scholarly journals Closing the Arab Democratic Gap: A Re-Assessment of the Tunisian Democratic Transition

Author(s):  
Yolaine Frossard de Saugy

Tunisia is often described as the outlier of the Arab Spring, the one case in which a form of political transition decidedly happened. The fact that this transition first led to the rule of the Islamist party Ennahda has reignited long-standing debates on the role of Islam in politics, the relationship between religion and democracy, and the consequences of their potential incompatibility for the future of Tunisian democracy. A sizeable literature has attempted to address these topics over the years, but it is of little help when trying to understand the events of the Arab Spring and the Tunisian transition, especially when it comes to their impact on the Islamist parties themselves. Borrowing from Villalón’s study of Islam and politics in sub-Saharan Africa, this paper argues that, instead of considering whether Tunisian actors fit within a preconceived notion of democracy, we should consider the process of political bargaining itself as democratic; focusing on the substance of democracy rather than its form sheds new light on the Tunisian case and helps explain various outcomes including the progressive liberalization of Islamist parties and the gradual but distinctive flourishing of democracy in the Tunisian context.

Author(s):  
L. Fituni

The author presents his own original conception of the 2011 Arab upheavals. First, he tries to find parallels between the Arab Spring and the 19th century European Spring of Peoples. Second, he dwells on the idea of three types of transition in the Arab World: economic, demographic, and ideological. Third, he reflects on the issues of democracy and autocracy in the Arab countries emphasizing the role of youth. Fourth, he puts forward some new ideas as regards the relationship between Europe and the Arab World, offering such terms as “democratic internationalism” and “young democratic safety belt” in the Mediterranean region.


Author(s):  
Rusmawati Said ◽  
Abdullahi Sani Morai

The historically lower level of public health expenditure of sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries could be partly explained by the mounting debt burden of this region. This consumes a sizable proportion of their domestic resources to debt servicing and potentially decreases their overall budgetary allocations to various sectors in the economy and health expenditure in particular. Using the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) approach on a sample of 43 sub-Saharan African countries, we examined the relationship between the public debt burden and health expenditure highlighting the role of institutional quality for the period 2000 – 2014. The empirical result confirms that the relationship between public debt burden and health expenditure in sub-Saharan Africa is negative. Interestingly, however, the marginal effect of the relationship between the public debt burden and health expenditure has shown that such a negative relationship turns out to be positive when the quality of the institutions is at maximum. This suggests that the relationship between the public debt burden and health expenditure in sub-Saharan Africa is a function of institutional quality.  Therefore, to minimize the negative impact of public debt on health expenditure in sub-Saharan Africa, governments should take determine stand to minimize its debt accumulation and intensify efforts toward the improvement of institutional quality in the region comprehensively.


2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaniel D Danjibo

The Arab Spring, which brought an end to the authoritarian regimes in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, was greeted with so much expectation, especially as it gave hope for the expansion of democracy. Unfortunately, however, the Arab Spring has only helped to bring about a period of political uncertainty in the affected countries and created the opportunity for political instability in the Sahel and Sub-Saharan Africa. The fragility of states in Africa with the attendant governance deficits have also created the platform for non-state armed actors to penetrate the Sahel and Sub-Saharan Africa, which ultimately impacts negatively on the region. This study, therefore, seeks to investigate the implication of the Arab Spring for peace and development in the Sahel and SubSaharan Africa.


Author(s):  
Rhys Jenkins

The growth of China and its re-emergence as a major economic power has been a key feature of globalization in the twenty-first century. China has become an increasingly significant actor in the global economy, and this is likely to continue in the foreseeable future. The implications of this for Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) have been a source of major debate. This book examines the arguments drawing on a growing body of research on China’s economic involvement in SSA and LAC. It begins by considering the process of economic reform in China from the late 1970s that provided the basis for China’s growing integration with the global economy. It considers four aspects of this integration: the growth of China as a global manufacturing centre, its impact on global commodity markets, the overseas expansion of Chinese firms as part of the ‘Go Global’ policy, and the increased role of China in global capital flows. Discussion of China’s impact on SSA and LAC is characterized by disagreements over both the extent of its presence and the underlying drivers. The book documents the different forms of Chinese economic involvement and clarifies some of the confusion that has arisen over the extent of China’s presence. It then analyzes the economic, social, political, and environmental impacts of China on both regions, to show a much more varied picture than the one that is often presented. These impacts depend to a significant extent on local conditions and actors, and cannot simply be read off as a consequence of Chinese expansion.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 34-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfredo González-Ruibal

The critique of archaeology made from an indigenous and postcolonial perspective has been largely accepted, at least in theory, in many settler colonies, from Canada to New Zealand. In this paper, I would like to expand such critique in two ways: on the one hand, I will point out some issues that have been left unresolved; on the other hand, I will address indigenous and colonial experiences that are different from British settler colonies, which have massively shaped our understanding of indigeneity and the relationship of archaeology to it. I am particularly concerned with two key problems: alterity – how archaeologists conceptualize difference – and collaboration – how archaeologists imagine their relationship with people from a different cultural background. My reflections are based on my personal experiences working with communities in southern Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa and South America that differ markedly from those usually discussed by indigenous archaeologies.


Author(s):  
Jamilu Danladi ◽  
Muslim Khamis ◽  
Muhammad Yusuf ◽  
Rabiu Ado

The Study is about the Relationship between the Western world and the Muslim world couple with understanding the role of Saudi Arabia in its leadership to the Islamic world. It analyzes the perceptions of Muslims especially in the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. It takes on a background of Islam and Saudi Arabia from earliest period to date. The study has been limited by understanding the perception of Muslim in relation to Saudi Arabian Leadership role. Time, Money and other resources constraints frequent demands.


Author(s):  
Yusuf Yahaya ◽  
Mustapha Usman ◽  
Muhammad Yusuf ◽  
Isyaku Rabiu ◽  
Ammani Muhammad

The Study is about the Relationship between the Western world and the Muslim world couple with understanding the role of Saudi Arabia in its leadership to the Islamic world. It analyzes the perceptions of Muslims especially in the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. It takes on a background of Islam and Saudi Arabia from earliest period to date. The study has been limited by understanding the perception of Muslim in relation to Saudi Arabian Leadership role. Time, Money and other resources constraints frequent demands.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Moran ◽  
Nyiko Mashele ◽  
Rufaro Mvududu ◽  
Pamina Gorbach ◽  
Linda-Gail Bekker ◽  
...  

AbstractPregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa are at high risk of HIV acquisition and require effective methods to prevent HIV. In a cohort of pregnant women offered pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), we evaluate the relationship between internalized and anticipated stigma and PrEP initiation at first antenatal visit, 3-month continuation and adherence using multivariable logistic regression. High internalized and anticipated PrEP stigma are associated with lower PrEP initiation at first antenatal visit (aOR internalized stigma=0.06; 95%CI=0.03-0.12 & aOR anticipated stigma=0.53; 95%CI=0.29-0.97) compared to women with low reported stigma, after controlling for covariates. Women whose partners have not been tested for HIV or whose serostatus remains unknown have 1.6-times odds of PrEP retention at 3-months compared to women whose partners have been tested (aOR=1.60; 95%CI=1.02-2.52) after adjusting for covariates. PrEP counseling and maternal PrEP interventions must consider individual- and relational-level interventions to overcome anticipated PrEP stigma and other barriers to PrEP initiation and adherence.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document