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The image of Africa in the modern world has come to be shaped by perceptions of the drylands and their problems of poverty, drought, degradation, and famine. Michael Mortimore offers an alternative and revisionist thesis, dismissing on theoretical and empirical grounds the conventional view of runaway desertification, driven by population growth and inappropriate land use. In its place he suggests a more optimistic model of sustainable land use, based on researched case studies from East and West Africa where indigenous technological adaptation has put population growth and market opportunities to advantage. He also proposes a more appropriate set of policy priorities to support dryland peoples in their efforts to sustain land and livelihoods. The result is a remarkably clear synthesis of much of the best work that has emerged over past years

This book embodies the results of thirteen years of research in drought-prone rural areas in the semi-arid zone of northern Nigeria. It describes the patterns of adaptive behaviour observed among Hausa, Ful'be and Manga communities in response to recurrent drought in the 1970s and 1980s. The question of desertification is explored in an area where the visible evidence of moving sand dunes is dramatic blame are examined in relation to the field evidence. A critique is offered of deterministic theories and authoritarian solutions. Professor Mortimore demonstrates a parallel between the observable resilience of semi-arid ecosystems and the adaptive strategies of the human communities that inhabit them and suggests policy directions for strengthening that resilience

The problem of poverty in Africa was often discussed in terms of the agro-ecological specifics and the internal social relations of societies, production systems and economies. However, there is still a lacuna with respect to the autonomy of the smallholder in the 'fight against poverty'. Analyses of long-term trends in the management of resources at the village, regional and national levels in dryland Africa suggest that African farmers have made considerable achievements in the face of a trying environment. (InWent/DÜI)

Para muchos paises de la Cuenca del Caribe, las exportaciones de prendas de vestir representan su vinculo mas importante con la economia internacional. Sin embargo, no causan en el Caribe los efectos deseados en materia de desarrollo. Las empresas transnacionales de prendas de vestir de los Estados Unidos solo utilizan aquellos factores que les permiten competir mejor con las importaciones desde Asia en el propio Estados Unidos y elevar la eficiencia de su sistema internacional de produccion integral, que en el caso de la Cuenca del Caribe son esencialmente las bajas remuneraciones. Como resultado, en lugar de profundizar el proceso de industrializacion caribeno, lo que hacen es frustrarlo. (Rev CEPAL/DÜI)