Deborah Johnston – författare

Biomedical revolutions seem to have radically altered the environment for HIV transmission: anti-retrovirals (ARVs) and drugs to reduce mother-to-child transmission promise to cut HIV transmission rates, as does male medical circumcision. However, the hopeful messages of UNAIDS are tempered with warning about expenditure shortfalls and calls for funding. Contributions to this book remind us that, along with the external financial constraints, there have been new fractures in state power and in the organisation of health systems. More than this, the book fundamentally calls into question whether biomedical interventions can change the social roots of this disease. As well as considering new policy approaches, the book reasserts a long-standing political economy approach to HIV and to adapt it to reflect new competing theoretical approaches. The chapters attempt to connect the debates about HIV/AIDS to larger discussions about globalisation, class differentiation, inequity and uneven development in African countries. This book was originally published as a special issue of Review of African Political Economy.

This book explains how, and why, economics has been applied to a terrible pandemic, using a range of examples mostly drawn from the region most affected, sub-Saharan Africa. Part I shows that microeconomic approaches have found fertile ground in a public health approach that ‘blames’ individual choices for HIV transmission. Despite their attractiveness, however, these approaches fail to explain contemporary patterns of HIV prevalence, illustrating the importance of factors that are excluded from the standard micro-economic approach. Part II of the book looks at our problems in understanding the economic impact of AIDS, and explains why economists cannot agree if epidemic disease is a good or bad thing for economic development. In both sections of the book, the potential for alternative approaches is shown, and the book ends by arguing that a political economy approach can bring meaningful insights to our understanding of the spread and impact of HIV/AIDS.

Neoliberalism is the dominant ideology shaping our world today. It dictates the policies of governments, and shapes the actions of key institutions such as the WTO, IMF, World Bank and European Central Bank. Its political and economic implications can hardly be overstated.Yet there are obvious problems with the neoliberal project. This book is a perfect introduction to neoliberalism that is ideal for anyone seeking a critical perspective. It explains the nature, history, strengths, weaknesses and implications of neoliberalism from the point of view of radical political economics. Short, self-contained chapters are written by leading experts in each field. The books is organised in three parts: the first section outlining neoliberal theory, the second exploring how neoliberalism has affected various policy areas, and a third looking at how neoliberal policies have played out in particular regions of the world. Using a broad range of left economic perspectives, from post-Keynesian to Marxist, this is a great resource for students of politics and economics, and anyone looking for a grounded critical approach to this broad subject.

What do we know about economic development in Africa? The answer is that we know much less than we would like to think. This collection assesses the knowledge problem present in statistics on poverty, agriculture, labour, education, health, and economic growth. While diverse in origin, the contributors to this book are unified in two conclusions: the quality and quantity of data needs to be improved; and this is a concern not just for statisticians. Weaknesses in statistical methodology and practice can misinform policy makers, international agencies, donors, the private sector, and the citizens of African countries themselves. This is also a problem for academics from various disciplines, from history and economics to social epidemiology and education policy. Not only does academic work on Africa regularly use flawed data, but many problems encountered in surveys challenge common academic abstractions. By exploring these flaws, this book will provide a guide for scholars, policy makers, and all those using and commissioning surveys in Africa. This book was originally published as a special issue of The Journal of Development Studies.

Biomedical revolutions seem to have radically altered the environment for HIV transmission: anti-retrovirals (ARVs) and drugs to reduce mother-to-child transmission promise to cut HIV transmission rates, as does male medical circumcision. However, the hopeful messages of UNAIDS are tempered with warning about expenditure shortfalls and calls for funding. Contributions to this book remind us that, along with the external financial constraints, there have been new fractures in state power and in the organisation of health systems. More than this, the book fundamentally calls into question whether biomedical interventions can change the social roots of this disease. As well as considering new policy approaches, the book reasserts a long-standing political economy approach to HIV and to adapt it to reflect new competing theoretical approaches. The chapters attempt to connect the debates about HIV/AIDS to larger discussions about globalisation, class differentiation, inequity and uneven development in African countries. This book was originally published as a special issue of Review of African Political Economy.

Economics has largely failed to provide useful insights on the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The inability of a dominant branch of social science to assist in understanding an illness with significant social, economic and emotional effects is a serious failing in its own right. Moreover, the inadequacy in its explanatory power also highlights important weakness in ‘mainstream’ economic theory, the economic approach used by most governments and institutions. This book sets out the role that economic analysis has had, and why it can be judged to have failed.This book explains how, and why, economics has been applied to a terrible pandemic, using a range of examples mostly drawn from the region most affected, sub-Saharan Africa. Part I shows that microeconomic approaches have found fertile ground in a public health approach that ‘blames’ individual choices for HIV transmission. Despite their attractiveness, however, these approaches fail to explain contemporary patterns of HIV prevalence, illustrating the importance of factors that are excluded from the standard microeconomic approach. Part II of the book looks at our problems in understanding the economic impact of AIDS, and explains why economists cannot agree if epidemic disease is a good or bad thing for economic development. In both sections of the book, the potential for alternative approaches is shown, and the book ends by arguing that a political economy approach can bring meaningful insights to our understanding of the spread and impact of HIV/AIDS. This book is aimed at those working on African development or HIV/AIDS specifically. It will be of interest to researchers, policy-makers and postgraduate students.

What do we know about economic development in Africa? The answer is that we know much less than we would like to think. This collection assesses the knowledge problem present in statistics on poverty, agriculture, labour, education, health, and economic growth. While diverse in origin, the contributors to this book are unified in two conclusions: the quality and quantity of data needs to be improved; and this is a concern not just for statisticians. Weaknesses in statistical methodology and practice can misinform policy makers, international agencies, donors, the private sector, and the citizens of African countries themselves. This is also a problem for academics from various disciplines, from history and economics to social epidemiology and education policy. Not only does academic work on Africa regularly use flawed data, but many problems encountered in surveys challenge common academic abstractions. By exploring these flaws, this book will provide a guide for scholars, policy makers, and all those using and commissioning surveys in Africa. This book was originally published as a special issue of The Journal of Development Studies.