogating its version of non‐alignment in the context of a transitioning world order.

Cooperation of the People’s Republic of China With Countries of the African Continent in the Military Sphere

The purpose of the research paper is to investigate the collaboration between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and African nations in the military domain, examining the impact of ideological, socio-economic, international, and other elements.
 Scientific novelty. Based on documents and historiographical materials, the study analyzes the stages of development, characteristics, and content of the PRC’s military cooperation with African countries.
 Conclusions. The PRC’s with African countries has gone through a long and complex path. The first stage (late 1950s – mid-1970s) coincided with the rise of national liberation struggles in Africa, and China’s involvement had an ideological character.
 The second stage, (late 1970s – 1990s) witnessed a transition to commercialization, but faced limitations due to resource constraints, low-quality weaponry, and concerns about relations with Western investors. However, cooperation with Western corporations to modernize the military-industrial complex and develop new weapons was disrupted by the events in Tiananmen Square in 1989. Instead, cooperation with Russia in the defense field intensified, which allowed China to update the military-industrial complex and develop new weapons systems. However, due to their low quality, they did not stand up to competition, particularly in the African arms market. From the mid-1990s, China involved European and American corporations in modernization process, under the condition of potential export opportunities.
 The third stage of cooperation began in the early 2000s and continues to this day. China has significantly expanded its military cooperation with African countries through various military training programs, participation in international arms exhibitions, arms loans, military equipment sales, and involvement in UN peacekeeping missions. Deepening military cooperation strengthens China’s position in Africa and increases its competitive advantage not only in the African arms market.

The United States’ Position in Africa: On Solid Ground or Shifting Sand?

After decades of benign neglect, followed by a four-year period of outright disdain, the United States finally announced on August 8, 2022, a policy towards the continent of Africa that seemed to herald an era of treating the countries of Africa with respect and dignity, and acknowledging African agency in our bilateral and multilateral dealings. The question is whether the countries of Africa take this newly announced attitude seriously and will they act accordingly. Is the US position in Africa on a solid foundation, or are we witnessing a shift in global alliances with this significant portion of the global south moving closer to those who are not our friends? The large number of African countries abstaining on the United Nations votes calling for a Russian pullout from Ukraine or condemning Russia for the invasion have exposed cracks in African solidarity with the so-called West. But is this a new phenomenon, or an indication of the way things have always been?

Региональные державы Африканского континента: тенденции и перспективы

The article studies the elements of the twelve leading African states` mights in order to identify the regional power and find potential ones. The growing role of the African region in world politics is giving more weight to the regional powers in the international scene. The authors examined the power`s parameters in dynamics, thus allowed them to reveal not only the key leading states of the continent, but also to note the emerging powers of the African continent. Based on the size of the armed forces, the cost of maintenance and technological equipment, the leading positions in Africa are occupied by Algeria, Egypt and Nigeria. Although these indicators are not automatically translated into power projection, they are enough to create a restraining structural effect on other states on the continent. In terms of the combination of economic and demographic potential, the most noticeable groundwork has been formed in Egypt and Nigeria, since their economic growth is comparable to population growth. Other major countries in Africa are experiencing either slowing economic growth or demographic transition, raising questions about the potential of these countries. Finally, in terms of soft power and institutional representation, Egypt has a significant lead. Thus, only Egypt and Nigeria can be considered full-fledged regional powers in Africa. Although South Africa is often added to this list, military-political, economic-demographic and cultural-institutional trends on the African continent do not allow one to come to such a conclusion. The second echelon of powers in Africa potentially includes, in addition to South Africa, Algeria, Kenya and Ethiopia. Given these political dynamics, we can expect increased competition among the leading states on the continent.

Nigeria’s Contribution to Africa’s Regional Integration: Assessment of its recent Performance

This paper investigates the recent performance of Nigeria towards Africa’s regional integration as a major power in Africa. The main objective of the research is to determine the extent of Nigeria’s commitment to the realization of the African Union’s vision of becoming a fully integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa; and a dynamic force at the global level. Since her independence in 1960, Nigeria has been widely acknowledged as a leading power in Africa (The Giant of Africa) by several studies because of its preponderant political, economic and militarily power; influence; and benevolent contributions regarding to the liberation and progress of Africa. However, there are hardly substantive assessments of its recent performance towards Africa’s integration. The study adopts the Hegemonic Stability Theory; and descriptive analysis method to analyze data obtained from secondary sources. Analysis of the 2016 and 2019 Regional Integration Index (ARII) reports covering the period from 2010-2019 reveals that Nigeria has performed poorly towards the continent’s integration among its peers, both at the continental and sub-regional levels. The paper concludes that Nigeria’s poor performance would significantly slow the acceleration of Africa’s integration; and the country risks losing its leadership position in Africa to its rivals, especially South Africa. It recommends that the Nigerian government should take deliberate steps in formulating and implementing policies that would improve its performance across the five dimensions of the regional integration; and it should strengthen its commitment to consolidate its leadership position in Africa, and motivate smaller countries to contribute their best.

