To what extent is degrowth relevant to sub-Saharan Africa?

DEGROWTH: A FOCUS ON SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
To what extent is degrowth relevant to sub-Saharan Africa?
Introduction
• Why Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA)? (Under researched, the need for alternatives that are sustainable)
• Degrowth looks at plurality of development indicators as against the SDGs framework
• Degrowth advocating for the use of alternative indicators and pathways.
• Degrowth- advocating for shift in practices.
• Justification: there isn’t much research in this area. Although there are critics of degrowth from the global south, there are perspectives which have tried to clarify what is meant by degrowth for developing countries. Where consumption and production is carried out with environmental and ecological justice in mind. That is achieving a steady state growth without increasing carbon footprints or harm to the environment. Proposals to developing countries have been to enact policies that leads to urban sustainability, improves the lifestyle of the citizens, grows the economy but not harming the climate (reduce Co2 emission). According to escobar 2015, it does not mean the Europe and north America needs to degrow and poorer countries need ‘development’ a term which he has made clear should be scrapped. As it widens inequality gaps. There is emerging literature on sustainable degrowth
• What initiatives are taking place in ssa? Sustainability alternatives in ssa. Which cases show elements of degrowth (bearing degrowth values in mind: sufficiency and efficiency are degrowth values) Encourage the inclusion of of degrowth within social and environmental sustainability maps of policy makers.
• Make a link to Sub-Saharan Africa (diversity, poverty level, wellbeing and shared climate change consequences, cheap labour and the transfer of carbon emissions for poor countries). The need for SSA to grow but a sustainable rate hence alignment to sustainable degrowth.
• Nigerian context; introducing the case study Nigeria and the Attainment of Sustainable Development in the 21st Century | Vincent | Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences (mcser.org) ; Transforming Nigeria’s Economy on the Path of Sustainable Development in the 21 st Century: Challenges and Reflections | Mgbakoigba: Journal of African Studies (ajol.info) ; Economic Development in Nigeria on JSTOR
• Nigeria’s economic recovery and growth plan (2017-2020) ERGP-CLEAN-COPY.pdf (nationalplanning.gov.ng) set the tone for the new climate change policy for the pursuit of climate-resilient and climate-compatible initiatives. (NCCP_NIGERIA_REVISED_2-JUNE-2021.pdf (climatechange.gov.ng)
• More recently, the medium term National development plan Nigeria-MTNP-2021-2025-Overview-of-Draft-Plan.1.pdf (nationalplanning.gov.ng) this will be analysed
• ( another option is to Analyse nigeria’s recent climate commitment policy and see if it has tenets of degrowth in it. Is this an example of sustainable degrowth?)
Objectives of the study?
• Are SSA policy makers already including degrowth in the map. It is true that intellectuals and activists have confirmed that degrowth practices already exist in African(Ubuntu), latin American(Buen Vivir) countries and South Asian Countries (Ecoswaraj in India). However, inclusion into policy will ensure sustainable degrowth and tangible widespread results
• Prospects of degrowth for sub-Saharan Africa with a focus on Nigeria
• What practices exists in SSA that have elements of gegrowth? Ubuntu in South Africa will be used as an expose of the existing practices in SSA and
• How has Nigeria embraced the Sustainability/ or the new term sustainable degrowth
• How has the government helped in the achievement of sustainability in Nigeria: Nigeria’s recent national development plan will be analysed to see elements of degrowth in SSA policies
Possible outcomes?
• Answer the research question. Can elements of degrowth be found? How does degrowth become a globally acceptable concept? Acceptability by the Washington consensus? What are the potentials of degrowth characteristics in support of social and environmental sustainability? Encouraging local innovation through finance?
Sample Papers for Introduction and writing guide
• Frontiers | Technological Innovations and Degrowth Opportunities From Urban Egypt: Initiating the Discourse | Sustainable Cities (frontiersin.org)
• Crisis or opportunity? Economic degrowth for social equity and ecological sustainability. Introduction to this special issue (sustainable degrowth refer to reference list for more papers)
• What’s the future of economic growth in Africa? | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)
• The Next Economy: Why the growth and degrowth debate misses the point – Rethink Disruption
• Post-Development Theory and the Question of Alternatives: A View from Africa (jstor.org)
• Economic Development in Nigeria (jstor.org)
• The Maasai’s New Clothes: A Developmentalist Modernity and Its Exclusions (jstor.org)
• What is green growth and how can it help deliver sustainable development? – OECD
• Zero growth: A grand challenge for the Asia-Pacific region – Martin Groen, 2019 (sagepub.com)
• Recognizing the “De” in Degrowth – Undisciplined Environments
• Post-Development Perspectives – ReviseSociology
Methodology
• How will I carry out this research?
• Web of science search of degrowth as topic and limit to most cited literature
• I will begin by conducting a literature review of degrowth theory, this will be conducted systematically and using forward and backward snowballing techniques (basically using reference lists). This will help to identify the key tenets and broad themes in degrowth. From these key themes, I will define a number of evaluative criteria which will be used to apply degrowth to a contextual situation, that of Sub-Saharan Africa to analyse whether this theory is appropriate for the region. This will be conducted using primary and secondary qualitiative and quantitative data (i.e. world bank data, development data) to analyse degrowth in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Possibility of including grey literature???
• Review literature and outline themes **** Use degrowth as the framework of analysis
Literature review?
• Literature review of degrowth
• Articulate the theory/concept. What is degrowth?
• What is degrowth? (Demaria et al) 49723c2ff2366f421c6c9db2fc6e37d650dc.pdf (semanticscholar.org)
• Web of science search limiting to most cited literature
• Identify key themes and create table
• Papers that have extracted core themes of degrowth: Assessing the degrowth discourse: A review and analysis of academic degrowth policy proposals | Elsevier Enhanced Reader ; Not So Natural an Alliance? Degrowth and Environmental Justice Movements in the Global South – ScienceDirect ; Frontiers | Technological Innovations and Degrowth Opportunities From Urban Egypt: Initiating the Discourse | Sustainable Cities (frontiersin.org)
• Complementarity between the EJ movement and degrowth on the European semiperiphery: An empirical study – ScienceDirect
• Literature review of any papers that mentions degrowth in SSA. Or in the context of Africa
• African alternatives to development Ubuntu and the postdevelopment (slidetodoc.com)
• 11.pdf (scielo.org.za)
• Use world bank data to back up claims
• Which papers made explicit reference to SSA and which gave it a casual mention with reference to the global South?

