scholarly journals Social Protection and State–Society Relations in Environments of Low and Uneven State Capacity

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-174
Author(s):  
Arthur Alik-Lagrange ◽  
Sarah K. Dreier ◽  
Milli Lake ◽  
Alesha Porisky
Keyword(s):  
Social Contract ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Technical Assistance ◽  
Rapid Expansion ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Assistance Programs ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
State Relations

Grounded in social-contractual ideas about relationships between the governed and those who govern, the provision of social benefits to citizens has historically been predicated on expectations of acquiescence to state authority. However, the rapid expansion of noncontributory social assistance in sub-Saharan Africa, often supported by global donors through technical assistance programs, raises myriad questions about the relationship between social protection and the social contract in fragile and low-capacity contexts. Focusing on sub-Saharan Africa, but drawing on the theoretical and empirical literature on social protection from around the world, this review parses out the redistributive, contractual, and reconstitutive effects of social protection programming on citizen–state relations. We argue that program features—including targeting, conditionality, accountability mechanisms, bureaucratic reach, and the nature and visibility of state–nonstate partnerships—interact dialectically with existing state–society relationships to engender different social contract outcomes for differently situated populations.

South-South Cooperation for Social Development

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Hall
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Technical Assistance ◽  
Agricultural Research ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfer ◽  
Humanitarian Assistance ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan

Under President Lula (2003–2010), Brazil’s foreign aid program expanded significantly into the area of South-South cooperation. This included the “soft power” fields of social protection, food security, agricultural research, and humanitarian assistance, among others, with a particular emphasis on supporting Sub-Saharan Africa, notably but not exclusively Portuguese-speaking countries. Much of this aid was provided with the support of technical assistance from UN agencies such as UNDP and FAO and bilateral aid bodies, via trilateral agreements, under the coordination of Brazil’s International Cooperation Agency (ABC). South-South collaboration is considered to be morally superior to conventional aid arrangements, being supposedly demand-driven and “non-exploitative,” thus empowering recipients in the process. Brazilian policymakers sought to transfer national anti-poverty initiatives to Africa. This was based initially on the Bolsa Família conditional cash transfer (CCT) program, but other nutritional food security initiatives followed, such as boosting small farmer production as well as supporting agribusiness.

scholarly journals Health technology assessment in sub-Saharan Africa: a descriptive analysis and narrative synthesis

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha Hollingworth ◽  
Ama Pokuaa Fenny ◽  
Su-Yeon Yu ◽  
Francis Ruiz ◽  
Kalipso Chalkidou
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Health Technology Assessment ◽  
Technology Assessment ◽  
Technical Assistance ◽  
Health Technology ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Main Theme ◽  
Narrative Synthesis ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Sub Saharan

Abstract Background Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are moving towards universal health coverage. The process of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) can support decisions relating to benefit package design and service coverage. HTA involves institutional cooperation with agreed methods and procedural standards. We systematically reviewed the literature on policies and capacity building to support HTA institutionalisation in SSA. Methods We systematically reviewed the literature by searching major databases (PubMed, Embase, etc.) until June 2019 using terms considering three aspects: HTA; health policy, decision making; and SSA. We quantitatively extracted and descriptively analysed content and conducted a narrative synthesis eliciting themes from the selected literature, which varied in study type and apporach. Results Half of the 49 papers identified were primary research studies and mostly qualitative. Five countries were represented in six of ten studies; South Africa, Ghana, Uganda, Cameroon, and Ethiopia. Half of first authors were from SSA. Most informants were policy makers. Five themes emerged: (1) use of HTA; (2) decision-making in HTA; (3) values and criteria for setting priority areas in HTA; (4) involving stakeholders in HTA; and (5) specific examples of progress in HTA in SSA. The first one was the main theme where there was little use of evidence and research in making policy. The awareness of HTA and economic evaluation was low, with inadequate expertise and a lack of local data and tools. Conclusions Despite growing interest in HTA in SSA countries, awareness remains low and HTA-related activities are uncoordinated and often disconnected from policy. Further training and skills development are needed, firmly linked to a strategy focusing on strengthening within-country partnerships, particularly among researchers and policy makers. The international community has an important role here by supporting policy- relevant technical assistance, highlighting that sustainable financing demands evidence-based processes for effective resource allocation, and catalysing knowledge-sharing opportunities among countries facing similar challenges.

Slaves and society in Western Africa, c. 1445—c. 1700

1980 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. D. Fage
Keyword(s):  
Social Mobility ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Western Africa ◽  
The Social ◽  
African Slaves ◽  
Limited Supply ◽  
Sub Saharan

Published European first-hand accounts of the coastlands from Senegal to Angola for the period c. 1445-c. 1700 are examined to see what light they throw on the extent to which institutions of servitude in pre-colonial sub-Saharan Africa were autonomous developments or a response to external demands for African slaves. It seems clear that when, in the early years of this period, European traders first approached societies along the western African coasts, they were commonly offered what they called ‘slaves’ in exchange for the goods they had brought. But it would be wrong to conclude from this that a slave class was necessarily a feature of western African coastal societies when these were first contacted by Europeans. It is clear, for instance, that the Europeans preferred to deal with societies which had developed monarchical governments, whose leaders had control of sufficient surpluses to make trade worthwhile. The evidence suggests that in these societies most individuals were dependants of a ruling and entrepreneurial elite, but that there was also social mobility. A category of dependants that particularly attracted the notice of the European observers was women, whom men of power and wealth tended to accumulate as wives (and hence as the potential mothers of still more dependants). The necessarily limited supply of women may have been a factor encouraging such men to seek to increase their followings, and thus their status, power and wealth, by recruiting other dependants by forcible, judicial and economic means. While many such dependants, or their offspring, would be assimilated into the social groups commanded by their masters, the latter were certainly willing to contemplate using recently acquired or refractory recruits in other ways, such as exchanging them for alternative forms of wealth.