The cold war and its trajectory on African philosophy and African politics

From scholarly research, Africa's position on the planet and historical constituents especially minerals expropriation and labour made the continent a strategic partner to most world powers. This was understood during the voyages of the Dutch Indian Company to India. Even during the Cold War, powerful countries were eager to promote multilateral relationships with some countries in Africa and that strongly impacted the war as well as African politics. This practice did not end with the Cold War but continued and presently Africa is still being influenced by the Cold War proceeds. Through a qualitative method of research, the paper highlights the impact of the cold war and ideology its time on African philosophy as well as the shift in African political dynamics. Hence, the paper investigated how these relationships affected African thought and destabilized Africa as a habitat for culture and African norms especially in the midst of the Ukraine-Russian war. Ukraine-Russian war is of paramount importance in revealing how African states maintain their non-alignment stance on either side while being careful to preserve their long rich history with the former Soviet Union. The further paper noted the advantages or disadvantages that the erstwhile Cold War brought to the African worldview. This culminated in the obliteration of culture and other notions like ubuntu which are the cornerstone of Africanism. The paper concludes by bringing out a strategy that can be utilized to restore African thought post-Cold War era.

Re-Imagining policy discourses concerning the participation of young women in STEM-related TVET in Ghana

ABSTRACT As technical and vocational education and training (TVET) continue to occupy a prominent position in Africa’s development, addressing the growing concerns about young women’s under-participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-related TVET has become urgent. This paper draws on the critical capability approach of vocational education and training (CCA-VET) to critique the TVET policy discourse on the participation of girls and women in STEM-related TVET. The paper employed the practical argumentation approach, a critical discourse analysis approach to achieve the paper’s aims. The paper’s central thesis is that for education policies to transform young women’s under-participation in STEM-related TVET, it is urgent to move beyond human rights-based, and human capital approaches to adopt a comprehensive theoretical approach, such as the critical capabilities approach. The paper concludes that breaking this hegemony of human rights and human capital approaches to TVET policy can be achieved by re-conceptualising TVET policy discourses. The re-conceptualisation of TVET policy discourses can be achieved by admitting the critiques of these dominant theories that underpin most TVET policies and then adopting the CCA-VET as a better alternative approach to framing TVET policies.

Azelis strengthens its position in Africa and the Middle East

Azelis strengthens its position in Africa and the Middle East

Revisiting personal immunities for incumbent foreign heads of state in South Africa in light of the Grace Mugabe decision

In the Grace Mugabe decision in which the conclusion was arrived at that Grace Mugabe was not entitled to spousal immunity by virtue of being the wife of the then incumbent foreign head of state, Vally J remarked that the late former President Mugabe would not have been entitled to immunity had he been accused of committing the assault. This article analyses this remark and its potential negative impact on South Africa's relationship with other African states. The analysis is valuable as South Africa has positioned itself as being a human rights state that strives to play a significant role in peace making in Africa and consistently has argued that removing customary international law immunity, to which foreign heads of state are entitled, may undermine these intentions. The article examines South Africa's position on personal immunity for foreign heads of state in customary international law against the backdrop of the Mugabe decision. It argues that as it currently stands South African law recognises absolute personal immunity for foreign heads of state in cases not relating to the perpetration of international crimes.

Sino-Africa Cooperation under the Influence of the Belt and Road Initiative

The Belt and Road initiative is one of the most important parts of China’s overseas business strategy. The African region is also included in the Belt and Road initiative. This paper aims to study the important position of Africa in the Belt and Road strategy through the economic cooperation and project construction between China and Africa under the framework of the Belt and Road. China-Africa cooperation has a long history. Africa has many limitations in infrastructure but rich in natural resources. China’s strong manufacturing system can both make full use of natural resources from Africa and invest in African infrastructure. In recent years, China-Africa cooperation has been deepening and expanding in scale. The Belt and Road Initiative has brought win-win results to China and Africa. As China consumes excess capacity and realizes the goal of Chinese manufacturing going global, African countries have achieved economic development, improved infrastructure construction and stride toward industrialization.

