Academic literature on the topic 'Arab countries – Politics and government – 21st century'

In the Middle Eastern geostrategic complex Syria [the Syrian Arab Republic] occupies a special place. The first state formations on the territory of modern Syria dates back to the 2nd millennium BC. Assyria, the Hittite and Babylonian kingdoms, the era of Alexander the Great, the times as part of the Roman and Ottoman empires left a significant cultural and historical mark on the Syrians in the world’s cultural heritage, and the large Syrian ethnic community is an example of peaceful coexistence. However, as history shows, the greatest dangers came to Syria from outside. Throughout the 20th century, Syria actually found itself in a regime of permanent upheavals. By the end of the 1950s, France and Great Britain which professed [and profess] a policy of “spheres of influence” in the Middle East, tried to reshape the country, and since the 1960s Damascus has been embroiled in the contradictions of an endless peace-war process which was marked by the era of regional Arab-Israeli wars. Syria still feels the force of the consequences of the wars of 1967 and 1973 [Israel’s occupation of the Dutch Heights]. The 21st century brought Syria the “Arab Spring” [2011], civil war, the overthrow of the B. Assad regime [2024] and a time of new uncertainty. Since then, we have been observing another attempt by Syrians to build a peaceful Syria based on mutual understanding and respect for the diversity of forms of spiritual and cultural traditions of the peoples living on its territory. For the political force “Hayat Tahrir al-Sham” which is in power in Syria today the complexity of this task is dictated by harsh reality. Internal humanitarian problems, which are caused by the long-term civil conflict, are exacerbated by the powerlessness of the authorities in the cities, the lack of control over the entire territory of the country, membership in the terrorist international and the contradictory strategies regarding the fate of Syria of its main allies, partners and opponents. Therefore, the Syrian political reality dictates support and resources from outside, and the politics of the “circle of friends”, according to the laws of the genre, requires concessions and obtaining one’s own benefit. Such a retrospective picture of the Syrian issue requires a more thorough analysis of Syrian realities in the context of rapid changes in the international order of the 21st century and the military-political situation in the region. The author’s novelty is determined by the purpose, structure and logic of the study which covers time, space and country-specific reactions to the Syrian events of both the countries of the region and other players in world politics. This made it possible to unravel the tangle of events, the content of which is hidden by informational noise and the art of politicians to hide their true goals in the environment of mass consciousness. The purpose. The purpose of the study is to resolve the Syrian knot in the Middle Eastern geostrategic complex as a result of the relentless projection of “soft” and “hard” power by the main players of world and regional politics which has been going on for the past 70 years. The combination of theoretical and methodological, political and applied, and informational tools made it possible to clarify the most controversial events and facts of Syrian history and the strategy of the struggle for influence in the region of Syria’s neighboring countries and countries that seek to maintain good relations with it due to their common spiritual and cultural affiliation and common history. The achievement of the goal was facilitated by the tasks, the content of which is disclosed in three sections of the study. The sections are organically interconnected and reflect the mechanism for revealing the problem posed. Methodology. The research has been carried out using comparative, dialectical, historical and systemic methods. This has allowed us to consider the phenomenon of the Syrian “knot” on the Middle Eastern map as a holistic picture of the contradictions between the main players, to identify its features and retrospective. Results. The foreign policy goals and strategies of the main Middle Eastern players in the new round of the game around post-Assad Syria have been revealed. Their views on the Syrian historical perspective and the modern practice of the already declared priorities have been clarified. It has been stated that Turkey, the USA and Russia as geopolitical competitors in the region seek to maintain and expand their military presence, and Israel, in order to ensure security from the north, has “preventively” expanded the occupation zone of the Golan Heights [January 2025]. It has been noted that in the views of the European community – the EU, the new leadership of Syria must first of all ensure human rights and freedoms and the functioning of democratic institutions, among which free elections have been in the first place throughout the country. Practical implications. The results of the study can be used in the block of humanitarian disciplines that consider issues of international politics and regional security. Value/originality. The scientific novelty of the study lies in revealing the ontological foundations of the Middle East conflict, the permanent force of which is given by the contradictions of the history of Syria and the competition of national interests of the main players. The Syrian node is considered in three aspects: domestic political, border security and regional political. It is proved that with the coming to power in the country of the political force “Hayat Tahrir al-Sham”, the game for the Syrian heritage enters a new stage of struggle, in which the policy of “forceful decisions” will dominate, and not compromises. In this game, the new government in Syria, due to its dependence on external influences, has been assigned the role of a figurant. Conclusions. The events surrounding Syria in the last 15 years have convincingly proven a simple thing of big politics: “if you want peace, prepare for war”. This in no way means creating a conflict environment with neighbors on the borders, or entering into competing alliances. Rather, it is a synthesis of the competencies and art of politicians in using the resources of “soft” and “hard” power of society and the state in achieving national harmony and the stability of the social system to possible shocks both inside and outside the country. Over the past 30 years, Syria has proven to be the most unstable state formation in the Middle Eastern geostrategic complex, which external forces have taken advantage of, and the country’s politicians and elite have demonstrated their inability to resist these threats. Today, in post-Assad Syria, we are witnessing a new phase of the formation of another, but already pro-Turkish “Syrian node”, which may develop into a new escalation of violence in the region and a radical reformatting of the security space.

