Central Africa Publications
The Trans - Atlantic South Partnership: Positions on Building a Mutually Beneficial Partnership with Africa
May 21, 2013It is very simple. Until the U.S. is as optimally invested, or doing business as briskly as the Chinese, the EU, Indians, Brazilians or Vietnamese; the world’s largest economy can neither expand its commercial footprint in Africa nor make a portentous impact on the lives of over a billion Africans. more
Beyond AGOA: An Updated Case for a Trans - Atlantic Trade & Investment Partnership Between Africa & The United States
May 03, 2013In this paper, McDonald, Lande & Matanda argue that, premised on conditions here in the U.S., in Africa and elsewhere, the ‘perfect storm’could be brewing for an effective renewal or enhancement of AGOA before the program expires in 2015. more
Why Economic Partnership Agreements Undermine Africa's Regional Integration
May 03, 2013This paper is specifically about providing suggestions for positions the AU can take vis-a-vis the European Union’s
Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs). Central is an urgent call for member states to give the AU latitude to ensure that the conclusion of EPAs with the EU is postponed until, at least, the next decade. Simply: If the EU successfully foists EPAs on a critical number of member states through unilateral threats to prematurely withdraw or limit preferential treatment, the negative consequences will be devastating not only to Africa but to many trading partners. more
Climate Change Adaptation and Peacebuilding in Africa: An Adaptation Partnership Workshop Report
Apr 04, 2013A workshop report focused on three areas of intersection that have dominated discussions of climate and security links in developing country contexts. more
How Should America Respond to Economic Opportunities in Africa?
Feb 07, 2013U.S. policy toward Africa has been on autopilot for much of the past four years, following a laundry list of good intentions that established priorities for Africa’s well-being and U.S. security interests. However, a truly sustainable and forward-looking U.S. policy toward Africa should refocus attention on Africa’s opportunity as an economic powerhouse of the future, a strategy that combines
both domestic self-interest and an opportunity to help Africa move forward. more
Africa’s Long Spring
Jan 23, 2013Long before it came to the Arab world, spring swept through sub-Saharan Africa. In 1990, Mozambique drafted its first multiparty, democratic constitution. The next year saw multiparty elections in what had been one-party states in Benin, Gabon, and Zambia, as well as the overthrow of Mali’s dictator and, subsequently, the election of new leaders. Every succeeding year brought new steps forward for democracy—in Ghana, Kenya, and the Republic of the Congo in 1992, and elsewhere on the continent in subsequent years. The world only paid attention when South Africa joined the ranks of democratic nations in 1994. more
Empowering Local Peacebuilders: Strategies for Effective Engagement of Local Actors in Peace Operations
Apr 19, 2012This USIP publication features, "Getting the Right People in the Room: The Burundi Leadership Training Program" by Howard Wolpe and Africa Program Director, Steve McDonald. more
Moving Targets: Youth Priorities and the Policy Response in War and Post-War Africa
Apr 16, 2012Unprecedented numbers of young people in weak and war-torn African nations, in short, tend to be characterized by the gap between what most youth need and what governments and international donors think they need, not to mention what they actually get. more
The Congo Crisis, 1960-1961: A Critical Oral History Conference
Nov 28, 2011HAPP is pleased to announce the release of "The Congo Crisis, 1960-1961: A Critical Oral History Conference" The publication features the transcript of a critical oral history conference convened by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars’ History and Public Policy Program and Africa Program on September 23-24, 2004. more
Certification: The Path to Conflict-Free Minerals from Congo
Jul 21, 2011The conflict minerals movement is gaining traction. The movement is a pragmatic effort to address one of the principal drivers of atrocities and conflict throughout Congo’s tortured history: the scramble for control of Congo's vast mineral resources. In eastern Congo today, these mineral resources are financing multiple armed groups, many of whom use mass rape as a deliberate strategy to intimidate and control local populations. Armed groups and military units earn hundreds of millions of dollars per year by trading four main minerals: the ores that produce tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold. This money enables the militias to self-finance their campaign of brutal violence against civilians, with some of the worst abuses occurring in mining areas. more
