Foresight

Is Africa the land of the future? It is not a given!

Olugbenga Adesida, Geci Karuri‐Sebina

This editorial aims to summarize the outcome of the Special Issue exploration on the theme “Is Africa the land of the future?”.

The future of poverty and development in Africa

John F.E. Ohiorhenuan

This paper aims to examine how the conceptualization of development has evolved and how, given emerging global economic trends, this might affect the development industry…

Africa 2010‐2020: poverty reduction beyond the global crisis

Joe Ballantyne, Andrew Curry, Andy Sumner

What are the implications of the global financial crisis and its aftermath, regionally and globally, for Africa taking a 5‐15 year view? The purpose of this paper is to…

The fall of the Wall, the rise of the BRICs and the new Scramble for Africa

Michael Kahn

The purpose of this paper is to construct a possible future scenario for South Africa in Africa using the backcast approach.

The illusion of capitalism in contemporary Sub‐Saharan Africa: a case study of the Gambia

Abdoulie Sallah, Colin C. Williams

This paper aims to evaluate critically the meta‐narrative that there is no alternative to capitalism. Building upon an emerging body of post‐structuralist thought that has…

Shaping African futures: think tanks and the need for endogenous knowledge production in Sub‐Saharan Africa

Thembani Mbadlanyana, Nompumelelo Sibalukhulu, Jakkie Cilliers

The purpose of this article is to understand alternative African futures as an aid to improved decision‐making and action by governments and by other key agents and stakeholders.

Sub‐Saharan Africa's future is not a given

Philip H. Spies

Given current dystopian perspectives on Africa's future, the purpose of this paper is to emphasise the need for recreative futures studies when designing development…

Africa 2060: what could be driving the good news from Africa?

Julius Gatune, Adil Najam

The aim of this paper is to better understand the good news coming from Africa and reflect on ideas discussed at the “Africa 2060: Good News from Africa” conference in…

The Five Futures Glasses: How to See and Understand More of the Future with the Eltville Model

P. Bishop