External Debt Dynamics and Sustainable Growth in Nigeria

The paper provides empirical insights about how the interactions between the external debt and external sector dynamics impacts on economic growth in Nigeria. The paper underscored the critical desire to understand how debt-growth relationship could be optimized for sustainable economic development and growth in developing countries. It proposes modelling the external sector and debt dynamics in order to attain sustainable development in Nigeria. This study became imperative because Nigeria occupies a very significant position in Africa. Nigeria, though a developing country, is currently the largest black nation in the world and most populous country in Africa. The paper opted for an ex post facto research design using CBN statistics extrapolated from its statistical bulletin with 37year coverage from1980-2016. The data was analyzed using the ARDL and granger causality technique coupled with other pre-estimation and diagnostic tests. The result showed foreign-debt and debt-service was negatively not-significant on sustainable growth. It was concluded that though Nigeria wasn’t wrongly positioned on the debt-laffer-curve, the economy had not benefitted positively from the mass of debt funds accessed. The paper's primary contribution is finding that external debt and debts service had a negative (not-significant) impact on economic growth in Nigeria. The policy implication of this research may be applied to other developing countries. The propositions may however lack general applicability in more advanced economies.

Coronavirus in African: Social, Economic and Political Consequences

The article offers an analysis of the current situation with the coronavirus in Africa. It reveals the specific features of the pandemic and the socio-political and economic consequences thereof. The author concludes that, taking exploiting the pandemic, the United States and its allies are like likely to attempt weakening the PRC’s position in Africa and preventing Russia from building up its influence. The latter, especially, in view of the success of the Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum held in October 2019, in Sochi. However, Washington’s grand plans on the African continent are seriously constrained by the fact that Africans have long asserted themselves as full-capacity subjects in international relations and refuse to be pawns in the intricate games between the United States, China and other players for world leadership. The coronavirus pandemic will undoubtedly change the position of the continent in the new “post-coronavirus” world, but these changes largely depend on how and with whose assistance Africans are to overcome this serious test.The paper contains the results of online opinion-polling of African experts conducted by the author of the article.The author makes an attempt to explain the “Africa phenomenon” of the coronavirus pandemic, assesses the main risks of the spread of the epidemic and the possibilities of overcoming it. Special attention is paid to new opportunities for the development of the African economy in the “post-coronavirus world”, as well as the actions of the authorities to mitigate its socio-economic consequences.The author arrives to the conclusion that African countries, while less affected by the pandemic than other regions of the world, are not satisfactorily ready to fight it. The pessimistic scenario of the spread of coronavirus infection in Africa cannot be completely ruled out, and the socio-economic consequences of the pandemic can become a very serious test for most countries of the continent. At the same time, a certain redistribution of the balance of power in the region should be expected. The nations that are able in a timely manner to offer Africa significant support in the fight against the pandemic will gain. The Russian Federation has a real chance to strengthen its positions on the continent, cooperation with which may increasingly become a priority for Moscow, given the changing model of world development.

The Legal Combat of Financial Crimes: A Comparative Assessment of the Enforcement Regimes in Nigeria and South Africa

Abstract Financial crimes are debilitating problems for economies, especially emerging ones. The scourge of financial crimes includes money laundering, fraud, drug and human trafficking, terrorism financing, bribery, embezzlement, market manipulation, tax evasion, identity theft, forgery and cybercrime. These problems are so intractable and potentially destructive that the collective effort to prevent or contain them has gone global. The imperative of enhanced transparency and financial system integrity, not only in national financial systems but also in the international financial order, has become inevitable. This has resulted in the landmark frameworks of the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and the G7’s Financial Action Task Force. This paper discusses the legal combat of financial crimes in two major African economies: Nigeria and South Africa, with particular emphasis on money laundering and terrorism financing due to their direct negative macro-economic implications for any economy. The focus on the twin problems in those two economies is based on their pre-eminent position in Africa. The paper examines the legal frameworks for the prevention or containment of the scourge in the two countries and interrogates measures that could engender their effective control.

Involys: a Moroccan SME playing with African giants

Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Learning outcomes Objective 1 analyse the internationalization process of Involys and compare it with the traditional theoretical analyses; Objective 2 analyse and learn from past successes and failures in Africa, building up a meaningful strategic analysis with a specific focus on: understanding the advantages and disadvantages of size (small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) suppliers/State Institutions customers); understanding the importance of institutional barriers and opportunities in this specific context; understanding and measuring the distances issues and the way they affect the company’s development Objective 3 learn to be creative and concrete in proposing feasible solutions to the Board of Involys. Case overview/synopsis Involys is a medium-sized Moroccan company designing and implementing enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. It was co-founded in the 1980s by its present chief executive officer (CEO), quite a charismatic individual. As its listing on the Casablanca Stock Exchange, the company has set its main goal to develop its business on the African markets. This is a significant shift in commercial strategy for a company who has built its past success on working with Northern countries. Involys tries with its ERP system to accompany state-level reforms. The case study takes place in 2017, Involys has just lost a significant project in Cameroun, despite significant pre-sale investments, and is trying to build on its success in Gabon to accelerate and improve its competitive position in Africa. The case focusses on the internationalization process of a firm involved in long terms contracts and dealing mainly with institutions such as states or state departments. The issues of sizes, institutional barriers and distance should be specifically addressed in a south-south context. Complexity academic level Master’s degree executive training programs. Subject code CSS 5: International business.

