ABSTRACT
In this final chapter we shall return to the concept of 'manoeuvring'. I will make a modest attempt to link the research presented in this volume to other studies on Africa and to theoretical debates about action and agency. The contributions have, among other things, pointed to the importance of everyday negotiation and struggle by individuals and groups in order to gain some measure of control over their lives. There is contestation, as Anders Närman, Said Adejumobi and Amanda Hammar describe it, over the boundaries of state power. There is a constant tinkering and muddling through on the local level, as described by Tanya Elder and Mette Bovin in their respective articles. There is accommodation and there are strategies to reconcile conflicting demands, as shown in Per Trulsson's article. And so on.
