Book Reviews

Book reviews
with Gulf states; global remittance systems; and mobile phones. All these things play to
the strengths of a pastoralist society which is now a truly global network. Governance is
also clearly on show in Somaliland, where the critical mass of the Isaaq clan has lent itself
to order. A similarly pragmatic process may be under way in Ethiopia’s Ogaden, where the
dominant clan may be coming to an accommodation with colonial Ethiopia. Clapham is
clear that order and governance across Somali society will only ever emerge from within.
In conclusion, Clapham’s new book is an excellent and accessible political tour through
the intricacies of the Horn, and an essential read for all international officials or business
people with an interest in the region.
Hugo Slim
The fabric of peace in Africa: looking beyond the state. Edited by Pamela Aall and
Chester A. Crocker. Waterloo, CA: Centre for International Governance Innovation.
2017. 386pp. Index. £84.00. isbn 978 1 92809 636 8. Available as e-book.
Coping with crisis in African states. Edited by Peter M. Lewis and John W. Harbeson.
Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner. 2015. 190pp. Index. £55.95. isbn 978 1 62637 229 0. Available
as e-book.
What accounts for the difference between societies that experience conflict and societies
that manage to resist falling into conflict or resolve conflicts once they have broken out?
The two books under review provide complementary insights into these questions: The
fabric of peace in Africa takes a thematic approach, while Coping with crisis in African states
focuses on case-studies of particular states.
The fabric of peace in Africa is the second volume of a multi-year review of African conflict
by the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI). In the initial volume,
Minding the gap: African conflict management in a time of change (Waterloo, CA: CIGI, 2016;
reviewed in International Affairs 92: 4, July 2016), the same editors focused on peacekeeping,
peace enforcement, armed intervention and sanctions. Here, they turn to how states can
resist and recover from violent disruptions of peaceful social order in Africa. Research and
understanding on how to build and support a resilient society are in their infancy and this
edited volume is an important contribution to scholarship and policy-thinking. Resilience
is desirable in many cases but, as Africa’s longstanding leaders have shown, can also be
counterproductive. Robert Mugabe remained Zimbabwe’s leader for 37 years and President
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea is still in power after 39 years.
The first part of Aall and Crocker’s book analyses the drivers of conflict in Africa and,
unsurprisingly, highlights governance, identity, economic differences and environmental
change. The book also examines the need to encourage social norms towards supporting
peace. The chapters on this are sobering, as many African governments have failed to estab-
lish policies or institutions that promote inclusion and tolerance. Sometimes this can be
unintended: Charles Owuor Olungah’s fascinating chapter on Kenya highlights that efforts
to expand higher education institutions have often reinforced ethnic differences rather
than encouraging a national or regional identity, as was intended. Alex de Waal argues for
more inclusion and consultation in peace processes as narrow elite bargains are inherently
unstable. Gilles Olakunlé Yabi (on youth), Callisto Madavo (on business), Akinyi Roselyn
Walender (on women) and Marc Sommers (on civil society) each highlight how such groups
can contribute to peacebuilding.
The book’s final section is much more policy-focused and attempts to establish the
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Sub-Saharan Africa
pathways for strengthening resilience and social cohesion. I. William Zartman, for instance,
writes about indigenous methods for conflict resolution and observes that these can play
an important role. Moreover, David Smith and Stephanie Wolters remind us that radio can
help social cohesion in post-conflict communities and Alexander Thurston warns, in his
chapter on religion, about the dangers of entrenching conservative religious leaders into
national dialogues.
Finally, the book also tries to examine why some regions are better than others at
resisting or recovering from conflict. Alexandre Marc, Neelam Verjee and Stephen Mogaka
examine West Africa’s trajectory to greater stability and conclude that increasing democ-
ratization, the opening up of more inclusive political space—including the growth of civil
society—and better leaders have played an important role. Princeton N. Lyman further
reminds us in his chapter that quality leadership matters and credits leadership for how
South Africa has managed its internal crisis versus the ongoing misery of South Sudan.
Coping with crisis in African states, in turn, assesses the manner in which various African
governments have recognized emerging crises and mobilized institutions, linkages and
available resources to address them. The editors have brought together an interesting group
of case-studies. The chapter on the Democratic Republic of the Congo is particularly
topical given its ongoing crisis and Pierre Englebert concludes that this crisis is ‘instrumen-
talized’ as ‘a coping strategy, a means to maximize power while in a chaotic situation’ (p.
113). The ultimate objective was probably to consolidate central state authority and ensure
that President Joseph Kabila remained in power—although in 2018 it looks increasingly as
if Kabila has failed to achieve this, at significant humanitarian cost to many Congolese.
