So let me kick off with my views:*

Development is a specific transformation, from a population composed largely of impoverished subsistence farmers to one composed largely of a relatively prosperous urban bourgeoisie. There is no other model; a development strategy that operates on the premise that there is some kind of a ‘third way’ that does not involve this transition is going to fail.* Subsistence, farming cannot feed such a large urban population; it has to be done by commercial farming or (as in Africa) by increased food imports* Neither the bourgeoisie nor the commercial farmers will materialise without property rights. As a result nor will development.For Africa specifically* Its peoples have survived where others perished by procreating faster than the ravages of disease, war, slavery and wild animals; with improved hygiene this survival mechanism led to a population explosion and run-away urbanisation* However, the generally poor soils of Africa, and the consequent semi-nomadism of most of its people, has resulted in land not being conceived of as a negotiable asset. Consequently the migrants to Africa's cities and towns have merely swapped rural poverty for urban povertyThese truths mean that the real job of the major players in development assistance - Government agencies, the World Bank, the UNDP - is to make the often-traumatic process of transforming subsistence farmers into bourgeois urbanites as quick and as painless as possible. They can do this both by providing technical support for mass titling of land and a registration system, but equally importantly by encouraging the appearance of the intermediaries that make up the property market - banks, building societies, estate agents and lawyers. In this transformation there will be losers and the aid NGOs will have a useful role to play in assisting them.So there is my credo, and the driving force behind my four books. Now pitch in. You can make your views known by posting a comment below. I will certainly read them and, I hope, so will a lot of other people who care for Africa and its peoples.