FAITH BASED ORGANIZATIONS AND PUBLIC GOODS IN AFRICA: ISLAMIC ASSOCIATIONS IN THE EDUCATION SECTOR OF THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO By ASHLEY ELIZABETH LEINWEBER A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2011 1 © 2011 Ashley Elizabeth Leinweber 2 In memory of Donald McCloud Leinweber, my beloved grandfather, and in honor and gratitude to the resilient people of the Congo. 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The research for this dissertation was made possible by the generous funding in the form of a Dissertation Research Grant from the African Power and Politics Program (APPP), through the Center for African Studies at the University of Florida. APPP is a consortium research program funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID), with additional support from Irish Aid, for the benefit of developing countries. The views expressed here are solely my own and not necessarily those of DFID, Irish Aid or the APPP as a whole. I would also like to thank the Department of Political Science at the University of Florida for granting me a Dissertation Research Travel Award for fieldwork in 2008. I am also grateful for assistance during the writing phase in the form of a Dissertation Writing Fellowship from the APPP for fall semester 2009 and by a Delores A. Auzenne Doctoral Dissertation Award through the Graduate School of the University of Florida for spring semester 2011. In addition to financial assistance, this dissertation would not have been possible without the endless encouragement and guidance of several communities. The global village that has raised this scholarly endeavor from conception to maturity, and me along with it, includes my biological, friendship, scholarly, and Congolese families. It would prove too difficult to name the dozens of people in the Congo who made this research possible, but I will mention a few who were profoundly generous. First and foremost, I must express deep gratitude to Papa Tenge Tenge who was not only my research assistant, but also a colleague in our efforts to collect these data, a comfort when I became physically ill or emotionally exhausted, and a tireless source of enthusiasm and encouragement. Others who were truly generous with their time and 4 assistance in Kindu included Mama Furaha, Mama Zuena, Mama Musongela, Lebon Kapunga, and Mr. Shariff of MONUC. For their friendship I wish to thank Soeur Marie, Abbé Gaston, Abbé Theo, Chiara, Abbé Richard, Johannes, David, and other members of the staff and community of the Procure, the Catholic mission that proved my home for several months in both 2008 and 2009. I would like to thank Papa Awazi, Papa Swedi, Papa Sudi, Papa Asani, Ramazani, and Sheikh Idi for their research assistance while in Kasongo. Modeste and I had an adventure of a lifetime together in 2008 as we travelled from Kasongo to Nyangwe, and I thank him for his excellent motorcycle driving skills and friendship. I thank my roommate Dr. Justin for providing me with friendship and lovely lodgings while in Kasongo in 2009. I am grateful to Pitsho Shabani for his profound friendship throughout my time in Maniema in 2009 and ever since. I wish to thank Sheikh Hamza, Mama Farida, and Mama Zainabou for their assistance in Kisangani. I owe a great debt of gratitude to Eddy Moke for his chauffer skills and friendship while in Kinshasa, as well as to the sisters of the Kindu diocese who graciously provided my accommodations. I thank Cheik Abdallah Mangala for his kindness and hospitality in Kinshasa. For their DRC research mentorship and logistic guidance I am grateful to Aaron Hale, Laura Seay, and Fraternel Amuri. The scholarly community of the University of Florida has provided me with the mentorship, friendship, and constant encouragement to make this dissertation possible. The professors and students of the Center for African Studies and the Department of Political Science have been my family over the years and I am forever grateful for being able to study in a collaborative and collegial environment. First and foremost it is 5 difficult to find words to express my gratitude to Dr. Leonardo Villalón for his mentorship, encouragement, hospitality, hugs, and crisis management over the years. I am a much stronger academic and improved writer as the result of his guidance and attention to detail. I look forward to honoring him by carrying on his mentoring style in the future. I am grateful to Dr. Benjamin Smith for his diligent reading and critiquing of this dissertation, resulting in a drastically improved work. I thank the other members of my committee, Dr. John F. Clark, Dr. Ken Wald, and Dr. Sue O’Brien for their invaluable support and advising throughout this process. I am grateful to Dr. Leslie Anderson, Dr. Goran Hyden, and Dr. Brenda Chalfin for their mentoring and encouragement in the early years of my doctorate career. It has been a pleasure to receive constant encouragement throughout my tenure at UF from Dr. René Lemarchand at our frequent scholarly luncheons. Finally, I am eternally grateful to Corinna Greene, Sue Lawless-Yanchisin, and Debbie Wallen of the Center for African Studies and Political Science department for taking care of all of the important administrative details over the years. Before beginning my graduate career I received invaluable support and encouragement first from Mr. James Baldridge, French teacher at Bishop Sullivan high school in Baton Rouge, and then from Dr. Iren Omo- Bare, professor of political science at Millsaps College, who first ignited my love of African Politics. When I moved to Gainesville in 2005 I never imagined that I would be blessed with the friendship of so many wonderful people. The African Politics graduate students who came to UF before and after me have proven to be excellent reviewers of my work and profound friends. I am deeply grateful to Ingrid Erickson for her tireless support through 6 life and academia’s ups and downs from orientation day of our first year, through fieldwork in Congo and Brazil, to the joyful and agonizing dissertating stage, and finally to the successful completion of our doctorate degrees in the same semester. Outside of the university I have been blessed with amazing friends who have filled my soul with love, laughter, and encouragement. And last but certainly not least, I am grateful to my family. Mom, Dad, Libby, Jonna, Anna, and Christy you have all encouraged me to follow my dreams and expressed your support even when that meant that I would be moving to eastern Congo in the midst of reports of continued violence. I know that was a source of constant worry, and am grateful for your unconditional love. I thank you for being there through this whole process and for understanding when it seemed like I would be in school for the rest of my life. Christy, I am so grateful for your encouragement, patience, and constant belief in me, and the importance of this research, especially at moments when I lost faith. Finally, this work is dedicated to my grandfather who was my biggest fan and greatest life mentor. I miss you and wish you were here to see the first person in our family earn their doctorate. 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. 4 LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................... 11 LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................ 12 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................................... 13 ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... 17 CHAPTER 1 HOW ARE PUBLIC GOODS PROVIDED IN WEAK AFRICAN STATES? EXAMINING THE ROLE OF FAITH BASED ORGANIZATIONS ............................ 19 Theoretical Perspectives ......................................................................................... 22 Delivering Public Goods in the Developing World ............................................ 23 The Delivery of Public Goods in Weak States .................................................. 30 Expanding Duties of Faith Based Organizations: Replacing the State By Providing Public Goods? ............................................................................... 36 FBOs and development ............................................................................. 37 FBOs and education .................................................................................. 40 FBOs and Islam ......................................................................................... 43 FBOs in the Congo .................................................................................... 47 Fieldwork Methodology ........................................................................................... 51 Why the Congo? And the Importance of Maniema .......................................... 52 Methods............................................................................................................ 56 Overview of the Argument ...................................................................................... 63 2 THE HISTORICAL LEGACY OF A POLITICS OF REPRESSION IN THE CONGO .................................................................................................................