Abstract
With reference to frames as socially determined definitions of reality, this paper examines the discrepancies between the prominence of ‘South-South cooperation’ terminology in globally dominant discourses and its limited usage by African stakeholders. Based on insights from the United Nations, (cross-)regional collaboration formats and bilateral cooperation, we find that African officials employ ‘South-South’ terminology mainly when ‘Northern’ partners are present but use other frames when engaging with developing countries. This limited resonance poses a challenge to multilateral organisations and traditional donors in their attempts to expand engagement with ‘South-South’ relations. A focus on the usage and effects of frames, we argue, can clarify the assumptions based on which international cooperation unfolds.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 549-565 |
| Journal | Journal of International Development |
| Volume | 35 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Early online date | 24 Aug 2022 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 31 May 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The authors would like to thank Jonas Vellguth for his research assistance and are grateful to Dan Banik, Benedikt Erforth, Laura Trajber Waisbich, an anonymous colleague and two anonymous reviewers for comments on earlier drafts of this paper. Research by Sebastian Haug that this paper builds on was financially supported by the UK's Economic and Social Research Council (Award 1645105), the Cambridge Trust and Christ's College at the University of Cambridge as well as the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The paper also builds on doctoral research by Cynthia Kamwengo that was funded by Durham University. Open Access funding was enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.
Keywords
- Africa
- China
- Frames
- India
- South-South cooperation
- United Nations