siphiwe mbatha

The thesis then categorises these transboundary cooperations in an attempt to analyse their substance, considering factors like their responsiveness to Rwandan agendas, transfer of knowledge and engagement with local contexts. The complexity of the projects becomes apparent, as do the divergences between transboundary and Rwandan actors’ agendas. For instance, one development programme had to bend with the realities of working in the Rwandan government rather than stick to the on-paper agenda. Other cases show how cooperation projects responded to such complexity by operating in enclaves that isolate the transboundary actors and attempt to exclusively impose their priorities. In contrast, the private sector examples appeared best adapted to the realities of Rwanda ‘on the ground’ and involved more knowledge transfer. The book could have benefited from relating such aid industry insights to the development studies literature that has reported similar findings. Another notable absence was any Rwandan-ist literature. This was somewhat problematic as the significant role played by the Rwandan state in development and private sector activities was overlooked, and the Rwandan elite described in the cases was left un-contextualised. The thesis’ analysis could also have made an interesting contribution to the lively academic debate over the country. Additionally, Rwandan-ist literature couldhavehelped toupdate thebook’s substance, primarily drawn from – fieldwork. Moreover, reference to the Rwandanfocused literature would have provided opportunities to appreciate the country’s exceptionality. Rather, the book’s discussion labels the context as ‘African’ with the categories of ‘Africa’ and the ‘West’ problematically left unpicked. This book is therefore more useful to those seeking detailed cases of the anthropology of globalisation.