Guinea-Bissau is a small country in West Africa, and yet it managed to wrest its independence from Portugal back in 1973, at the cost of a long and bitter struggle against seemingly implacable odds. This was a time to be proud of, and there was also a moment about two decades ago, when it looked like a trendsetter for democracy. Since then things have gone seriously wrong, with a collapsing infrastructure, a dilapidated economy and a political stage prone to military coups d'etats. This fourth edition of Historical Dictionary of Guinea-Bissau tells the long and sometimes unpleasant story....

Kenya has a long and complex history that began thousands of years ago. Indeed, some archaeologists contend that the country was the "cradle of mankind" or, at the very least, one of the places that was home to the earliest hominids. In later centuries, Kenya's strategic location astride the Indian Ocean and the East African littoral attracted numerous foreign peoples, some of the most significant of which have been the Americans, Arabs, British, Chinese, French, Germans, and Portuguese. Additionally, Africans from throughout the subcontinent have settled in Kenya to escape conflict or...

The most significant thing about Guinea is its potential. It is strategically located in West Africa, with a well-educated and hardworking population, and endowed with considerable natural resources, indeed, enough to make it reasonably affluent if properly utilized. But this potential has never really been tapped, due mainly to bad politics with military men following a charismatic politician, until finally democracy has been achieved. So, more than half-a-century after achieving independence, the question remains unanswered: which way will Guinea turn? This fifth edition of Historical...

Ghana, the former British colony of the Gold Coast, is historically known for being the first country to the south of the Sahara to attain political independence from colonial rule. It is known for its exports of cocoa and a variety of minerals, especially gold, and it is now an oil exporting country. But Ghana's importance to the African continent is not only seen in its natural resources or its potential to expand its agricultural output. Rather the nation's political history of nationalism, the history of military engagement in politics, record of economic depression and the ability to...

This book looks at 55 years of independence, over eight decades of colonial rule, and earlier kingdoms and groups that shared the Congolese territory. This fourth edition highlights new developments and the increasing importance of the DRC in the Great Lakes Region and Africa, in particular, as well as its important role in the international environment.. This fourth edition of Historical Dictionary of the Democratic Republic of the Congo contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 700 cross-referenced entries on important...

Of all the states of the Middle East and North Africa, Libya has long been the country about which the least is known. It is only in recent times that scholars and the general public alike have begun to appreciate the complexity of Libya's turbulent history including the recent February 17th Revolution in 2011 when protests broke out throughout Libya, demanding better living conditions and more job opportunities. When the Qaddafi regime responded with force, killing scores of unarmed civilians, the protesters called for regime change. In what came to be known as the February 17th Revolution,...

Algeria's strategic regional and global importance continues to grow. Its hydrocarbon wealth, namely natural gas and oil, is impressive and its receipts are crucial to the national economy. The European Union is a particularly valued hydrocarbon importer and overall commercial partner. The bilateral relationship with France remains problematic and paradoxical. Algeria has demanded an apology for the imposition of colonialism; but it also recognizes the importance of France economically, politically, and militarily, e.g., the unrest in the Sahel (notably Mali). Furthermore, Algeria continues...

Blessed with natural beauty and rich vegetation, Rwanda is often called the "land of a thousand hills" (le pays des mille collines), a reference to its many lush and green rolling hills. Moreover, for many Rwandans, at least in the past, Rwanda, in spite of its small size, is vast; in fact, it means the universe. This idyllic view, however, sharply contrasts with the sad history of ethnic strife that unfolded since the 1950s: the 1959 Hutu Revolution followed by years of anti-Tutsi pogroms, undemocratic regimes, the civil war of 1990-1994, and, more significantly, the April-July 1994 genocide...

The Central African Republic (CAR) came into existence on 1 December 1958 as a semi-autonomous member state of the Communaute (French Community), meaning that France still controlled its currency, defense, foreign affairs and national security. The history of the CAR can be interpreted in radically different ways. One the one hand the people of Central Africa have suffered enormously at the hands of slave traders, concessionary companies, French colonialists and African rulers, and their country remains largely undeveloped. On the other most Central Africans have retained free use of land on...

Cote d'Ivoire remains one of the most intriguing countries in sub-Saharan Africa. It appeared well on its way to becoming a model of development under its single political party and charismatic founding father, Felix Houphouet-Boigny, when it fell on hard economic times in the 1980s. Poor management of the socio-economic challenges by Houphouet-Boigny's successors produced disastrous political consequences, including unprecedented political violence, the first-ever successful military coup, and two civil wars, culminating in former President Laurent Gbagbo being sent to the International...