Kano, the largest city in Northern Nigeria, has experienced tremendous and unprecedented urban growth since the late 10th Century, following the emergence of the city as one of the oldest and most prominent urban centers for Trans-Saharan trade that linked Sub-Saharan Africa with North Africa, Northern Arab, and other European countries. The city’s rapid urbanization is mainly attributed to the influx of people as a result of socio-economic trading activities. However, the inability of relevant government authorities to actively respond to the city’s rapid urbanization, coupled with the demographical and spatial expansion, has contributed to the enormous contemporary challenges. Therefore, the present study examined the various challenges faced due to the tremendous urbanization in Kano city, Nigeria. The study identified the city’s challenges to include infrastructure decay, environmental pollution, problem of urban mobility and traffic congestion, unemployment, and increased crime rates. It also analyzed the implementation of several strategies and initiatives of the relevant government authorities in tackling these problems while carefully recommending further solutions aimed at addressing these contemporary challenges. This is with a view of having a cosmopolitan city that continuously attracts the inflow of populace due to its socio-economic status without jeopardizing the city’s sustainable growth.

While scholars like Wogu and Misra unanimously affirmed the beneficial roles of adopting AI powered ICT systems in various sectors of government and endeavours, most countries in OECD and the Commonwealth - for reasons described as ‘a political reckless attitude' - have shied away from fully adopting and implementing intelligent debt management systems for their country's financial sectors, hence, the looming debt crisis hanging over them. Premised on the Public Choice theory, the study adopts Marilyn's Ex-post facto research design and Creswell's mix-method research approaches to interrogate the arguments proffered for and against the public debt management and the benefits of ICT, with a view to identifying the nexus that exists between the politics of debt management crisis and the role of ICT for 21st-century polities. The article identified a high degree of political rascality amongst political elites and a lackadaisical will towards the full implementation of intelligent debt management systems in the countries with looming debt crisis. Viable recommendations were proffered.

Coalition politics has become a key feature of many countries' political landscapes in the 21st century. Among others, countries such as South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mauritius, and Germany have experimented with the system of political coalitions at different levels and with varying degrees of success. However, scholars and practitioners have not uniformly understood coalition politics, regardless of the attempt to locate the thinking in this regard within the Westernised perspective. Against this backdrop, this chapter uses 2021 as an ending point for research to examine the historical emergence of local government coalition politics in South Africa. While this chapter's primary focus is on South Africa, the line of thought is located within a global context to generate a broader understanding. It is also unavoidable to make sense of local government's coalition politics without linking it to national politics. This is because there is no level of politics or governance that exists in a vacuum, and this is even more expressive within the cooperative governance model of South Africa. Given the explanatory and analytical power of theories, this chapter first discusses the theories and types of municipal coalitions and politics and then intentionally proposes Afrocentricity as an alternative contextual and theoretical lens to make a better sense of this phenomena (local government's coalition politics) in Africa and South Africa, in particular. At the core of the research analysis for this chapter is the interface between municipal governments and coalition politics with specific reference to Tshwane and Johannesburg metropolitan municipalities.

