Carlos Lopes is a prominent African scholar and has published over 20 books in the field of development, history and political science. He is currently the Executive Director of the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), Switzerland.

This book reviews Cabral's intellectual contribution to current debates on race, identity, nation building, democracy, leadership and ethics. The key leader of the national liberation movements of former Portuguese African colonies is considered to be one of their foremost intellectuals.

This book was published as a special issue of African Identities.

1. Amilcar Cabral: a contemporary inspiration 2. Amilcar Cabral and the liberation of Guinea-Bissau: context, challenges and lessons for African leadership 3. Amilcar Cabral and the fortunes of African literature 4. Manifestations of nationhood in the writings of Amilcar Cabral 5. Challenges to state building Africa 6. Reading Cabral on democracy 7. Culture, consciousness and armed conflict: Cabral's déclassé / (lumpen proletariat?) in the era of globalization 8. Articulating Cabral's regionalist and pan-Africanist visions 9. Amilcar Cabral's legacy in the light of the challenges of contemporary ethics