This dissertation offers a policy analysis of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The analysis aims to assess the prospects and challenges for implementation of the AfCFTA, and thereby to contribute to research on trade and regional integration in Africa and International Political Economy (IPE) theory testing. Throughout, emphasis is placed on the critical importance of both economic and political aspects of regional integration, which are often de-emphasised in conventional theoretical standpoints. The analysis highlights the need to avoid pursuing solely economic or political policy implementation and integration in order to achieve successful outcomes from the AfCFTA. Quintessential debates in regional theory are outlined. An analysis of the Eurocentric founding literature is undertaken, from which the origins of the false distinction between the state and the market in regional integration literature is identified. In the wake of the deficient explanatory capacity of European integration theories for African regionalism, alternate and more contemporary theoretical approaches are outlined, drawing from literature focussing on theories of new regionalism and the historical development of African regionalism. The slowing of regional integration globally, as well as the limited success of several aspects of Africa's overlapping Regional Economic Communities suggest that economic integration can only be sustained in environments where active political participation co-functions with successfully managed market integration. Thus, a political economy approach to the analysis and implementation of the AfCFTA is emphasised, in order to ensure both states and markets are incorporated into the regional integration literature. Research methods utilised include a review of regional integration literature, analysis of relevant macroeconomic data relating to international trade in Africa, a review of AfCFTA legal and policy documents, as well as situating the study within the wider theoretical body of regional integration literature and IPE. The analysis showed that despite critical challenges relating to implementation and coordination, the AfCFTA has significant potential benefits. It is concluded that a political economy approach to implementation would enhance the longterm prospects for regional integration in Africa and the AfCFTA specifically, by ensuring stakeholders in the political and economic spheres link their goals and methods of implementation to formulate long-term institutions for growth.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 70-76). / Contemporary food security concerns in sub-Saharan Africa centre on the pertinence of food versus fuel forms of production. As the global energy market enters into the postfossil-fuel epoch, the demand on land for commercial biofuel and feedstock production threatens the livelihood of sub-Saharan Africa's sizeable peasant community. This paper examines the theoretical and paradigmatic attributes of the human security and food security rubric, and its pertinence in accounting for the social threats which threaten individuals within an increasingly interconnected global economic system. While the emergence of these neologisms of the critical security studies school represent a marked divergence from that of the traditional approach of understanding security threats, they remained mired in contestation due to their lack of theoretical parsimony.

Bibliography: leaves 176-202. / There are an enormous number of competing interpretations of South Africa's apartheid era policies both in the region and towards Angola. With South Africa's role in the Angolan civil war as its case study, this paper evaluates the relative utility of certain selected approaches to international relations theory. This paper evaluates the relative utility of system level versus unit level theories to explain the nature of South African involvement in the Angolan conflict. These two categories are represented by nee-realist structural theory and, secondly, by a variety of unit level theories typically concerned with South Africa's domestic environment. This dissertation demonstrates, through the actual events, the utility of these two distinct theoretical approaches. Given the above approach and objectives, the methodology consists firstly of a critical conceptual review and analysis of each paradigm as a useful explanation of South African foreign relations. It consists secondly, of a more "empirical" assessment of their value in accounting for or illuminating significant aspects of the internal and external sources of motivation for South Africa's military intervention. The empirical evidence is examined according to four stages: firstly; a review of the related literature, secondly; South Africa's initial intervention and the presence of US aid in 1975, thirdly; the widening of the conflict post 1978 under P. W. Botha, and fourthly; the departure of all the major foreign influences and final resolution of the Angolan conflict. This exercise extends until 1988 which, in December of that year, witnessed the cessation of all external intervention. The conclusion recommends further research in the form of empirical case studies which consider both the application of international relations theory as well as the military dimension of the conflict.

