The new pastoralism : absentee owners, new technologies, economic change and natural resource management in the Sahelian region of far north Cameroon

Doctoral Thesis

This research study on ‘The new pastoralism: Absentee owners, new technologies, economic change and natural resource management in the Sahelian Region of Far North Cameroon’ has as its principal objective to call into question the purported endless mobility and flexibility of pastoralists in a non-equilibrium landscape by investigating the ecological, economic, and socio-cultural causes of the decline in traditional pastoralism and how these induce technology change that enhance pastoral modernization. The process of pastoral modernization was observed in this study to be a form of sustainable indigenous pastoral intensification, in which feed supplements, farm residues, cattle stabling, water provision through boreholes and water pump machines, and healthcare facilities, etc. are used in livestock raising. The lessons learned from failed State-sponsored pastoral modernization projects in the form of ranches d esigned for commercial production in a non-equilibrium landscape paved...Show moreThis research study on ‘The new pastoralism: Absentee owners, new technologies, economic change and natural resource management in the Sahelian Region of Far North Cameroon’ has as its principal objective to call into question the purported endless mobility and flexibility of pastoralists in a non-equilibrium landscape by investigating the ecological, economic, and socio-cultural causes of the decline in traditional pastoralism and how these induce technology change that enhance pastoral modernization. The process of pastoral modernization was observed in this study to be a form of sustainable indigenous pastoral intensification, in which feed supplements, farm residues, cattle stabling, water provision through boreholes and water pump machines, and healthcare facilities, etc. are used in livestock raising. The lessons learned from failed State-sponsored pastoral modernization projects in the form of ranches d esigned for commercial production in a non-equilibrium landscape paved the way for indigenous pastoral modernization. Pastoralism attained ecological sustainability and economic viability through modernisation; a way out of the dilemma for traditional pastoralism. In addition, there are two entry points to pastoral modernization: from poverty and from wealth. Impoverished herders that have suffered from pastoral decline modernize their activities to ensure survival and livelihood perpetuation. For the rich, pastoral modernization is a form of investment and diversification of income source.Show less

Diversification

Economic change