The Somali Challenge: From Catastrophe to Renewal?

by Abdi Ismail Samatar (Editor)

A multifaceted inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the implosion and consequent breakdown of the state and society in Somalia, this book attempts to make sense out of what Somalis now describe as "burbur", or catastrophe. The book focuses on four questions: What is the morphology of the Somali crisis? How did it occur? What options, if any, exist or can be created to reverse the situation? And what lessons can be learned from the Somali experience? In addressing these questions, the authors dynamically link explorations of a range of issues - economic, environmental, cultural, political and international - to provide new insights regarding the essence and confounding mutations of Somali reality today, as well as the search for solutions.

297 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1994