The Misrepresented Nation

As I read the Challenge for Africa by Wangari Maathai, I could not forget professor Hansen's impression of South African accent. "Grrrin, the grass is grrrin". However, jokes aside, the author raises very compelling points about what kind of callenges is Africa facing and what are some of the way of dealing with them. She dares to talk about things we do not usually want to talk about -- from Darfur to HIV/AIDS, unbearable debt and election fraud, to cross-border conflicts and environmental degradation. Instead of just portraying Africa in a typical way that the media covers it -- the poverty stricken village with starving children -- she analyzes roadblocks to development, including the absence of peace and security, the lack of technological developments, the absence of fair international trade, population pressures and enduring hunger, the silencing of native languages and the evisceration of traditional cultures, and the dearth of genuine political and economic leadership.

Wangari Maathai presents a different vision, informed by her three decades as an environmental activist and campaigner for democracy. She illuminates the complex and dynamic nature of the continent, and offers "hard-headed hope" and "realistic options" for change and improvement. With clarity of expression, Maathai analyzes the most egregious “bottlenecks to development in Africa” occurring at the international, national, and individual levels—cultural upheaval and enduring poverty, among them—and deftly describes what Africans can and need to do for themselves, stressing all the while responsibility and accountability.