Citizenship in Africa: the law of belonging

Bronwen Manby will present her new book, Citizenship in Africa: The Law of Belonging, the first comparative history of Africa’s citizenship laws, and an analysis of the interaction of legal citizenship with politics and citizenship in the broader sense.

The book sets out the continuing influence of colonial frameworks; the trends and patterns of legal amendments since independence to regulate acquisition and loss of citizenship, gender discrimination, and dual citizenship; and case studies to illustrate the ways in which law has been implicated in conflicts from Congo to Zimbabwe.

At this launch event, Dr Manby will make the case for the impact of law on African politics, the intended and unintended consequences of the rules by which a person acquires citizenship, and the (perhaps surprising) relevance of law for the daily lives of individuals across the continent.

Dr Bronwen Manby is a Visiting Senior Fellow in LSE Human Rights and Research Fellow at the LSE Middle East Centre, and an independent consultant in the field of human rights, democracy and good governance, with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa.

Dr Chaloka Beyani is an Associate Professor of International Law in the Department of Law, LSE.

Professor Nic Cheeseman is Professor of Democracy and International Development at the University of Birmingham

Professor Chetan Bhatt is a Professor of Sociology in the Department of Sociology, LSE.

This event is co-hosted by LSE Human Rights, the Firoz Lalji Centre for Africa at LSE, and the LSE Middle East Centre.

Twitter Hashtag for this event: #LSEAfrica

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LSE holds a wide range of events, covering many of the most controversial issues of the day, and speakers at our events may express views that cause offence. The views expressed by speakers at LSE events do not reflect the position or views of the London School of Economics and Political Science.