New Book Explores the Exploitation of Africa’s Reserves

Posted on: 06 July 2011

A new book entitled The New Scramble for Africa by Dr Pádraig Carmody explores the growing exploitation of African resources by both western and non-western agents.  Launched recently at Trinity College, the book explores the nature of resource and market competition in Africa and the strategies adopted by the different operators involved, from world powers to small companies.

Once marginalised in the world economy, Africa has emerged in the past decade as a major global supplier of crucial raw materials like oil, uranium and coltan.  With its share of world trade and investment now rising and the availability of natural resources falling, the continent finds itself at the centre of a battle to gain access to and control of its valuable natural assets.  In recent years, China has played an increasingly active role in Africa however a new scramble is now taking place involving a wider range of established and emerging economic powers from the EU and US, to Japan, Brazil and Russia.

Speaking about the book, Dr Carmody said: “This book explains why Africa is now a site of intense competition over resources for major world powers such as the US, and emerging ones such as China, and details what this means for African people and politics.”  Focusing on key commodities, Dr Carmody examines the dynamics of the new scramble and explores the impact of current investment and competition on people and the environment, along with political and economic development on the continent.

Dr Mary Robinson launched the new book at the event which took place in the Trinity Long Room Hub.  This was followed by an interview between Mary Fitzgerald, Foreign Affairs Correspondent with the Irish Times and Dr Pádraig Carmody.  The event was supported by the Trinity International Development Initiative (TIDI), the Institute for International Integration Studies (IIIS), TCD’s Department of Geography, and Polity Press.

Dr Pádraig Carmody is a Senior Lecturer in Human Geography at the School of Natural Sciences, Trinity College Dublin.  His teaching interests include development and economic geography and he has taught both undergraduate and graduate classes on Africa, third world development and globalisation, in addition to human environment relations and regional development.