Authors:Jack Boulton Abstract: Africa Spectrum, Ahead of Print. Over the past few years, the term ‘toxic masculinity’ has entered public debate in Namibia as a way to describe apparently problematic forms of masculine behaviour, particularly in the light of high levels of gender-based violence. Originating in Western discourse, the term itself is difficult as it can stifle meaningful and transformative conversations concerning men. Describing ‘toxic masculinity’ as a trope, and indicating that tropes of violence have been used and politicised before, this article proposes a different way of reading men: via the mask. To do this, the ‘tropological place’ is introduced as a space of intimacy and trust, in which the kinds of masks that men wear become visible. Although the introduction of ‘toxic masculinity’ into debates around masculinities in Namibia should be acknowledged as an important starting point for conversations, this article urges researchers to think beyond it, encouraging more lateral relations with those that we research. Citation: Africa Spectrum PubDate: 2023-05-24T06:40:48Z DOI: 10.1177/00020397231175170
Authors:Malvern Kudakwashe Marewo Abstract: Africa Spectrum, Ahead of Print. This article examines the nature of labour exchange between A1 farmers with people in communal areas of origin based on kinship and friendship relations. While agrarian labour in Zimbabwe has attracted considerable interest in land reform debates, limited attention has been paid to agrarian labour exchange and livelihoods based on belonging to communal areas of origin under the Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP). Using a qualitative case study from Mashonaland West, Zimbabwe, I argue that belonging plays an important role in labour exchange and enabling livelihoods. This article illustrates that labour exchange in farm households still matter despite changes in land distribution and the economy. The article concludes that belonging-based labour exchange enhances agricultural production and livelihoods in a new land ownership and economic circumstances. Citation: Africa Spectrum PubDate: 2023-05-22T03:28:06Z DOI: 10.1177/00020397231173709
Authors:Yahya Sseremba First page: 3 Abstract: Africa Spectrum, Ahead of Print. Intervening in the enduring debate on the origins of the African state, this article examines the processes of producing custom in the Ugandan societies of precolonial Bunyoro and colonial Toro to trace the development of despotism. The participatory nature of generating customary truth in Bunyoro before European domination reflects the diffusion of power in a manner that hindered absolute rule. On the contrary, in colonial Toro, the inclusive mechanisms for making custom gave way to customary law produced by the colonial government and its native chiefs. This monopoly to determine customary law disguised as custom constituted the heart of the despotism of Toro Native Authority. Derivatively, the Rwenzururu resistance against Toro domination equally assumed a despotic character because it organised itself along the logic of the authority it confronted. The study interrogates the resurgent literature that associates the contemporary African state with precolonial history. Citation: Africa Spectrum PubDate: 2023-01-19T07:07:33Z DOI: 10.1177/00020397221149037
Authors:James Musonda First page: 21 Abstract: Africa Spectrum, Ahead of Print. What can music used by politicians during campaigns tell us about their behaviour, character and their rule' The article responds to this question by analysing political songs used by Patriotic Front (PF) in Zambia, before winning the 2011 elections and the subsequent elections. This article argues that music can be an important unacknowledged tool for understanding the behaviour of political leaders, and in this case, their gatekeeping behaviour that aims at sustaining the ruling party in power by undermining the opposition. Citation: Africa Spectrum PubDate: 2023-03-16T05:27:53Z DOI: 10.1177/00020397231158123
Authors:Chidi Ugwu First page: 38 Abstract: Africa Spectrum, Ahead of Print. From the colonial days, the dibia (folk practitioner) in the Igbo-speaking southeast of Nigeria, as elsewhere, has been maligned by hegemonic Christianity and biomedicine. The consequent public reluctance to openly pursue indigenous healing remains a core part of the challenges to patronage the dibia has had to navigate. Drawing empirical materials from the Igbo town of Nsukka, this ethnographic account narrates how the dibia not only resists these hegemonic forces but even instrumentalizes their allures to advance folk healing. This I term forward or offensive agency, as against inclined or defensive agency along which lines decolonial and postcolonial discourses have ordinarily framed patterns of local reaction in much of today's South. In offensive agency, a smokescreen of change is projected by the locale, indicating, to an external eye, that change has happened while the core of the epistemic sphere in question remains shielded behind that façade of cosmetic change. Citation: Africa Spectrum PubDate: 2023-03-20T07:04:29Z DOI: 10.1177/00020397231162115
Authors:Philip A Atitianti, Samuel K Asiamah First page: 64 Abstract: Africa Spectrum, Ahead of Print. One of a government's primary responsibilities is to provide public goods and services for the benefit of citizens. A government that excels in such provision may therefore win favorable evaluations from its citizens. However, if external state and non-state actors through foreign aid issuance become providers of what citizens expect from their government, citizens may doubt their government's competence. In recent decades, China has become an important donor to Africa, providing the continent with several aid projects. Consequently, this study examines whether aid from China undermines citizens’ evaluations of government performance. Geocoded data on Chinese aid projects are matched to 4 waves of Afrobarometer survey respondents from 31 sub-Saharan African countries. Using an instrumental variable estimation, the findings indicate that Chinese aid undermines the evaluation of government performance. Testing for the mechanism through which this effect manifests, the results suggest Chinese aid engenders corruption perceptions and erodes trust. Citation: Africa Spectrum PubDate: 2023-03-13T08:53:52Z DOI: 10.1177/00020397231160192
Authors:Maurice Beseng, Gordon Crawford, Nancy Annan First page: 89 Abstract: Africa Spectrum, Ahead of Print. Since 2017, an armed conflict has been raging in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon between separatist forces and the Cameroonian military. This review analyses the historical origins and root causes of the conflict; the trigger mechanism of rising protests and state repression in 2016; the emergence and evolution of the armed conflict over the past 5 years; its impact on civilians; and hopes for peace. However, there is currently little prospect for conflict resolution as the Cameroon government appears intent on ignoring limited international pressure, maintaining the charade that the ‘security crisis’ is over and reconstruction is underway, while continuing its counter-insurgency strategy to militarily defeat the armed separatist groups. We note that, while the desire for peace is profound, the political status quo is no longer tolerable nor acceptable, with conflict resolution dependent on political changes that provide, at a minimum, the Anglophone regions with greater autonomy and protection of their particular identity and institutions. Citation: Africa Spectrum PubDate: 2023-02-14T07:09:17Z DOI: 10.1177/00020397231155244
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