The Scramble for African Oil: Oppression, Corruption and War for Control of Africa's Natural Resources (New Politics, Progressive Policy (Quality))

The Scramble for African Oil: Oppression, Corruption and War for Control of Africa's Natural Resources (New Politics, Progressive Policy (Quality))

Africa is often seen as a place to be pitied or feared as an area of instability. This book challenges these complacent assumptions, showing how our demand for oil contributes to the chronic problems plaguing the continent. Douglas A. Yates shows how the 'scramble' by the great powers for African oil has fed corruption and undermined democracy. Yates documents how Africans have refused to remain passive in the face of such developments, forming movements to challenge this new attempt at domination. This book is an urgent challenge to our understanding of Africa, raising questions about the consequences of our reliance on foreign resources. It will be vital reading for all those studying development and global political economy. 'Yates brilliantly scales the walls of the oil fortress in Africa and shines a light into the complex politics - local, national and global - of the oil and gas industry' - Michael Watts, 'Class of 1963' Professor of Geography and Development Studies at the University of California, Berkeley 'Essential reading for anyone seeking an understanding of the 'resource curse', the global exploitation of Africa's resources and the troubled state of African politics' - Michael Klare, Professor of Peace and World Security Studies, Hampshire College and author of Rising Powers, Shrinking Planet: The New Geopolitics of Energy 'Essential reading for anyone seeking an understanding of the 'resource curse', the global exploitation of Africa's resources and the troubled state of African politics' 'Yates brilliantly scales the walls of the oil fortress in Africa and shines a light into the complex politics - local, national and global - of the oil and gas industry' Douglas A. Yates is Professor of International Relations & Diplomacy at the American Graduate School, International & Comparative Politics at the American University of Paris, and Anglo-American Law at the University of Cergy-Pontoise. His most recent book is The French Oil Industry and the Corps des Mines in Africa (2009).