Transcontinental Modernism. M&G as an Unité d’habitation and a factory complex in Mozambique

2010 ◽  
pp. 70-73
Author(s):  
Ana Tostões ◽  
Maria Manuel Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Social Program ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Industrial Complex ◽  
Architectural Heritage ◽  
Technological Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Overseas Territories ◽  
Architectural Modernism

With the aim of contributing to the documentation and conservation of the modern architectural heritage, this paper presents Monteiro & Giro Complex (M&G), built during the 50’s in Quelimane, Mozambique, with the goal of stressing the modernity of the social program and the technological approach. If one wants to gain a better understanding of the worldwide Diaspora of architectural modernism, it is essential to document and analyse the important heritage of sub–Saharan Africa. Modern architectural debates have been reproduced, transformed, contested and sometimes even improved in distant lands and overseas territories. These contradictory aspects of Modernist practice are revealed in the programmatic, technological and structural M&G industrial Complex.

scholarly journals Social Protection in Sub-Saharan Africa: Will the Green Shoots Blossom?

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Angel Niño-Zarazúa ◽  
Armando Barrientos ◽  
David Hulme ◽  
Sam Hickey
Keyword(s):  
Social Protection ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan

Cross-Border Funding and Microfinance Mission Drift: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 20-40
Author(s):  
Akem Forkusam
Keyword(s):  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Microfinance Institutions ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Mission Drift ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Different Sources ◽  
Ssa Countries

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has become the top priority for international funders and they are now increasing their cross-border funding to microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the region. This foreign funding is considered an additional source of capital for MFIs in the region who are facing difficulties in meeting the demand of the poor. However, these funds are provided by public and private funders who each have different motives. The paper examines the impact of these different sources of funding on microfinance performance and mission drift in SSA, which is the world’s poorest region. The study utilizes data from 212 MFIs in 30 SSA countries accessed over a three-year period (i.e. 2007, 2009, and 2011). The findings show that cross-border funding does not affect either the social or financial performance of MFIs when time and country effects are accounted for.

Sultanism

2021 ◽  
pp. 47-76
Author(s):  
Christopher M. Davidson
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Max Weber ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Sub Saharan

To facilitate a comprehensive and up-to-date understanding of the concept of sultanism, this chapter provides a detailed theoretical and empirical literature review. Firstly, it considers the oriental origins of the concept, as applied by Max Weber and others to the Ottoman Empire and a number of South Asian examples. Secondly, it traces the emergence of ‘contemporary sultanism’, as applied by scholars to Latin American regimes from the mid-twentieth century and onwards. Thirdly, it explores the more recent concept of neo-sultanism and the development of a distinct international empirical category of autocratic-authoritarianism which includes: various Latin America regimes; some of the former communist republics of central Asia and Eastern Europe; and a number of regimes in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Southeast Asia. Finally, it assesses the need to address the scholarly deficit in applying contemporary sultanism or neo-sultanism to the Middle East, and suggests that the present-day Saudi And UAE regimes may be strong examples.

Social, Political, and Environmental Impacts in Sub-Saharan Africa

2018 ◽  
pp. 183-219
Author(s):  
Rhys Jenkins
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Political Issues ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Ssa Countries

Some of the most controversial aspects of China’s economic presence in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) relate to the social, political, and environmental impacts. Many of the claims that are made are based on anecdotal evidence, and there is a need for more systematic research on these aspects. In terms of social impacts, the chapter discusses employment, wages, working conditions, and labour rights. Political issues addressed include claims that China’s involvement supports authoritarian regimes, encourages corruption, and leads to conflict and political instability. These claims are not generally supported, and SSA countries have benefitted from the increased policy space that Chinese involvement gives them. The environmental effects of both increased exports to China and the activities of Chinese firms in SSA are analyzed. Contrasting case studies illustrate the negative impacts of China on forestry, and the positive effects of Chinese support for wind and solar power.

Corruption and the Social Contract of the Welfare State

2021 ◽  
pp. 132-145
Author(s):  
Bo Rothstein
Keyword(s):  
Social Contract ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Social Trust ◽  
Political Support ◽  
General Level ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
The Social ◽  
Huge Impact ◽  
New Research ◽  
Positive Effect

New research shows that issues related to various forms of malpractice in the implementation of social policies have a huge impact on the possibility of gaining citizens’ support for social policies. While the extension of social policies in different countries can be explained by referring to variation in political mobilization, there is also an argument for understanding this from a social contract approach. Even if a majority of citizens understand that they stand to gain from a more universal and encompassing system for social protection, a lack of trust may prevent them from transforming the demand to actual political support for such a system. Lastly, a universal and encompassing system is likely to have a positive effect on the general level of social trust and creates a sense of loyalty towards the state, which in turn is likely to lower the inclination to take part in corrupt exchanges.

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