Professor Jan J. Milewski is and economic historian and one of the Nestors of African studies in Poland. Professor Milewski`s seventieth birthday falls in this year of 2007. The articles we are offering to readers in honour of this occasion have been provided by his friends, students, and colleagues. These Polish scholars, who are engaged in various fields and employed by various institutions, have written on questions that have always interested Professor Milewski: a broad range of issues pertaining to development and the state in Africa (the first part of the book) and in the world (the second part of the book). The essays and studies contained in this book address both historical problems and contemporary issues.