ABSTRACT
Ethnicity, without politics and scarce economic resources, is atavistic and latent in nature. However, applied to multiethnic states in sub-Saharan Africa and other regions, ethnicity comes alive as the basis for a politicized search for redistribution of scarce resources. To be sure, in Africa, European expansionism encouraged ethnic sentiments among Africans, by nurturing the peoples' differences rather than their similarities; however, ethnicity is neither immutable nor inherently conflictual. Ethnicity is like a two-side sword-it tends to be the basis for communal identity and security; but it is also a basis for exclusionary practices, which sometimes result in conflict. Without the benefits of counterfactual insights, the extent to which ethnic manipulation and its impacts characterize much of political and economic discourse in sub-Saharan Africa at the end of the millennium will remain a puzzle. But, in the context of transnational developments in transportation and communications technology, and their integrating characteristics, politicized ethnicity is a part of the evolving social formation in many African states. Consequently, theoretical and methodological approaches will determine how well analysts provide explanations on the impact of ethnicity on political and economic development in Africa.
