1st Edition

The Darfur Conflict Geography or Institutions?

By Osman Suliman Copyright 2011
    248 Pages 7 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    248 Pages 7 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Although it is often simplified as an "ethnic conflict" in popular media, the current crisis in Darfur can only be superficially defined across ethnic lines. Any long-term solution to the conflict must also address the underlying social and environmental influences such as changing resource dynamics, expanding poverty, lack of infrastructure, and political corruption, which have brought the crisis to a head. This project diverges from previous studies by examining how the dynamic interaction between the environment, local governance, and national policy in Sudan has resulted in the Darfur crisis. It demonstrates how ecological degradation and the breakdown of community governance have destabilized the region, and how corruption and incompetence at the national level have culminated in the current crisis. Analyzing the interplay of these factors will yield valuable insights as to how a concerned international community can both end the tragic genocide and address the underlying injustices that engendered it. The analysis presented will be informative and accessible to a wide readership of students, academics, and concerned citizens.

    1. Background and Introduction.  Appendix to Chapter 1: A Selective List of the Main Articles of the Darfur Peace Agreement  2. Geography.  3. The Impact of the Conflict on Livelihoods.  Appendix to Chapter 3: Qabilahs Included in the Sample  4. Poor Governance and Institutional Failures: An Overview.  Appendix to Chapter 4.  5. Ecology and Environmental Degradation  6. Failure of Economic Institutions: Development Projects  7. Economic Institutions: Marketing and Credit Markets  8. Land Tenure/Use Problem: Conflict between Customary and Statutory Laws  9. The Breakdown of Local Institutions: Native Administration  10. Social Institutions and the Sudanese Identity Crisis  11. Democratic Institutions and Federalism: Will They Support Power-Sharing?  12. Concluding Remarks.  Appendix to Chapter 12: Sudan People’s Initiative.

    Biography

    Osman Suliman is Professor of Economics and Chair of the Economics Department, Millersville University.

    "...worthwhile for those interested in Darfur, Sudan, and developing countries in general."—Recommended in CHOCE, August 2011, J. E. Weaver, Drake University, USA