Environmental and Economic Dilemmas of Developing Countries: Africa in the Twenty-first Century

In this text, African scholars, policy-makers and environmental scientists focus on the declining resource base in developing countries on the African continent. The resource base includes renewable and non-renewable natural resources, as well as social, cultural and educational resources. While the 1992 Earth Summit did not satisfactorily address the underlying causes of underdevelopment, this volume offers new perspectives and paradigms from a forum of local experts. Subjects covered include environmental impact, technology transfer, human welfare, poverty and environmental degradation, population explosion, foreign investment, capital development, capital flight, economic crisis, political instability, declining nationalism, traditional leadership and the role of African women. West African, and particularly Nigerian, examples are frequently used.

Table of Contents:
Figures Tables Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction: The Significance of Economic and Environmental Impact Studies in Africa's Development by Valentine U. James Impacts on the Environment Environmental Impact Assessment of Aid-Assisted Projects in Africa: Problems and Prospects by Michael A. Burayidi Third World Resource Base and Technology Transfer: Environmental Dilemmas of African Extractive Economy by Felix M. Edoho The Conflicting Choice between Environmental Quality, Development, and Human Welfare in Africa: Socioeconomic, Environmental, and Legal Aspects of Gas Flaring in the Nigerian Oil Industry by Augustine A. Ikein and Akpezi Eleyae Ogbuigwe Population, Poverty, and the Environment The Link between Poverty and Environmental Degradation in Sub-Saharan Africa by Victor Ukpolo Population Explosion and Associated Environmental Problems in Nigeria by Donald E. Mbosowo Economic Impacts of Resource Decline The Case of the Missing Refinery: Can Ghana Attract Foreign Investments to Integrate Its Aluminum Industry? by David A. Yamoah Capital Flight from Sub-Saharan Africa: The Experiences of Cote D'Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria by Akorlie A. Nyatepe-Coo Economic Crisis in Nigeria: Educational Implications by James Etim Political Implications of Development Processes Conservation and Political Decision Making in Nigeria by Valentine U. James and Jonathan N. Nwomonoh Political Instability and Declining Nationalism in Nigeria by Donald E. Mbosowo The Role of Traditional Leadership in Political Development: The Nigerian Case by Jonathan N. Nwomonoh Custodians of the Environment The Role of African Women in Rural Development: The Nigerian Case by Jonathan N. Nwomonoh The Socioeconomic Impact of European Reforms on Gender and Development in Africa by Augustine A. Ikein A Better Life Program for Rural Women in a Developing Nation by A.O.I. Gabriel References Index

About the Author :
VALENTINE U. JAMES is Assistant Professor in Environmental Planning at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville. His earlier works include Resouce Management in Developing Countries (Bergin & Garvey, 1991), Urban and Rural Development in Third World Countries, and Africa's Ecology.