Francophonie and politics "Françafrique" occupy a dominant role in French foreign policy. French President Charles de Gaulle initiated this model of foreign relations of France in the world. France actively used in the 60s and 70s of the last century by the results of this policy, and it is rightly considered "golden times" of French society. The results of management have manifested themselves at the beginning of the new century. Consequences the management of the colonial legacy and the "Arab Spring" caused radical changes in the social system. Since the presidency of N. Sarkozy (2007–2012), the threat of illegal emigration, religious extremism and terrorism disturb the well-being of France. For French politicians these changes have become indicators of the effectiveness of conducting affairs in overseas territories as well as indicators of manifested activity of competitors and allies of Paris in such regions positioned like zone of national interests of France. The purpose. The aim of the scientific analysis is to reveal the phenomenon of Francophonie in development of the political course of "the greatness of France", initiated by French President Charles de Gaulle, also to reveal the reasons for the contradictions between France and its African colonial legacy. Francophonie as a certain strategy French national security policy considered in unity with the logic of the secret toolkit of the "Francafrique" policy that hides numerous corrupt connections between the elites of France and African countries to preserve the influence of France in the countries of this region. Contents of four sections of the study reveals four tasks. These tasks are: to investigate the content and orientation of the modern phenomenon of Francophonie; to reveal the significance of the African colonial heritage in France's national security strategy; to identify features the concept of "Françafrique" in the policy of presidents N. Sarkozy, F. Hollande and E. Macron; to reveal the peculiarities and contradictions of the economic imperative French policy of neocolonialism. Sections are linked and reflect the content of the problem. Methodology. The research carried out by using comparative, dialectical, historical and systemic methods. This made it possible to consider the policy of "Françafrique" as a shadow side of the strategy "Francophonie" and to consider features and goals in retrospect national security strategy of France in the 21st century. Results. The research has established existing contradictions between the parties of the Franco-African dialogue. The different goals of development and strategies for their achievement determine the content of contradictions. France tends to use Francophonie and "Françafrique" policy as a set of tools for winning "places in the sun" (J. Attali). Countries of colonial heritage use it to get rid of poverty, religious extremism and terrorism. There is evidence that since 2010 – the beginning of the "Arab Spring", the severity of problems in countries of the "Françafrique" club, has grown significantly. This forced a number of countries regions of the Sahel, West and Central Africa to review relations with France, and Paris – to announce a new strategy in the region. In 2023, the focus is on finding new alliances, business interests, effective management of military equipment with all interested countries of the African region, in order to maintain security and stability. Practical implications. Research results can be used in Blocks of humanitarian disciplines that consider international issues politics and regional security. Value/originality. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the disclosure ontological foundations of the modern phenomenon of Francophonie as a manifestation of strategy "soft power" of France. Paris positions this strategy as an antithesis to existing international models cooperation, as a universal key to national development of countries participating in the Francophone Club. Conclusions. Since 1970 – the time of creation of the International organizations of Francophones, Francophonie should be considered as a component of France's foreign policy course on the way for the Fifth republic to achieving the status of "the greatness of France" [global leadership]. The African region plays a key role in the achievement of this status. In the "Strategic Review" (2017) stated, that the policy of ensuring national the interests of France and the implementation of the security strategy is directly connected with overseas territories, that "have a strategic and economic significance" in today's conditions. The "Françafrique" policy is a proven instrument of "French greatness". It preserves the connections of the corrupted elites of France and African countries and serves as the basis for the continuation of the policy "economic colonialism" opposed today by virtually all countries of the "Françafrique" club.

E-learning is the new picture of education in the 21st century. Schools and universities are adopting e-learning systems to improve education processes, reduce costs, make teaching and learning more convenient, provide new tools for the new educational methods. EduWave is a system implemented by Jordan, like many Arab countries, to be used by teachers, students and other stakeholders in public schools in the country. This study tried to measure students perceptions towards the intention to use EduWave and the factors affecting it. This study utilized 347 surveys administered in 3 public school