Africa and Beyond


Book Description

“Africa and Beyond: Arts and Sustainable Development is a massive undertaking by thoughtful theorists and practitioners in the creative/cultural industry. The combined effect of the volume is to disabuse the fixed, prevailing conception of the role of culture in society; a view that consigns the arts to the periphery of social life, devoid of any meaningful contribution to the alleviation of poverty and general development. Contrary to this view, the volume presents a more comprehensive, meaningful, insightful set of perspectives and paradigms that ascribe agency to creative/cultural products in all facets of human development. The usefulness of the volume extends beyond the industry itself. It is meant for a broader readership and is therefore highly recommended for specialists and the public at large.” – Professor Mokubung Nkomo, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Tshwane University of Technology, South Africa




African Art


Book Description

This is an incredible art book with historical documentation featuring over 200 illustrations of art by African and comtemporary American artists as well as works of art by artists from other countries.







Peter Beard


Book Description

Follows the drama of one of the great creative spirits in Africa, photographer Peter Beard.




Customer Service Essentials


Book Description

Customer Service Essentials is a must-read and a definitive source of information on effective management of customer service in Africa and beyond. Leveraging on unique concepts and practices developed in the field of customer service management, this book uses case studies and vignettes to reinforce learnings, drawing parallels to real life experiences. The book is a valuable resource for individuals and organizations, in the quest to achieve excellent customer service, increased productivity and enhanced employee satisfaction. It explores the practical challenges of customer service in Africa, examines critical success factors and provides guidelines for effective customer engagement in this evolving highly networked digital era. Policy makers, directors, managers and students will gain valuable and actionable insights on service management as they navigate the chapters. Praise for Customer Service Essentials: Lessons for Africa and Beyond "This book captures service excellence by detailing out in a most explicit manner essential services dynamics of Responsiveness, Accessibility, Tangibles, Empathy and Reliability. I highly recommend it!" Esi Elliot Assistant Professor, Marketing Suffolk University, Boston, MA "I am very impressed with this book and excited to see the topics being discussed in the Chapters are geared toward quality customer service in Africa. All the chapters are superbly written, relevant to the African context and above all, the authors cover incredibly interesting topics and support them with pertinent cases. Bringing together such fine minds in the field, this book is useful and a must for anyone serious about customer service, service branding and the need to respect the customer." Charles Blankson Professor of Marketing College of Business University of North Texas "Hinson and colleagues have skillfully put together a useful collection of new perspectives on modern customer service essentials with an African and global perspective. This is a highly recommended text for students and practitioners." Ellis L.C. Osabutey Reader Roehampton University Business School United Kingdom




Youth Language Practices in Africa and Beyond


Book Description

Youth languages have increasingly attracted the attention of scholars and students of various disciplines. African youth languages are a vibrant phenomenon with manifold characteristics involving a range of different languages. This book is a first comprehensive study of African youth languages and presents fresh insights into various youth languages, providing linguistic as well as sociolinguistic data and analyses.




Neopatrimonialism in Africa and Beyond


Book Description

Neopatrimonialism, a system whereby rulers use state resources for personal benefit and to secure the loyalty of clients in the general population, is central to any teaching or conceptualisation of contemporary African politics. This book is a theoretical and comparative study of neopatrimonialism in Africa and across world regions. Although such practices are widespread in other parts of the world, the African neopatrimonial state has also become a global prototype of the anti-developmental state. This volume calls for a reappraisal of the genesis and interpretations of the concepts of patrimonialism and neopatrimonialism. Expert contributors consider recent debates in Africa through the study of democracy, clientelism, the ‘big man’ syndrome (Kenya), the rise of ‘godfatherism’ (Nigeria), ‘warlordism’ (Liberia) and the neopatrimonial state on a day to day basis (Niger). They discuss patrimonialism and neopatrimonialism from Latin America to Europe, Central Asia and Asia-Pacific, to weave a comparative analysis of the interplay between public policies and private interest. Neopatrimonialism in Africa and Beyond is an important and timely volume that will be of interest to students and scholars of international politics, African studies, sociology and international development.




Bulletproof


Book Description

In 1856 and 1857, in response to a prophet’s command, the Xhosa people of southern Africa killed their cattle and ceased planting crops; the resulting famine cost tens of thousands of lives. Much like other millenarian, anticolonial movements—such as the Ghost Dance in North America and the Birsa Munda uprising in India—these actions were meant to transform the world and liberate the Xhosa from oppression. Despite the movement’s momentous failure to achieve that goal, the event has continued to exert a powerful pull on the South African imagination ever since. It is these afterlives of the prophecy that Jennifer Wenzel explores in Bulletproof. Wenzel examines literary and historical texts to show how writers have manipulated images and ideas associated with the cattle killing—harvest, sacrifice, rebirth, devastation—to speak to their contemporary predicaments. Widening her lens, Wenzel also looks at how past failure can both inspire and constrain movements for justice in the present, and her brilliant insights into the cultural implications of prophecy will fascinate readers across a wide variety of disciplines.




Languages, Identities and Intercultural Communication in South Africa and Beyond


Book Description

African countries and South Africa in particular, being multilingual and multicultural societies, make for exciting sociolinguistic and applied language analysis in order to tease out the complex relationship between language and identity. This book applies sociolinguistic theory, as well as critical language awareness and translanguaging with its many facets, to various communicative scenarios, both on the continent and in South Africa, in an accessible and practical way. Africa lends itself to such sociolinguistic analysis concerning language, identity and intercultural communication. This book reflects consciously on the North–South debate and the need for us to create our own ways of interpretation emanating from the South and speaking back to the North, and on issues that pertain to the South, including southern Africa. Aspects such as language and power, language planning, policy and implementation, culture, prejudice, social interaction, translanguaging, intercultural communication, education, gender and autoethnography are covered. This is a valuable resource for students studying African sociolinguistics, language and identity, and applied language studies. Anyone interested in the relationship between language and society on the African continent would also find the book easily accessible.




Covid Stories from East Africa and Beyond


Book Description

The coronavirus has rattled humanity, tested resolve and determination, and redefined normalcy. This compelling collection of 29 short stories and essays brings together the lived experiences of covid19 through a diversity of voices from across the African continent. The stories highlight challenges, new opportunities, and ultimately the deep resilience of Africans and their communities. Bringing into conversation the perspectives of laypeople, academics, professionals, domestic workers, youth, and children, the volume is a window into the myriad ways in which people have confronted, adapted to, and sought to tackle the coronavirus and its trail of problems. The experiences of the most vulnerable are specifically explored, and systemic changes and preliminary shifts towards a new global order are addressed. Laughter as a coping mechanism is a thread throughout.