Author Description

Product DescriptionAt the 1884-1885 Conference of Berlin a cartel of largely European states effectively set the rules for the partition of Africa, an event whose historical and structural importance continues to affect and shape Africa's contemporary international relations. This 'Curse' is a recurring theme inAdebajo's trenchant historical analysis, even though its main focus is on contemporary African issues after the Cold War. The first part of the book examines Africa's quest for security with three essays on Africa's security institutions such as the African Union and sub-regional bodies; another onthe political, peacekeeping, and socio-economic roles of the United Nations (UN) in Africa; and a third on Africa's two UN Secretaries-General between 1992 and 2006: Egypt's Boutros Boutros-Ghali and Ghana's Kofi Annan. The second section of the book focuses on Africa's quest for leadership, andfive chapters examine the hegemonic roles of South Africa, Nigeria, the United States, China and France on the continent. The five chapters in the final section of the study analyse Africa's quest for unity, and examine the roles and significance for Africa of six historical figures: Mandela, Mbeki,Kwame Cecil Rhodes, Obama, and Gandhi; as well as assessing the African Union and the EU in comparative perspective.Review"Not only a fitting salutation to Ali Mazrui and an acknowledgement and celebration of the great Mzee's contribution, but in a major way, it defines a new paradigmatic frontier in our understanding of Africa's international relations by an African scholar who is as passionate as he is meticulousabout his subject."--Africa Review of Books"Adebajo is one of the brightest of his generation of Africanists and these chapters not only display deep knowledge of the continent and its contem- porary political problems but, unlike so much academic writing, are written with considerable flair and enthusiasm. apart from its other merits thebook is a very good read."--Professor James Mayall, Cambridge University"Overall, this volume provides a fascinating insight into contemporary issues affecting African international relations, and the security-hegemony-unity framework used has the potential to become a powerful tool for analysis."--MillenniumAbout the AuthorA former Rhodes scholar at Oxford University,Adekeye Adebajo is Executive Director of the Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR) in Cape Town, South Africa. He is the author of, inter alia,The Curse of Berlin: Africa After the Cold War (Hurst, 2010); andUN Peacekeeping in Africa (2011).