URU, Alm.del - 2013-14 - Bilag 155: Invitation til DIIS-seminaret "Resource Governance in African Mining - Natural Resource Investments in Africa" den 29. april 2014

BackgroundThe DIIS seminar series on the Political Economy of Natural Resource Investments explores the impact ofnatural resources on economics, politics, development, foreign aid, conflict, and geopolitics in Africa. Theseminars seek to highlight the global-local dimension of natural resource extraction and governance inAfrica. They also consider how new resource-rich countries, particularly in East Africa, can harness thiswealth towards broad economic development and poverty reduction to avoid the negative economic andpolitical consequences of the “resource curse” experienced elsewhere on the continent.Increased investment in the mining sector in Africa is often presented as a key strategy to leveragegrowth, development and poverty reduction on the continent. Massive investment has taken place. Thisseminar sheds light on the actual outcomes. Two scholars present their recent publications on resourcegovernance and African mining.Bonnie Campbell, in her new edited book,Modes of Governance and Revenue Flows in African Miningfocuses on the disappointing results of investment in crucial areas such as sustainable economic andsocial development. These outcomes are most frequently attributed to dysfunctional internal governanceprocesses, mismanagement and corruption. Much attention has been given in recent years to the issue of"the poor resource governance" in mineral rich countries. In her presentation Bonnie Campbell aims toachieve a better understanding of these issues by proposing a renewal of approaches.France Bourgouin,is the co-editor of the new book,Resource Governance and Developmental States inthe Global South,which explores the mining reforms of the last three decades across Africa, Asia, andLatin America. The book challenges the long held views about the ways natural resources shape politicaland economic outcomes. Through an examination of the specific features of the resource sector and itsparticular dynamics of policy change, the book’s authors point to the range of development options forthe Global South that move beyond adopting unregulated, open extractive markets.