In dramatic contrast, Ghana and South Africa illustrate how leadership, effective insti-
tutions and learning help resilience and coping with crisis—as their constitutions helped
encourage pluralism and smooth transitions. David Fowkes reminds the reader that,
although South Africa is a dominant-party democracy, the African National Congress has
had 14 presidents since 1912 and four since it took power in 1994. In comparison, Angola’s
dominant party, the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), has had two
presidents since 1962.
Different sets of interests are evident in the petro-states of Algeria, Angola and Nigeria,
where centralized fiscal control and strategies of elite rent distribution drive government,
compared with Kenya, Ghana and South Africa. Susana Moreira shows how the Angolan
government effectively responded to the 2008–2010 economic crisis—helped by financial
reserves and a recognition of the dangers to regime stability. However, in 2018 Angola is
in a serious economic crisis and is looking at ways of diversifying away from economic
over-dependence on oil rents and this crisis could threaten the MPLA’s electoral majority
in 2022. In contrast, Kenya is not as reliant on commodity export, and communal politics
compete for resources. This continues to play out including around the renewed electoral
crisis of 2017.
In conclusion, both books highlight the importance of capacity building—for govern-
ments when managing crisis but also for civil society and non-state actors as they are integral
resources in crisis management. They also argue that key state security gaps remain and that
inclusion is hugely important in building up resilience to crisis. It is increasingly evident
that peacemaking requires multidimensional and context-specific interventions and both
books show how enlightened leadership, a stable neighbourhood, a degree of economic
stability, legitimate governance and, at times, international support can make a difference.
Lewis and Harbeson are rightly not pessimistic and argue that lessons are learned from
past mistakes and successes. They conclude that ‘Africa’s trajectory over the past decade
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Book reviews
suggests that processes of learning, institutional development, and international coordina-
tion have borne fruit in reducing vulnerabilities and stemming crisis in the region’ (p. 199).
Crocker and Aall, however, warn that ‘the process of weaving a fabric of peace on a conti-
nent of 54 countries is complicated. The process takes time and engages vast and diverse
populations. Outsiders can suggest models and help locate strong, resilient threads. But the
creation of this tapestry will be Africa’s own and the texture, colour and design will reflect
African experience, desires and vision’ (p. 340).
Alex Vines, Chatham House, UK
South Asia
Our time has come: how India is making its place in the world. By Alyssa Ayres.
New York: Oxford University Press. 2018. 360pp. Index. £18.99. isbn 978 0 19049 452 0.
Long touted as an emerging power, Alyssa Ayres argues that India has now arrived as ‘a
consequential global actor’ (p. 9). What it does and how it acts have significant effects on
the Indo-Pacific region and the wider world. It is thus imperative, Ayres thinks, that we
look more closely at the ambitions of both New Delhi and the Indian public, and how these
might translate into a bigger role for India.
Our time has come is therefore not a conventional study of contemporary Indian foreign
policy. This is of course not to say that the book neglects to discuss the major changes
that have occurred in New Delhi’s international relations in recent years—it provides an
accessible and balanced account of those developments. But the book’s principal intent is
to explore what Indians want: what place they think India ought to have and what part it
ought to play in the world. To that end, Ayres explores both influential ideas and policy
statements, and draws on interviews conducted with India’s political and business elites.
After a pacy introductory overview of where the country is now and where its elite
want to go, Ayres outlines some influential conceptions of India’s place in the world—
especially those derived from Kautilya, Mohandas K. Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Swami
Vivekananda. Next, she analyses the causes and effects of India’s post-1991 ‘opening up’
and some of the ways in which the government of Narendra Modi is seeking to extend
those reforms and accelerate growth. Ayres is mostly optimistic about Modi and perhaps
not as critical as she could be of the slow pace of change, particularly in stimulating job
creation, and of the serious threat that his government’s ongoing political success may breed
complacency.
The two central chapters turn to contemporary Indian foreign and security policy. The
first explores the ‘rightful place’ New Delhi seeks as an aspiring ‘leading power’, whether in
regard to the United Nations, the Indian Ocean, multilateral regimes and institutions, the
defence of its people, the Indian-origin diaspora, sovereignty, and in terms of soft power.
The second chapter balances the first, outlining India’s ongoing caution in its relations
with China and Pakistan; in interfering in the internal affairs of other states, at least outside
south Asia; in domestic economic reform and in multilateral trade negotiations; in dealing
with foreign criticisms of human rights violations or poor governance; and in promoting
democracy beyond its borders.
The last three chapters look forward to how India might behave as an actor of conse-
quence and to how Washington might work with New Delhi to advance their strategic
partnership and shared agendas. Ayres explores India’s heightened involvement in and
greater enthusiasm for regional multilateral institutions and trans-regional minilateral
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