Natural Gas Development Trend in Nigeria: The Investor’s Road Map

Natural gas as a cleaner energy is attracting investors across the globe, especially country like Nigeria with huge gas reserves. This paper present the development trend of natural gas in Nigeria from reserves through production, utilization, local demand, gas export, to regulation, Acts and Policies and possible investment indicators. With 200.41 Trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas reserves in 2018, Nigeria takes the first position in Africa as total proven gas reserves. However, in production, Nigeria falls to third position and consumption/utilization is minimal, indicating that some of the produced gas was flared. With a total reserve of 182.817 Tcf in 2010, 1.54% of the reserves was produced with 19.33% flared, and in 2017, with reserves of 199.09 Tcf, 1.48% was produced and 11.74% was flared. The present state of the power sector, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) (production and consumption) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) for vehicles, are indicators for investors to aggressively develop the natural gas infrastructure. However, an independent Regulating Agency needs to setup policies to regulate natural gas flaring and prices in order to guaranty a workable partnership and protect consumers and investors.

ON THE PROSPECTS OF THE UK-AFRICA COOPERATION AFTER BREXIT

UK’s interests in Africa are driven by economic perspectives and natural resources. This becomes more relevant in the age of global transformation of contemporary system of international relations. In 2018 British government set to become the biggest investor to Africa among G7 countries. On the eve of formal withdrawal from the EU, London hosted the first UK-Africa Investment summit confirming British commitment to strengthen economic and business cooperation with Africa in post-Brexit age. After leaving the EU, the UK is free to pursue its own international trade agenda, the authorities pledged to boost UK position in Africa in light of growing competition. The UK’s historical ties with the region is an advantage (19 out of 53 members of Commonwealth is located in Africa). The author concludes that the African countries expect that London will liberalize its internal market for African products and migration rule for African people. Of particular importance in the dialogue with the countries of the Black Continent is the rhetoric of promoting the environmental agenda and assistance in combating epidemics. Discussion remains, however, about the extent to which Britain's humanitarian programmes and international development assistance can contribute to London's strategic objectives in Africa. In light of COVID-19 pandemic London has a chance to enhance its image in Africa.

Development and Position of Africa in Science and Technology Today

Science and technology capabilities are fundamental for social and economic progress in African countries and they are crucial components aimed at fostering growth and development of every nation as they create impact on the various sectors of governments. Maintaining and Strengthening the contributions of science and technology become more important for Africa in addressing traditional development issues and successful application of science and technology entails establishing effective institutional framework and linkages so that the various science and technology institutions and the productive sectors work in a system that is focused on achieving developmental goals without undue duplication and completion. Unfortunately, many developing countries especially the poor countries in West Africa do not have human resources, physical and economic infrastructures and access to capital to take full advantage of the science and technology expertise and achievements of the developed countries like the USA, China, and Korea etc. Conclusively, it is imperative for Africa especially West African countries to embrace science and technology as a vital tool for accelerating their socio-economic development as science and technology enhances its international competitiveness and more importantly its position in the world economy.

Evolution of scientific production in cardiology and cardiovascular diseases in Maghreb countries: Bibliometric study

Cardiovascular diseases represent a real public health problem in the countries of the Great Maghreb. Biomedical research focused on these diseases contributes to the planning, implementation and evaluation of different programs to combat this global burden. Thus, we conducted this bibliometric study in order to evaluate Maghrebian scientific production in the field of cardiology and cardiovascular diseases. We used the website SCImago Journal & Country Rank to collect data on Maghreb publications in the field of cardiology and cardiovascular diseases during the period 1996 to 2017. The data collected were exported to SPSS for further statistical analysis. The five Maghreb countries accounted for 14.84% of global publications in the field of cardiology and cardiovascular diseases. A significant increase in the number of published articles was observed ( r 2 = 0.799, P < 10 −3 ). It resulted in a growth index of 3.4. The number of publications increased from 14 in 1996 to 99 in 2017. The scientific research in cardiology peaked in 2015: 294 articles were identified or 23% of the total Maghreb production. Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria contributed to almost all of the biomedical cardiovascular publication with respectively 45.9%, 35.3% and 17% of publications. Thanks to the Tunisian publication in this medical discipline during the period from 1996 to 2017 (586 publications), Tunisia occupies the third position in Africa and the 59th position in the world. The number of citations per publication was 7.9. Libya had the highest number of citations per article (30.35). A significant decrease in the number of citations per document was observed in Mauritania. The H index was 27 and 19 respectively in Tunisia and Morocco. Despite its non-homogeneity, Maghrebian scientific production recorded a clear evolution from 1996 to 2017. However, the progression of cardiovascular diseases in the Maghreb countries is still alarming. It would be of high interest to study the quality of these publications as well as the areas studied.