State, Land and Democracy in Southern Africa

Each country in southern Africa has a unique history but in all of them socio-economic inequalities and high poverty levels weaken the governmentsa€? legitimacy and represent a challenge to models of economic development. One key issue appears to be the solution of the land question. This vital concern affects both citizenship and democracy in the political systems of the region, yet no government has shown the capacity or commitment to solve it. In this volume leading European, American and African scholars explore in detail the relationship between state, land and democracy. They examine the historical background of asset allocation and its impact on questions of nationality, the definition of citizenship, human rights and the current political and economic processes in southern Africa.

Arrigo Pallotti is Associate Professor of History of Africa at the Department of Political and Social Sciences of the University of Bologna (ForlA? Campus), Italy, and Research Fellow in the Centre for Africa Studies at the University of the Free State, South Africa. Corrado Tornimbeni is Lecturer of History of Africa at the Department of Political and Social Sciences of the University of Bologna, Italy.