Based on fieldwork in Ngxingxolo in 1997-1998, this study highlights some of the key changes that have taken place in the way rural livelihoods have been made in Mooiplaas location, situated 45 km... Show moreBased on fieldwork in Ngxingxolo in 1997-1998, this study highlights some of the key changes that have taken place in the way rural livelihoods have been made in Mooiplaas location, situated 45 km outside the city of East London in the Eastern Cape Province (South Africa). In line with developments elsewhere in Africa, there has been an accelerated shift away from agrarian lifestyles in the rural Eastern Cape, especially since the 1970s. The process of de-agrarianization has occurred more rapidly in South Africa than elsewhere in Africa and can be traced back to the country's early industrialization and the subsequent emergence of the migrant labour system that integrated rural populations into a subcontinental capitalist economy. The working lives of most absent migrants was focused on effecting savings in the city in order to create a rural resource base that could sustain them in retirement. To achieve this men needed women to stay at home in the countryside and work for the 'umzi' (rural homestead). Return migration, regular remittances and immobility of rural women were the key aspects that kept the agrarian economy going in Mooiplaas. In the late 1980s and 1990s the economic and social situation in Mooiplaas changed because of young men and women leaving the village for the city. Without a ready supply of young male and female labour and a serious drought to contend with, the agricultural output of households fell sharply. By the 1990s, pensions and welfare payments had replaced male remittances as the main source of income in Mooiplaas. As the final control of household income increasingly shifted from men to women, there was a shift in household investment from cattle, conceptualized as men's animals, to poultry, which were regarded as women's animals. Show less
De eerste democratische algemene verkiezingen in Zuid-Afrika in 1994 na de afschaffing van de apartheid wekten ook hoge verwachtingen wat betreft een nieuw buitenlands beleid, in het bijzonder ten... Show moreDe eerste democratische algemene verkiezingen in Zuid-Afrika in 1994 na de afschaffing van de apartheid wekten ook hoge verwachtingen wat betreft een nieuw buitenlands beleid, in het bijzonder ten aanzien van de buurlanden en de overige landen in Zuidelijk Afrika. Een terugblik na vijf jaar leert dat het land de rol van vooruitstrevend politie-agent, vredestichter en economische katalysator in Afrika niet heeft waargemaakt. Het ethisch idealisme heeft in het buitenlands beleid plaatsgemaakt voor een politiek van realistisch eigenbelang. Voorbeelden zijn de agressieve economische expansie, wapenexport en militaire interventie in Lesotho. De rol bij vredesmissies in Afrika was tot dusver zeer bescheiden. Een assertiever buitenlands beleid kan echter dezelfde irritatie oproepen als economische expansie. Inbedding in de SADC verdient de voorkeur, maar helaas bleek het veiligheidsorgaan van de SADC (Organ on Politics, Defence and Security) tot dusver machteloos. Show less
This collective volume discusses social change and ecological and cultural adaptation among the Fulbe of West Africa. The introduction is by Victor Azarya. Part 1 (Ethnicity) contains chapters by... Show moreThis collective volume discusses social change and ecological and cultural adaptation among the Fulbe of West Africa. The introduction is by Victor Azarya. Part 1 (Ethnicity) contains chapters by Roger Blench (the question of why there are so many pastoral groups in East Africa whereas in West Africa the Fulbe are the only major pastoralist group); Al-Amin Abu-Manga (diversity among the Fulbe of Sudan); Anneke Breedveld (prototypes and ethnic categorization: on the terms 'Pullo' and 'Fulbe' in Maasina, Mali); Catherine Vereecke (ethnic change and continuity among the Fulbe of Aadamaawa emirate, Nigeria); Thierno Diallo (sociopolitical structure of the traditional society of Fuuta Jaloo). Part 2 (Ecology and politics) contains chapters by Thomas J. Bassett and Zu‚li Koli Bi (Fulbe livestock raising in C“te d'Ivoire); Jean Boutrais (improved veterinary techniques in Aadamaawa, Cameroon); Antje van Driel (Fulbe relations with Dendi agriculturalists in Benin); Youssouf Diallo (Fulbe-Senufo relations in C“te d'Ivoire); Han van Dijk (ecological insecurity in the Niger Bend). Part 3 (Social transformation) contains chapters by Philip Burnham (social change in Fulbe society); Mirjam de Bruijn (insecurity in Fulbe society in Mali); Thierno Bah (decline of pastoralism in Fuuta Jaloo); Jean Schmitz (the eviction of Fulbe from the Mauritanian Senegal River bank in 1989); John Hanson (historical analysis of Fulbe presence in Kaarta, Mali). The contributions by Thierno Diallo, Jean Boutrais, Youssouf Diallo, Thierno Bah and Jean Schmitz are in French Show less
