Culture plays a central role in the well-being of any society. This is especially true in post-colonial Africa, where rich traditional cultures collide with complex modern realities. Cultural development and the integration of culture into contemporary society is of primary importance not only for African prosperity, but also for the purpose of further strengthening civil society and societal integration.

This book focuses on the role of culture in the process of development, and on strategies for ensuring the growth of indigenous African culture and the strengthening of cultural industries in the African context. The prospects for film-making, the performing arts, publishing, radio, museums, art, and traditional storytelling in Africa are creatively examined and explored by some of Africa's most creative cultural figures. This book combines thoughtful analysis of the problems and a "state of the art" assessment of key cultural industries with practical suggestions for improvement and progress.

ABOUT THE EDITORS
PHILIP G. ALTBACH is professor of higher education and director of the Center for International Higher Education at Boston College. He is also director of the Research and Information Center of the Bellagio Publishing Network, an agency which focuses on African and Third World publishing. He is the author of The Knowledge Context: Comparative Perspectives of the Distribution Knowledge and is editor of Publishing and Development in the Third World, International Book Publishing: An Encyclopedia.

SALH M. HASSAN is assistant professor of African Art History and Visual Culture in the Africana Studies and Research Center at Cornell University. He is the author of Art and Islamic Literacy Among the Hausa of Northern Nigeria; co-author of Seven Stories About Modern Art in Africa, co-editor of the newly launched NKA: Journal of Contemporary African Art; and consulting editor of Atlantica, International Art Journal.

CATEGORY
Cultural Studies, Development Studies/AFRICA