Whose Africa is rising?

SUMMARY

This briefing revisits the ‘Africa rising’ narrative. It makes two arguments. First, the ‘Africa rising’ narrative at best sits on a shaky foundation. African economies may have registered modest growth in recent years but the growth is either superficial or not happening in the sectors that matter the most. Second, the rather rosy picture of a rising Africa masks the continent’s continued marginal position in the global capitalist structures of power, domination and exploitation.

Acknowledgements

For helpful comments and suggestions, the author is grateful to this journal's Briefings and Debates Editor and two anonymous peer-reviewers.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Note on contributor

Moses Khisa is an Assistant Professor of Political Science in the School of Public and International Affairs at North Carolina State University, USA, and a weekly op-ed columnist for the Daily Monitor newspaper in Kampala, Uganda. His research and teaching interests are in comparative political development and the international political economy, with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa. He can be contacted at [email protected]

Notes

1 See list of interviews after references section.