1: Excellent Policy History
In "Angola: The Anatomy of an Oil State," Anthony Hodges, describes, with exquisite detail, the rough transition to a Petro-Diamond economy in the worn-torn nation of Angola since the initiation of several peace agreements spanning the last decade. The book is a new edition of Hodges' 2001 text under a different title, "Angola: From Afro-Stalinism to Petro-Diamond Capitalism." The newer title is much more suitable as the previous title gave the impression that the history of the Marxist state of Augustino Neto is broadly covered, which it is not. The background history of Angola, for the most part, is summarized as Hodges focuses mainly on the last two decades of economic development. There are numerous tables and graphs, the text is well annotated, and it includes an excellent bibliography on the nation of Angola.
The book reads like a non-governmental organization policy paper at times, but I personally adore a dry style that dispenses with any distracting nuances. Several recent developments make this book a must-read for any students of economics and development in Africa. 1) Offshore petroleum and natural gas drilling, especially Ultra-Deep technologies, have rapidly increased off the Atlantic coast. Angola has pressed the corporations involved for a greater share in the development of its welfare infrastructure. Many of these corporations, notably Exxon-Mobile and BP, have agreed to develop the physical infrastructure, but have hesitated providing the manpower (doctors, nurses, teachers, etc.) necessary to staff these enterprises. 2) De Beers, the massive diamond corporation, has recently agreed to form a new diamond mining venture with the Angolan firm Endiama after having been forced out in 2001. Hodges' work in Angola: The Antomy of an Oil State, gives the proper history and context to understand these events.
Anthony Hodges was educated in economics at Oxford. As an associate at the Oxford Policy Management, Hodges specializes in the the post-colonial economies of Lusophonic Africa. He is currently at work advising the Department of Planning and Finance in the Republic of Mozambique.
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