The Gambia And The World

The World and a Very Small Place in Africa is a fascinating look at how contacts with the wider world have affected how people have lived in Niumi, a small and little-known region at the mouth of West Africa’s Gambia River, for over a thousand years. Drawing on archives, oral traditions and published works, Donald R. Wright connects world history with real people on a local level through an exploration of how global events have affected life in Niumi. Thoroughly revised and updated throughout, this new edition rests on recent thinking in globalization theory, reflects the latest historiography and has been extended to the present day through discussion of the final years of Gambian President Yahya Jammeh’s regime, the role of global forces in the events of the 2016 presidential elections and the changes that resulted from these elections. The book is supported throughout by photographs, maps and Perspectives boxes that present detailed information on such topics as Alex Haley’s Roots (part set in Niumi), why Gambians take the risky "back way" to reach Europe, or "Wiri-Wiri," the Senegalese soap that has Gambians’ attention. Written in a clear and personal style and taking a critical yet sensitive approach, it remains an essential resource for students and scholars of African history, particularly those interested in the impact of globalization on the lives of real people.

Niumi, a small, little-known territory located on the bank of the Gambia River in West Africa, is seemingly far from the reaches of world historical events. And yet the outside world has long had a significant - and increasingly profound - impact on Niumi. This fascinating work shows how global events have affected people's lives over the past eight centuries in this small region in Africa's smallest country. Drawing on written and oral testimony, and writing in a clear and personal style, Donald R. Wright connects 'globalization' with real people in a real place. This new edition updates discussions of global history and African history based on current studies and new developments that have been factored into the interpretive framework. Reflecting on recent visits to Niumi, Wright extends the story into 2009, to consider the impact of global recession and domestic political repression under a regime in power for the past fifteen years. Punctuating the narrative are photographs, maps, and 'Perspectives' boxes on selected topics such as the sale of slaves five centuries ago, colonial sexism, the fate of press freedom, and how popular culture affects growing up in a traditional society. Throughout, the author deals with African history seriously, global trends critically, and human lives sensitively.

This study looks at the effects of "global" phenomena -- trans-Saharan trade, European expansion, the rise of an Atlantic plantation complex, industrialization, imperialism, colonialism, world wars, growth of a world market, political independence and economic dependence -- on the way of life in Niumi, a small area at the mouth of the Gambia river in West Africa (now called The Gambia), over the last six-seven hundred years. Written in clear, accessible prose, and drawing on archival and oral traditions, the work considers global developments from a local/regional perspective.

Countries of the World - The Gambia ...What is so special about The Gambia?What is it's history, culture and geography? What is it that makes it so special and unique? What are it's similarities and differences to other countries in the world?This in depth guide answers these questions and more, providing you with a comprehensive understanding of The Gambia, and a lasting appreciation of it's wonders.

"This report was prepared by Nathalie Lahire and included the following team members: Priscilla Elms, Ryoko Wilcox, and Richard Johanson."

In Para-States and Medical Science, P. Wenzel Geissler and the contributors examine how medicine and public health in Africa have been transformed as a result of economic and political liberalization and globalization, intertwined with epidemiological and technological changes. The resulting fragmented medical science landscape is shaped and sustained by transnational flows of expertise and resources. NGOs, universities, pharmaceutical companies and other nonstate actors now play a significant role in medical research and treatment. But as the contributors to this volume argue, these groups have not supplanted the primacy of the nation-state in Africa. Although not necessarily stable or responsive, national governments remain crucial in medical care, both as employers of health care professionals and as sources of regulation, access, and – albeit sometimes counterintuitively - trust for their people. “The state” has morphed into the “para-state” — not a monolithic and predictable source of sovereignty and governance, but a shifting, and at times ephemeral, figure. Tracing the emergence of the “global health” paradigm in Africa in the treatment of HIV, malaria, and leprosy, this book challenges familiar notions of African statehood as weak or illegitimate by elaborating complex new frameworks of governmentality that can be simultaneously functioning and dysfunctional. Contributors. Uli Beisel, Didier Fassin, P. Wenzel Geissler, Rene Gerrets, Ann Kelly, Guillaume Lachenal, John Manton, Lotte Meinert, Vinh-Kim Nguyen, Branwyn Poleykett, Susan Reynolds Whyte