Includes bibliographical references. / This thesis explores the achievements and challenges of the East African Community (EAC), since its revival. The study while focusing on functionalism as the theoretical concept, examines the progress that the EAC has made towards achieving its goals and objectives, and highlights EAC’s integration challenges. Despite being in its formative stages and facing integration challenges, the five East African countries; namely Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi, are fully determined to integrate the region economically, socially and politically.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references. / This study analyses current conceptualisations of rape as a "tool of war" in various academic disciplines and approaches including Anthropological Studies, Feminist Studies and Historical Studies. The analysis also includes Political Studies and its various sub-disciplines, case studies of African conflicts and more specifically studies of the Rwandan conflict, together with the civil war of 1990 and the genocide of 1994. The analysis will highlight the strengths and weaknesses in our current understanding of rape as a "tool of war", in order to develop a clarified framework for future analysis.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 122-139). / The post-Bretton Woods financial system and the globalisation of financial markets have pronounced the unequal distribution of financial power across nation states. The majority of member countries in the eurozone with previously little financial power have chosen monetary integration as a response to globalisation. On the other hand, countries with substantial financial power such as Germany agreed to monetary integration for the sake of a mercantilist economic agenda and broader political goals.

Throughout the Syrian conflict, a new extremist organization became increasingly visible to the public due its use of extreme violence and continuous threats to the entire world living outside of it. The self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) attracted the highest number of foreign fighters in the history of Islamic social movements, and continues to recruit from foreign countries. While the majority of the foreign fighters come from neighbouring countries to the conflict region in Syria and Iraq, it is estimated that around one quarter of the recruits stems from Western countries. Although ISIS managed to attract both men and women to voluntarily join their extremist organization, the vast majority of foreign fighters are men. Due to the recent occurrence of this phenomenon, the motivations of foreign fighters to join ISIS remain greatly under-researched. Taking various attacks and threats towards Western countries into consideration, it might appear paradox that people leave their home countries to fight for ISIS abroad. However, the number of people leaving for this purpose has summed up to around 800 in Germany in 2016. Therefore, this thesis analyses the motifs and causes of German men to travel to the conflict region to become a member of the extremist network. Contrary to the widely-spread assumption that socio-economic circumstances lead young men into violent extremism, this thesis studies their paths to radicalization from a socio-psychological perspective.

Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 70-79).

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-81). / This dissertation provides an overview of the boom in mobile telephony in Africa, experienced in terms of exceptional and increasing subscriber growth. It provides a description of the mobile telephony boom, as well as its social political and economic impacts. It investigates what effect mobile telephony has had on the bridging of a broader digital divide, conceived of in terms of inequalities in access to information and communication technologies between Africa and the rest of the world, as well within Africa itself. It concludes that the boom in mobile telephony has had far-reaching impacts on the continent at all levels of African society. In particular, mobile phones have had a significant economic impact on the continent, which the author argues has been from the bottom up -affecting greatly the base of the economic pyramid and the informal sector. Mobile telephony has however not made a significant impact in the bridging of the digital divide conceived of in terms of access to the internet. A broader digital divide still exists which mobile telephony may not provide the tools to bridge.

This research assesses the potential of organised social networks to improve the resettlement of female forced migrants in their destination country. It looks more specifically at the impact of the Scalabrini women’s platform on women from the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) experience in the city of Cape Town. In the context of the DRC, forced migration includes movements caused by conflict, political instability and economic crises while post-apartheid South Africa offers peace, democracy and a stable economy in the Southern African region, although it is pervaded by a strong xenophobic sentiment towards black African foreigners. In addition to xenophobia and racism that linger in South Africa, women face gender-based inequalities and the barrier of language, placing them in a vulnerable position and exposing them to abuse and isolation. Organised social networks are understood as a source of social capital that improves lifestyle by limiting everyday challenges. Using the theory of embeddedness and immigration (Portes and Sensenbrenner, 1993), the Scalabrini women’s platform offers enforceable trust which provides economic resources in the form of knowledge and networks. Data was gathered through a review of the literature and semi-structured interviews with active members of the platform. This research finds that the creation of a gender-specific network, outside of the community and mainly within immigrants, indeed works towards building enforceable trust with limited negative effects, but challenges remain. It further identifies the link between unemployment and documentation as the main obstacle to women’s positive resettlement. The platform tackles the challenge of unemployment linked to documentation by providing professional skills and contacts. They are powerful tools to avoid the restricted access to formal employment by contributing to capacity-building and increasing chances of self-employment. Organised social networks do contribute to the positive resettlement of Congolese women in Cape Town, but exclusion and isolation remain. The creation of weak ties with the broader South African society appears as essential in response to the xenophobic discourse of the State and the media, especially in the absence of inclusive immigration laws.