Drawing on research findings emanating from the De-Agrarianisation and Rural Employment (DARE) Research Programme, coordinated by the African Studies Centre, Leiden, this paper compares changing... Show moreDrawing on research findings emanating from the De-Agrarianisation and Rural Employment (DARE) Research Programme, coordinated by the African Studies Centre, Leiden, this paper compares changing economic and social patterns in a wide variety of rural settlements in sub-Saharan Africa. Recently emerged or refashioned income diversification tendencies are highlighted and linked to the blurring of strong rural-urban contrasts. After a schematic consideration of continental trends, followed by a more detailed examination of rural livelihood patterns, the author teases out some of the major tensions embedded in the broad-based reorientation of rural livelihoods, leading to a discussion of how effective current government and donor policies are in addressing this rural transformation. The conclusion returns to the issue of sub-Saharan Africa's 'betwixt-and-between' status (the balancing act of African rural dwellers caught in between farm and nonfarm, family and individual, and rural and urban contrasts), arguing that the uncertainty could be alleviated with a more directional policy approach, an approach that facilitates provisioning of rural households and communities local-level, daily needs, and strengthens public policy, training facilities and infrastructure for future occupational diversification and specialization. Show less
This working paper provides research findings emanating from the De-Agrarianisation and Rural Employment (DARE) Research Programme, coordinated by the African Studies Centre, Leiden. The aim of the... Show moreThis working paper provides research findings emanating from the De-Agrarianisation and Rural Employment (DARE) Research Programme, coordinated by the African Studies Centre, Leiden. The aim of the Programme was to examine, from a multidisciplinary perspective, the changes in size and significance of the peasant population in sub-Saharan African countries and to draw attention to the new labour patterns and unfolding rural-urban relations now taking place. This paper is based on research in South Africa, namely in Shixini, an Administrative Area which is part of the Jinqi Tribal Authority, located in Willowvale district, former Transkei, in the Eastern Cape. The paper looks at the extent to which agrarian activities are still important within rural areas, or the extent to which agrarian activities are being replaced or supplemented by other economic activities (income diversification). The conclusion is that most of the homesteads in Shixini derive at least part of their livelihood from agricultural activities; that no homestead can survive without some form of cash income (in the form of migrant labour earnings or social and disability pensions); and that very few are able to secure access to cash by selling agricultural products. Show less
This working paper provides research findings emanating from the De-Agrarianisation and Rural Employment (DARE) Research Programme, coordinated by the African Studies Centre, Leiden. The aim of... Show moreThis working paper provides research findings emanating from the De-Agrarianisation and Rural Employment (DARE) Research Programme, coordinated by the African Studies Centre, Leiden. The aim of the Programme was to examine, from a multidisciplinary perspective, the changes in size and significance of the peasant population in sub-Saharan African countries and to draw attention to the new labour patterns and unfolding rural-urban relations now taking place. This paper focuses on Nigeria and chronicles the patterns of long-term diversification that are observable in the cocoa farming community of Alade in Idanre Local Government Area of Ondo State. After some historical background information on cocoa cultivation and government policies up to 1970, when Nigeria began to experience its oil boom, it looks at the impact of the oil boom of the 1970s and the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP), introduced in 1986, on cocoa farming before turning to the situation of household production and reproduction in the aftermath of SAP, and the internal dynamics of Alade households. Finally, it looks at the extent and trends of diversification of livelihood strategies within the farming community. The conclusion is that SAP has led to a revival of cocoa farming in Nigeria and that farming households have responded to new opportunities opened up to them by adjusting their use of household resources. However, the benefits of this revival have not been evenly spread. Show less
