News
Book Launch: Africa’s Global Infrastructures – Exploring South-South Transformations in African Development
On November 5th, Utrecht University hosted the book launch of Africa’s Global Infrastructures: South–South Transformations in Practice, edited by inFRONT member Dr. Eric Cezne, Jana Hönke, and Yifan Mia Yang with discussant Prof. Pádraig Carmody (Trinity College Dublin). The event, which took place in Utrecht and virtually, explored the dynamic and evolving role of South-South relations in shaping Africa’s infrastructure landscape.
In recent years, there has been a significant increase in investment in African infrastructure from emerging markets, particularly China, Brazil, and India. While the impact of these investments on growth remains debated, this book offers fresh insights into how such projects influence local political, socio-economic practices, and transnational governance. By focusing on large-scale infrastructure projects—such as dams, roads, mines, and ports—funded by South-South cooperation, the book examines the ideas, techniques, and practices that have traveled to Africa and the transformations they have sparked on the ground.
The book also delves into how these global South-driven projects interact with local actors and shape business–society relations in Africa. It considers the broader implications for transnational governance and offers a unique bottom-up perspective on the rapidly changing socio-economic interactions within Africa, providing valuable insights for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners.
The book can be found here.