Chukudu Politics: The Relevance of Infrastructural Absences for Governmental Power and State Failure in the Post-Colonial world

摘要: This chapter explores an analytical gap emerging at the intersection of political science and technology studies when their gaze is turned towards postcolonial Africa. Where has been bad dealing with importance technological infrastructures for constitution governmental power, have hitherto less attentive to situations in which such ‘infrastructures rule’ are absent. aims tentatively exploring this by pointing relevance Sub-Saharan It does so both through a cursory overview literatures that might help articulate problematique discussing role absences infrastructures—such as roads, statistical tools, government offices—in historical unfolding state formation Democratic Republic Congo. The example chukudu—an improvised wooden transport utility allows Congolese go about despite decrepit infrastructures—is used unpack significance infrastructural social processes. Generalizing beyond chukudu, offers novel insights asymmetries global power-relations contexts.