A study of the developments in African political systems since independence, the factors which contributed to the emergence of political parties and what are their functions within modern African contexts. The countries which form part of the study are Zambia, Tanzania, Sudan, Ethiopia, Namibia, Ghana, Kenya and Botswana. Index, bib, tables, xiii, 372pp,. PLUTO PRESS, 0745320376

Using case studies from Zambia, Zimbabwe, Cambodia and the Philippines, the author evaluates the contribution of international and domestic election monitoring to democracy promotion and democratic change. Index, notes, apps, xxiii, 382pp, USA. JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESS.

Over the past ten years, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Chad, Central African Republic, Congo Brazzaville and Rwanda all organized pluralist elections in a post conflict context, having experienced an armed conflict which either interrupted or prevented democratization processes. These polls were organized with the support of the international community, which viewed them as a crucial step in the peace-building process. The local media's role throughout has been to ensure that an electoral process is actually 'free and fair' - a role that becomes even more crucial in countries where the media have previously being perceived as warmongers or peace-builders in the conflicts. Giving a voice to African journalists and analysing the work they have been publishing or broadcasting during these elections, African media specialist Marie-Soleil Frere explores if and how the local media fulfilled their duties. In doing so, the book reveals journalists' professionalism at a time when much is expected from the media, as well as the intense political pressure faced that can make their work particularly difficult. 352pp, UK. ZED BOOKS.

Electoral studies of multiparty politics in fourteen African countries during the 1990s. How did incumbent governing regimes learn to live with multiparty politics? Why have some elections been so closely fought and others have suffered from apathy? Why have the elections of the 1990s been so marked by local and ethnic varia-tions? To what extent did this 'wave of democracy' result from the pressure of donor countries? UK. JAMES CURREY PUBLISHERS.

Eight essays looking at contexts, internal divisions, and other factors which shape oppositional politics. Essays on Kenya, Zimbabwe, Senegal, the MNSD in Niger, Uganda, South Africa, Nigeria, and an introductory essay by Olukoshi. Appendix: Parties and elections; 37pp of notes on party results in elections with general remarks; select bib, index, 328pp, SWEDEN. NORDIC AFRICA INSTITUTE.

Following the (re-)introduction of multiparty systems in Africa in the early 1990s, third and fourth elections in Africa's new democracies and hybrid regimes are now being seen. Although there is a large and growing literature on democracy and elections in Africa, parties and party systems have hitherto not been the focus of research, which may be surprising given their central role in a liberal democracy. The early works from the 1960s and 1970s provide neither a sound conceptual nor empirical basis. Research on political parties and party systems in Africa is still in its infancy. Various contributions in this volume address the theoretical and conceptual challenges provided by the African parties and party systems with their particular features of weak organisation, informal relationships dominated by 'big men' and clientism within a neopatrimonial setting. Index, 301pp, SWEDEN. NORDIC AFRICA INSTITUTE.

A comparative study of Tanzanian and Malawian political parties and their basic conceptual paradigms. This collection of papers brings together insights important to many fields providing analysis of the contemporary political situation. BNS, 331pp, TANZANIA. TEMA PUBLISHERS CO, 9987250351