Colin Leys

Summary:"From 1966 to 1989 Namibians fought a bitter war of independence against the South African apartheid regime. This book tells the story in the words of eleven young Namibians who came to maturity during those years - men and women, 'northerners' and 'southerners', those who joined the struggle in exile and those who stayed and resisted at home."--Jacket

This book is a 'stock-taking' of development theory at the end of the twentieth century. It argues that the assumptions on which development theory has rested since the 1950s no longer hold. The ex-colonial 'third world' for which development theory was originally developed has fractured into increasingly diverse regions, while the end of the post-war regime of regulated international trade and capital movements has drastically curtailed the scope for state economic intervention. A much broader-based, more historical and more explicitly political theoretical effort is now called for.

A notable development in Africa in recent years has been the interest shown in a developing African unity. In the political field there is a widespread desrie to replace the often irrational country boundaries imposed by the former colonial powers by wider groupings, and many Africans regard the achievement of continental unity as an ultimate goal. In the economic field integration of various kinds is seen as a valuable means of bringing about a faster rate of economic growth and of overcoming poverty. So far political regrouping has made little progress. On the other hand a number of important examples of economic integration have been developed and others are being actively discussed. Among the examples of economic integration one of the most important and long established is the East African Common Market which covers Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. Beginning over 40 years ago these countries have achieved an impressive degree of co-operation in economic matters. Their experience should be of interest and value to all who are concerned with the problems of promoting integration in other parts of Africa and indeed more widely. This book is based upon papers which were produced for a conference at University College Nairobi planned at a time when the leaders of the three East African countries had announced their intention to move from economic association to political federation. The book contains a discussion of the progress and problems of the common market and analyses some of the political problems involved in moving towards a federation. Experience of other federations is brough to bear and possible solutions indicated to some important problem areas. Subjects discussed include labour, agriculture, money and finance, the distribution of the benefits from the common market and constitutional matters. The question of what changes are required if economic associationis to survive without political unity is also considered.

Summary:'Confuse and Conceal' is a detailed analysis of the evolution, make-up and implications of independent sector treatment centres.-OCLC

"Comprehensive, free health care for everyone, funded by all taxpayers, was the founding principle of the NHS. It became the model for public services across the world." "But this vision is being destroyed. The NHS is being broken up and dismantled. Important services are no longer provided by the NHS, and what is left is increasingly being subjected to part or full privatisation. Control and ownership of health care is moving from public bodies to private companies whose profits are made at the expense of staff and patients." "The speed and direction of the change is concealed by the rhetoric of 'modernisation', 'choice', 'diversity' and 'local ownership', and by the complexity of privatisation mechanisms such as PFI, PPPs, LIFT and foundation hospital trusts. Allyson Pollock demystifies these terms and the process of privatisation, providing an analysis of New Labour's 'mixed economy of health care'. Her conclusion is clear: a system which was designed to promote equity and universality is being replaced by a multitude of fragmented and competing providers driven by financial incentives rather than the health needs of the population."--BOOK JACKET