Civil Society Organisations and Societal Transformation in Africa: The Case of Ethiopia

This Book is concerned with Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the challenges of facilitating sustainable societal transformation in Africa, focusing on the case of Ethiopia. It critically examines how the tensions in conceptualization of Civil Society and the discourses in international development have led to the legitimization and proliferation of 'modern' and western-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) interventions in Africa. It also studied how 'traditional' CSOs are side-lined owing to the aid architecture that regard western-based NGOs as preferred development partners. The Book analyses the ways in which local communities organise their 'traditional' associations and collectively engage in social action to transform their communities. It highlights the negative implications of the neoliberal theoretical discourses and the distortions of developmental state approaches in relation to the growth of 'traditional' African CSOs. The Book outlines critical pathways for harnessing the role of 'traditional' CSOs in the future societal transformation process in Africa.