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The African State in Academic Debate: Retrospect and Prospect

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 November 2008

Martin Doornbos
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Extract

Questions about the rôle and position of the African state are not new, but today they are being asked with increased emphasis. The reasons for this vary with the position and perspective of the questioner, but they often include a concern about capacity and performance, about styles and orientations of leadership, and about the measure of representativeness and legitimacy which African governments enjoy within the society at large. In short, a strong current of opinion believes that there is a problem with the African state, and this concern has recently led to much discussion as to what its proper rôle is or should be, as well as fostering a variety of proposed and actual interventions by international organisations and consultants to help ‘solve’ the problem.

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Articles
Information
The Journal of Modern African Studies , Volume 28 , Issue 2 , June 1990 , pp. 179 - 198
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1990

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References

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