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This book explores the nascent and complex terrain of democratization and peaceful political transitions in Africa. It analyzes major election-related conflicts across the continent, explains their root causes and major consequences, and offers measures that may be undertaken to prevent, manage, and resolve election-induced conflicts. It charts a path for the future political and democratic stability in Africa.

The article places the migration of Fulani pastoral nomads to south-western Nigeria in historical context. Their transhumant pastoralism has had the potential for violence with their Yoruba host communities, but in recent times their movements have avoided the violence which their economic activites might have generated. The absence of proper documentation of this migration raises the problem of examining the historical events or movements of "outsiders" because of their "foreignness." Yet, discussion of current migration and refugee issues would be incomplete if the role and the conditions of the historically migrant Fulani were ignored. A consideration of how conflicts have been resolved or avoided demonstrates that the relationships between nomads and their Yoruba hosts may have some in sights into the interaction between refugee populations and their hosts.

Zu Struktur und Funktion eines föderalen Finanzwesens in Nigeria liegt eine Reihe von Berichten und Untersuchungen vor, die vor dem Hintergrund der tatsächlichen bzw. wünschenswerten Gegebenheiten analysiert und miteinander verglichen werden. Dabei treten zwischen der Zentralregierung und den einzelnen Bundesstaaten häufig diametral entgegengesetzte Interessen zutage. Die Erfahrungen der Vergangenheit mit verschiedenen Regierungen und Verwaltungssystemen erfordern die Gründung eines 'Centre for the Study of Federalism', um den für 1992 als Dritte Republik vorgesehenen Übergang zur Demokratie so wirksam und so lebensfähig wie möglich zu gestalten. (DÜI-Hlb)

This masterful book investigates and analyzes several aspects of money among the Yoruba of Nigeria. Falola and Adebayo explore the origin, philosophy, uses, politics, and problems of acquiring and spending money in Yoruba culture. No prior book exists on this aspect of a major ethnic group in Africa with established connections with the black Diaspora in North America and the Caribbean. Conceived so that each chapter may be read individually, the volume is divided into three parts. Part 1, "Money and Its Uses," focuses on the transition from barter to cowry currency, the idealistic and pragmatic views of money, the impact of monetization on social stratification, accumulation among members of the elite, and the development of savings, banking, and credit institutions. Part 2, "Money and Its Problems," investigates the social, political, and cultural problems of money, including money-lending, theft, counterfeiting, and corruption. Part 3, "Money and Oil Economy," assesses the impact of the oil industry on the Nigerian state and examines both the positive and negative effects of oil money on Yoruba economy, society, and spending. Concluding chapters detail efforts to arrest the crisis that followed the economic slump after the oil boom and led to the adoption of the Structural Adjustment Program, and also evaluate the effects of currency devaluation on personal and communal responsibilities and social payment. Culture, Politics, and Money Among the Yoruba is timely in view of ongoing political and economic changes in Africa. It will be of interest to economists, sociologists, and African studies specialists.

Taking a multidisciplinary approach, this book evaluates the relations between globalization and Africa's multifarious challenges and identities. The nineteen chapters coalesce to demonstrate that the forces and processes of globalization have increased Africa's marginalization, deepened its crises, escalated and intensified its conflicts, and undermined its ability to determine the content and direction of its cultural changes and economic future

This book evaluates indigenous conflict management strategies in West Africa. It proposes a set of mechanisms by which the best elements of indigenous knowledge and skills in conflict management may be deployed to settle contemporary disputes and made portable for adoption and adaptation by other complex societies in the region and beyond.