More than five decades after the independence of most African states, the debate continues. Is Africa a continent of hope or crisis? Optimists refer to Africa as the continent of the future, pointing to high economic growth and progress in democratization over the past decade. Pessimists, on the other hand, emphasize the persistence of post-colonial, resource-dependent structures, growing inequality, and corruption. Maria Tekülve and Theo Rauch, who lived and worked in sub-Saharan Africa for many years, returned in 2015 to their former place of work in Zambia to explore what has changed there over the past four decades and what has remained the same. The resulting picture is diverse, sometimes contradictory, occasionally painful, predominantly optimistic, often humorous, and certainly a vivid testimony from the rural province. It portrays the dynamics and discourses in ordinary Africa beyond the dominant crisis reports. Readers will learn a lot about the concrete lives of various local actors and, alongside this, gain a profound and surprisingly relevant insight into development policy practice, especially in light of current debates about a world without hunger and jobs for Africa.