Africa, the second largest continent in the world, with a vast and laregly untapped human and natural resource base, has entered the twenty-first century as the poorest region, with unsustainable levels of external debt. The continent is also the most technologically backward, the most ravaged by conflicts, malnutrition, disease, iliiteracy, unemployment, increasing corruption, abuse of human rights and undemocratic governance.
Eric Kashambuzi, in his incisive and well-researched third book on African development challenges and opportunities, has analyzed, with reference to nutrition, health care and education-the fundamentals of development-the various explanantions for Africa’s lost twentieth century. The author has de-emphasized population growth and natural calamities as the primary cause of undernutrition, has emphasized preventive approaches to health care and stressed balanced diet and good health, along with adequate facilities, qualified and motivated teachers and sufficient instructional materials, as critical elements in the education of African children.
Overall, Africa lost the twentieth century because of imperfections in the economic and political system under the colonial and post-colonial leadership that has undermined the efforts of the hardworking people to improve the quality of their lives. The author makes strong recommendations for tackling food insecurity, improving healthcare and the educational standards of the African children-especially girls.
This book provides guidance for African policy makers and their development partners as they work together to meet today’s challenges and those that lie ahead.
Publisher: Rivercross Publishing, Incorporated; Pub. Date: May 2001; Format: Paperback, 224pp
ISBN: 1581410530; ISBN-13: 9781581410532