Panel 8 - Cancelled!

Organizers/conveners:

Malin Nystrand (malin.nystrand@gu.se) University of Gothenburg 

Lars Buur (lbuur@ruc.dk) Roskilde University 

Title & Content:

The (re-)emergence of economic nationalism in Africa

After decades of liberalising reforms, the political agenda on foreign direct investments (FDI) in Africa has since 2007 taken a distinct national turn, with indications of ‘economic nationalism’ (re)‐emerging and contesting globalization. Whereas reforms were previously aimed at attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) through facilitation and deregulation, we are now witnessing a renewed emphasis on the national ownership of resources, as well as attempts to increase the market share of domestic firms in sectors dominated by foreign actors, often as an expression of populism, elite interests or in response to local protests. This has led to a re‐evaluation of the terms under which foreign investors especially operate. The nationalist turn has many faces, which are all contributing to a reconfiguration of actors and new types of power (im)balances and encounters between foreign investors, donors, IFIs, state authorities, ruling elites, investors, local authorities and rural populations. These changes are affecting not only national and local actors in various African locations, but also global (including Nordic) investors, governments and nongovernmental actors active in different parts of Africa.

This panel welcomes papers that address this new policy agenda from different perspectives. The papers could focus on policy agendas, institutions, perspectives of particular actors (national or international, domestic and foreign), comparative studies or deep case studies, etc.