This chapter presents an extended case study of the personal experiences of a young Kalanga woman in Francistown, Botswana, as she moves from village girlhood to incipient urban consumerism. After... Show moreThis chapter presents an extended case study of the personal experiences of a young Kalanga woman in Francistown, Botswana, as she moves from village girlhood to incipient urban consumerism. After describing the urban setting of Francistown and the expansion of the town's residential space under the Self-Help Housing Agency (SSHA) project in the 1980s, the author relates the story of Mary's transition from village to urban life, with its vastly increased levels of commodity consumption. He describes her initial rural-orientated identity embodying the productive and reproductive tasks defined for women in a village setting, the conflictive character of her village-oriented ties in the domain of kinship and, to a lesser extent, organized Christian religion, her tentative adoption of a new, socially negotiable identity through new aspirations based on the selection of a different reference group (urban female workmates and co-tenants), her learning of the role of "modern, urban consumer", her definition of a career goal, and her budgetary strategies (rotating credit or 'motshelo', and hire purchase). The narrative is based on participant observation and interviews over a period of five years from 1988. Show less
The authors argue that conventional agroecological and organizational concepts used in pastoral development are strongly biased towards the formulation and enforcement of norms. This leads... Show moreThe authors argue that conventional agroecological and organizational concepts used in pastoral development are strongly biased towards the formulation and enforcement of norms. This leads development experts to attempts to control pastoralists and their herds. The policies and development interventions based on these assumptions have been largely unsuccessful. As a consequence, attention for dryland areas and pastoral development has declined among researchers and development agencies. An important reason for this failure is the fundamental misfit between these normative concepts and the reality of dryland ecosystems and pastoral society. In order to show this, an alternative view on rangeland ecology and pastoral society is presented, supported by a case study of Fulbe pastoral society in dryland central Mali. The authors argue that approaches to pastoral development must be revised in the direction of the dynamics inherent in the pastoral way of life. The paper is based on field research carried out in central Mali in the periods March 1990-March 1991 and June 1991-February 1992. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum Show less
The upsurge in nonagricultural income diversification which has taken place on the African continent during the last fifteen years represents large-scale agrarian labour displacement within an... Show moreThe upsurge in nonagricultural income diversification which has taken place on the African continent during the last fifteen years represents large-scale agrarian labour displacement within an accelerated process of depeasantization. The literature's current preoccupation with market response and prescriptive behaviour based on Western norms and formal economic models clouds perception of what is actually taking place. The confusion begins with limiting the focus to the household as the unit of analysis while tacitly assuming that such households operate within a clearly delineated formal/informal/peasant three-sector economy. One by one, the components of the three-sector model are changing; national economies represent an amalgam of these three sectors into one 'formless' sector. This paper presents colonial and postcolonial perspectives on the African rural labour question, specifically with respect to Tanzania, in order to lend historical depth and sociopolitical dimension to the current focus on income diversification. To ground the analysis, case study observations are presented from four Tanzanian villages: two situated in the Mbeya region and two in Iringa region. The new 'sustainable rural livelihoods' (SRL) approach is a response to the complexity of rural livelihoods and their growing nonagricultural character. Show less
Although ECOWAS was never intended as a regional security structure and its official mandate lies primarily in the economic realm, ECOWAS has developed a high profile with regard to cooperation on... Show moreAlthough ECOWAS was never intended as a regional security structure and its official mandate lies primarily in the economic realm, ECOWAS has developed a high profile with regard to cooperation on political and security issues. This has come about primarily through the intervention, under ECOWAS auspices, in the Liberian civil war. Although this intervention was protracted and controversial and suffered numerous setbacks, the countries responsible managed to see it through. The result was that the intervention force Ecomog (ECOWAS Cease-fire Monitoring Group) stayed in Liberia and finally was able, in 1997, to put a peaceful end to the civil war by way of internationally supervised elections. This study analyses ECOWAS's intervention in the Liberian civil war, with an emphasis on its role as a multilateral, third party actor. The chapters deal successively with the institutions involved in the Liberian operation; the mandates concerned and the working methods employed by, or in the cadre of, ECOWAS; and the actual practice of the intervention. The final chapter extrapolates, from Ecomog's vicissitudes, certain key factors that conditioned its successes and failures Show less