Analysis
• Using the key themes focus on relating it to the different aspects of life in Africa
• How are these themes manifested and how does it make sense
• What practices in SSA relate to degrowth? The Sustainable Development Goals viewed through Gross National Happiness, Ubuntu, and Buen Vivir | SpringerLink (sussex.ac.uk) (refer to reference list on Ubuntu practices and how it relates to sustainability)
• 11.pdf (scielo.org.za) Ubuntu as a moral theory
• What is literature saying about growth in Africa? Advocates and critics(protagonists and antogonists).
• Not So Natural an Alliance? Degrowth and Environmental Justice Movements in the Global South | Elsevier Enhanced Reader look at reference list
• What are academics saying about degrowth in SSA/ How degrowth is discussed in relation to SSA
• Policy elements of policy in SSA that align with degrowth proposals Nigeria-MTNP-2021-2025-Overview-of-Draft-Plan.1.pdf (nationalplanning.gov.ng)
• After analysis create a table to summarise key degrowth themes vis a vis degrowth elements identified
Discussion
• Is degrowth appropriate or relevant given i.e. levels of poverty in SSA, poor health outcomes, lack of critical infrastructure that’s available, low levels of consumption, etc Or maybe SSA can benefit from aspects of degrowth (although they might be in practice, they have to be formally institutionalised and included in policy making)
• Is there a specific way to address challenges in SSA? Is degrowth an appropriate concept for achieving sustainable development in the global South?
• Is degrowth already taking place is SSA without a name. has Africa designed its undocumented development pathway?
• Possibility of alternative theories? Way forward? Degrowth: from theory to practice | Elsevier Enhanced Reader (refer to reference list in paper)

 
Other References
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