Paper short abstract:

Drawing on a longitudinal case study of former frontline state, Tanzania, this paper explores multiple controversies surrounding the rapid expansion of South African capital, imports and neo-settlers in the post-apartheid period.

Paper long abstract:

Over the past decade, South African corporations have acquired controlling interests in Tanzania's largest bank, the national airline, the national brewery, major hotels, gold and gemstone mines, hunting and photographic safari companies, telecommunications links, agro-processing facilities, retail food and grocery outlets, and countless other smaller businesses offering South African goods and services. This rapid post-apartheid influx of South African capital has brought with it a sizable neo-settler population, which has received a decidedly mixed reception given Tanzania's history as a staunch frontline state opposed to apartheid. This paper explores the cultural, social and political-economic dynamics surrounding the establishment of a number of racialized white enclaves, including South African owned production sites (mines, hunting companies, hotels, etc.) and social settings that cater to a largely white clientele (a rugby club, and certain bars, hotels and restaurants). These developments are analyzed against the backdrop of the history of white settlement on the African continent; the end of apartheid and the memory of related solidarity actions within former frontline states; and the implementation of post-socialist neo-liberal economic reforms.