The paper gives an overview of Alternatives to neo-liberalism in Southern Africa (ANSLA) argues that the present neo-liberal paradigm that informs and orders the economy and politics of the Southern African region is both anti-developmental and unsustainable. Sections deal with the Socio-Economic-Political Structure of Post-Colonial Southern Africa and presents an alternative strategic scenario.

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Trade unions in Africa should lead the process for developing alternatives that their governments adopt and implement in the pursuit for social change that will take their countries out the present state of dependence. This paper examines the strength of  Trade unions in Africa in engaging  African governments on economic policy—NEPAD being one such example.

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The following sections trace Africa’s development path from colonial times (the period when Africa was "raped and robbed of its natural resources by the imperialists and empire builders); through the "Golden Decade" of the 1960s (the period of political freedom, self-realisation, economic growth and increased standard of living); to the 1970s (a decade of political instability); to the 1980s and 1990s (the decades of decay) and conclude with the developments in the present decade.

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ALRN hosted a conference tilted 'Alternatives to neo-liberal globalisation: challenges facing NEPAD'. The objective of the conference was to consolidate the many separate assessments of NEPAD into one collective evaluation. Pertinent to the discussion is the role of trade unions in contesting and complementing aspects of NEPAD. This booklet contains papers of argument presented by constituencies from labour and other social movements. The conference, an African-owned event, was an important assessment and strengthened the African labour movement's contribution to the process of African development and the global response to neo-liberalism.

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by Thobile Yanta who presented the paper to the 13th IIRA World Congress, Berlin, Germany, 8th to 12th September 2003

The issue of regional integration in Africa has been a subject of debate for some time. Political leaders and progressive academics provided various suggestions of how Africa should be unified. The struggle against slavery, colonialism and apartheid in Africa gave further impetus to the subject of regional integration.

This paper will first discuss NEPAD in the context of Africa's history and the continued marginalisation of the African continent in the era of globalisation. We will explore the question whether NEPAD can provide a solution to the socio-economic and political challenges that our continent faces today. It will be illustrative to reflect on the war on terror which has now taken over the international political agenda, and which will definitely divert attention of the most industrialised countries from Africa and development as a whole.

Herbert Jauch,  Labour Resource and Research Institute (LaRRI)

The past few months have seen a host of meetings, seminars and workshops by governments, trade unions and various NGOs to discuss NEPAD as a development programme for Africa. Several African governments have expressed reservations about the peer review mechanism and the notion of 'good governance' which they see as just another Western 'conditionality' for development aid.

Herbert Jauch, Labour Resource and Research Institute (LaRRI), Namibia

"Globalisation" has become one of the buzzwords of the 1990s. Governments, businesses, unions and community activists talk about it, but often attach very different meanings to the term. It is therefore essential to first define the term and to identify the forces that shape the process of globalisation. Analytical clarity is also crucial to explain the impact of globalisation and to develop possible alternatives.

Dot Keet
October 2002

There is a lively debate within African civil society as to how or whether African non-governmental (NGOs) or civil society organisations (CSOs) should ‘engage’ with the inter-governmental NEPAD.

Professor ’Jìmí O. Adésínà, Department of Sociology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown.

This paper explores Africa’s experience with regional development programming before the crafting of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. This is in the light of prevailing amnesia on Africa’s efforts at regional development programmes; something that contrast with memory of Africa’s more political project: the OAU. The paper focuses on the Lagos Plan of Action (LPA, 1980) and Africa’s Alternative Framework to Structural Adjustment Programme (AAF-SAP), as a corrective to this ‘silence’ and invention of history.

The paper examines the discourses central to LPA and AAF-SAP; their diagnoses of the crisis of dependent capitalism in Africa, and prognoses for shifting to a path of sustainable development. The paper examines some areas of strength and weaknesses in these efforts at crafting a continental development programme. The paper concludes with some notes on the continued relevance of diagnoses of Africa’s development crisis at the heart of the LPA and AAF-SAP, and their agenda for overcoming the crisis of dependent capitalism in Africa.

By Chris Landsberg

Paper written for NALEDI

The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) has for more than a year-and a half now triggered a great deal of debate and continues to do so. Indeed, there has been serious debate over the very label of NEPAD, and NEPAD went by many tags and brands .This will attempts to achieve a number of analytical points. It considesr the origins of NEPAD and the link between NEPAD and the African Renaissance. The paper offers a trade union movement perspective of NEPAD and how the trade union movement and other civil society actors should seize the challenge of critically and analytically engaging NEPAD.