BOOK REVIEWS 209The interests of detailed analysis and thorough treatment of issueswould have been better served had the author focused on one or twotopics covering carefully chosen regions of the continent. The continent-wide approach not only produces an unwieldy array of facts which arerather difficult to digest but also results in a voluminous book whoseprice, though not indicated on the book cover, can only be beyond thereach of many potential readers on the African continent for whom,presumably, the book was written.The above shortcoming aside, however, A Modern Economic History ofAfrica is a welcome and valuable contribution to scholarship which raisesthe discourse on the African pre-colonial experience to new heights. It is awell-packaged, competently edited and well-written book which should beof use to professional historians, economic historians, high school teachersand any lay readers who are interested in understanding the forces thatshaped Africa's historical development on the eve of European colonialism.University of Zimbabwe A. S. MLAMBOThe Political Economy of the Sugar Industry in Zimbabwe, 1920-90 ByA 5. Mlambo andE. S. Pangeti. Harare, University of Zimbabwe Publications,1996, iv, 90 pp., ISBN 0-908307-43-8, Z$50.The book describes the various stages of growth of the sugar industry inZimbabwe, and the different types of control that are responsible forgetting the industry where it currently is. The authors present theestablishment of the industry by individuals like McDougall, and later bygovernment, and then by international entrepreneurs. The book describesthe operations of the industry during various government regimes andanalyses the impact of international relations on the performance of theindustry. The final chapter looks at the marketing opportunities andconstraints in the region and in distant international markets.While the book illustrates the importance of history for theunderstanding of economic development, the book could be strengthenedby paying more attention to economic, political and institutionalframeworks or paradigms. Several questions can be posed to draw attentionto potential avenues for analysis.The authors readily present reasons given in the reports they reviewed,without providing critical analysis of their own. It seems that theysympathise with the sugar producers. They suggest that the Zimbabwesugar industry is in its infancy (p.l). This is a typical argument forgovernment protection against cheap imports of sugar, but one that doesnot appeal to domestic consumers or tax-payers. Statements like 'domesticretail sugar prices are too low' need some kind of objective justification.210 BOOK REVIEWSThe authors note the industry's contribution to employmentgeneration. While the number of people employed is in the thousands,there is no indication of incomes earned by these employees. Wages maybe small relative to other expenses or profits, as is suggested by thestrikes in the early months of 1996.The book pays insufficient attention to the link between governmentand the economy. As long as the sugar industry makes a significantcontribution to the economy, the government will try to keep the industryalive through various forms of preferential treatment, such as monopolyof the domestic market, procurement of African labour, soft loans, andconstruction of all-weather roads. In the end the distinction between whatis private and what is public becomes blurred.The authors pay insufficient attention to the analysis of governmentinterventions and control. What were the financial reasons behindgovernment take-over of the estates, and their lack of profitability undergovernment control? How are market forces affected by various forms ofgovernment support for the industry?It is not clear how ecological characteristics affected the siting ofsugar estates in the Lowveld. Was it drainage patterns, or was it that theextensive production of sugar required vast amounts of cheap land? Whenthe government was pushing for settlers to be part of the productionscheme under contract, the Hewletts did not support the idea: readerscould be helped by an analysis of alternatives proposed. More could besaid on the different treatment of Black and White settler schemesKeaders would also benefit from a closer analysis of how the industryrw^ *Ł Un — the econ°mic sanctions following Rhodesia's Unilateralueciaration of Independence. Internationally, more could be said on theway cartels control prices of such commodities as sugarI»M * Presentation of graphs and tables, more attention should becfearltanHSUre1 J81"68 are comP*Ž^ and that the text relatesclearly and explains the variations that the figures reveal.of theTuf H hTk Pr°VideS a USefuI descriP«ve account of the historyZ S SS bW6' ^ Uitd ^University of Zimbatve x GovEREH