Disciplining Democracy: Development Discourse and Good Governance in Africa - Softcover

Abrahamsen, Rita

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9781856498593: Disciplining Democracy: Development Discourse and Good Governance in Africa
Softcover
ISBN 10: 185649859X ISBN 13: 9781856498593
Publisher: Zed Books, 2000

Synopsis

Not very long ago, authoritarian forms of government were widely regarded as necessary for rapid economic growth and development, and Western donors supported dictatorial regimes in every continent. Today the political mantra is democracy, and the World Bank and Western donors require it almost as a condition of assistance. This thought-provoking book argues not simply that the West's good governance agenda came into being with the demise of the Soviet Union. Much more importantly, it shows how this agenda comprises only very superficial democratic institutional forms that are compatible with continued structural adjustment. African governments, in particular, remain in a cleft stick - supposedly responsible to their electorates at home, in fact beholden to external creditors and donors. The result is the creation of fragile democracies unable to respond to the demands of the poor - who are in the great majority - for socio-economic improvements, and where the requirements of external actors frequently overrule the wishes of domestic constituencies.

Using the example of the good governance discourse, Rita Abrahamsen contributes powerfully to our understanding of development, not as some universally valid set of goals or procedures, but as a historically contingent form of knowledge intimately connected to prevailing structures and relations of power. Her book argues that a key effect of contemporary development discourse, despite all its proclamations in favour of democracy, is to help reproduce a world order that is essentially undemocratic.

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About the Author

Rita Abrahamsen is a lecturer in the Department of International Politics at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth.

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Publisher
Zed Books
Publication date
2000
Language
English
ISBN 10 
185649859X
ISBN 13 
9781856498593
Binding
Paperback
Number of pages
192
Rating
  • 3.94 out of 5 stars
    18 ratings by Goodreads

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9781856498586: Disciplining Democracy: Development Discourse and Good Governance in Africa

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  1856498581 ISBN 13:  9781856498586
Publisher: Zed Books, 2000
Hardcover