Australia and Africa: A New Friend from the South?

Australia's engagement with Africa is analyzed in this book, highlighting its unique status as a "new actor and emerging country" in the continent. It argues that Australia's lack of recognition of its historical engagement with Africa and political partisanship hinder its ability to assess its strategic interests and make meaningful contributions to the continent. While factors such as immigration, globalization, trade, terrorism, and climate change bring Africa and Australia closer together, Australia's episodic approach and lack of self-awareness continue to limit its engagement.

\n Format: Hardback
\n Length: 187 pages
\n Publication date: 05 February 2019
\n Publisher: Springer Verlag, Singapore
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This comprehensive book delves into Australia's multifaceted engagement with Africa, exploring its unique status as a "new actor and emerging country" on the African continent. Through its empirical originality and comparative insights, the book fills a significant gap in both the study of Africa's global engagement with emerging nations and the relatively lesser-known aspect of Australia's interactions with African states.

Australia has positioned itself as Africa's "friend from the south," offering a partnership devoid of colonial baggage and driven by long-term trade and development interests. In this context, Australia joins a growing list of "new players" seeking deeper engagement with Africa since the end of the Cold War. However, the book argues that Australia's engagement with Africa is characterized by a series of "flawed historical encounters" and political partisanship, which hinder its ability to assess its strategic and long-term interests on the continent. This lack of clarity makes Australia a distinctive emerging player in Africa, as its efforts are more episodic and focused on other objectives rather than resource acquisition or countering geopolitical rivals.

While various factors, such as immigration, globalization, trade, terrorism, and climate change, continue to bring Africa and Australia closer together, Australia's failure to understand its own interests persists as a significant obstacle to its engagement with Africa. The book sheds light on the complexities and challenges that Australia faces in navigating its relations with the African continent, offering valuable insights into the country's evolving role and its potential for positive impact in the region.

\n Weight: 388g\n
Dimension: 217 x 167 x 18 (mm)\n
ISBN-13: 9789811334221\n
Edition number: 1st ed. 2019\n