This study examines in what ways and to what extent microfinance services facilitate the empowerment of married rural women in Nebbi district, northwestern Uganda. In particular, it examines the... Show moreThis study examines in what ways and to what extent microfinance services facilitate the empowerment of married rural women in Nebbi district, northwestern Uganda. In particular, it examines the gender relations inherent in the livelihood practices of the community, the changes in well-being (if any) of the recipients of microfinance, and the ways in which changes in well-being are translated into changes in gender relations at the household and community levels. Using the sustainable livelihood approach, empowerment was measured at two levels, viz. the livelihood endowment status, and the livelihood entitlement status. The analysis reveals that microfinance did not make any significant change in the well-being status of clients. However, microfinance significantly facilitated women's empowerment at the individual, intrahousehold, and community levels. In this way, women's agency has sparked their struggle to engender livelihood practices. [ASC Leiden abstract] Show less
During the current economic and political crisis in sub-Saharan Africa, urban dwellers tend to display a large measure of creativity in the invention of survival strategies, the development of... Show moreDuring the current economic and political crisis in sub-Saharan Africa, urban dwellers tend to display a large measure of creativity in the invention of survival strategies, the development of social networks, and the construction of imaginative practices. This collective volume explores the importance of the urban neighbourhood in these creative processes. Two different approaches to the neighbourhood are pinpointed. The first perceives the neighbourhood as a geographical domain in which people are engaged in a variety of activities to advance their material and immaterial well-being, making use of the 'wealth' of opportunities, assets and forms of 'capital' (natural, physical, financial, human and social). The second approach sees the neighbourhood not as necessarily geographically bounded, but as created and defined by human beings. These 'neighbourhoods' may take the form of self-help organizations, associations, churches, etc. or may be based on gender, generational, ethnic and occupational identities. The two approaches do not necessarily exclude each other. The volume contains contributions on Nakuru, Kenya (Samuel OwuorandDick Foeken), Douala, Cameroon (Piet Konings; Basile Ndjio), Kampala, Uganda (Emmanuel Nkurunziza), Kano, Nigeria (Katja Werthmann), Accra, Ghana (Deborah Pellow), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (Eileen Moyer), Lom‚, Togo (Charles Piot), Mongo, Chad (Mirjam de Bruijn), and Aioun el Atrouss, Mauritania (Kiky van Til). [ASC Leiden abstract] Show less
When listeners talk about their listening experiences, they often refer to music as if it were a narrative. But can music actually tell a story? Can music be narrative? Traditionally, narrativity... Show moreWhen listeners talk about their listening experiences, they often refer to music as if it were a narrative. But can music actually tell a story? Can music be narrative? Traditionally, narrativity is associated with verbal and visual texts, and the mere possibility of musical narrativity is highly debated. In this study, Vincent Meelberg demonstrates that music can indeed be narrative, and that the study of musical narrativity can be very productive. Moreover, Meelberg even makes a stronger claim by contending that contemporary music, too, can be narrative. More specifically, Meelberg suggests considering contemporary musical narratives as metanarratives, i.e. narratives that tell the story of the process of narrativization Show less
Bijna elke zichzelf respecterende Zuid-Afrikaanse schrijver schreef in de laatste decennia voorafgaand aan de politieke omwenteling van 1994 een farm novel of plaasroman: een verhaal dat zich... Show moreBijna elke zichzelf respecterende Zuid-Afrikaanse schrijver schreef in de laatste decennia voorafgaand aan de politieke omwenteling van 1994 een farm novel of plaasroman: een verhaal dat zich afspeelde op een Zuid-Afrikaans landgoed. Vaak waren die verhalen wat morbide van aard: vol wandelende doden of wrekende natuurkrachten. Ook in de decennia die voorafgingen aan het bijna 50-jarig bewind van de Nationale Partij werden er boerderijromans geschreven. Gitte Postel onderzocht hoe veranderingen in sociaal-economische verhoudingen, landrechten en culturele identiteit hun beslag kregen op boerderijen en in boerderijromans. Ze laat zien hoe verborgen of verdrongen facetten van de werkelijkheid literair verbeeld werden door de dood en het Unheimliche - datgene wat binnen het eigen domein vreemd of ongrijpbaar is, en daarom angstaanjagend Show less
Dit rapport is het resultaat van een verkennend onderzoek naar de culturele achtergronden van de handel in Nigeriaanse meisjes die naar Nederland komen om in de prostitutie te gaan werken. Een... Show moreDit rapport is het resultaat van een verkennend onderzoek naar de culturele achtergronden van de handel in Nigeriaanse meisjes die naar Nederland komen om in de prostitutie te gaan werken. Een belangrijke overeenkomst in de verhalen die deze meisjes de Nederlandse politie vertellen betreft de 'voodoo'-rituelen waaraan zij voor vertrek naar Nederland worden onderworpen. In het rapport komen de volgende vragen aan de orde: wat doen handelaren met denkbeelden van 'voodoo'? Hoe creëren zij daarmee een sfeer van angst en intimidatie? Hoe komt het dat dit voor de meisjes evenzeer een werkelijkheid wordt als dat in de sinistere betekenis van het woord ook voor velen in de Nederlandse samenleving het geval is? Het rapport stelt dat 'voodoo' in de Nigeriaanse praktijk niet bestaat (er is wel een aantal andere rituele praktijken waar op wordt ingegaan) en in de Nederlandse situatie een goed begrip van de omstandigheden verhindert. Het rapport behandelt de sociaal-economische situatie in Nigeria en Edo State, het district waar veel van de betrokken meisjes vandaan komen; de positie van vrouwen in Nigeria t.a.v. huwelijk, seksualiteit, prostitutie, en de culturele achtergronden daarvan; aspecten van religie in West Afrika en Edo; een gevalsstudie; en het ongedefinieerde gebruik van het begrip 'voodoo' door Nederlandse hulpverleningsinstanties Show less
Mwana wa Chentcherere II, or Chentcherere Rock Shelter II, the name by which it was more generally known when it was excavated in 1972, is one of the largest rock painting sites in Malawi. It has... Show moreMwana wa Chentcherere II, or Chentcherere Rock Shelter II, the name by which it was more generally known when it was excavated in 1972, is one of the largest rock painting sites in Malawi. It has been a national monument since 1972 and has been the subject of extensive archaeological research. This report draws together unpublished recordings on the site from the 1960s through to the 1990s and analyses these in the context of recent advances in the knowledge of Central African rock art and local ethnography. In particular, the report explores the link between Chentcherere rock art and girls' initiation ceremonies ('chinamwali') among the Chewa. [ASC Leiden abstract] Show less
This study discusses the fate of Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland (BLNS) following the 1999 free trade agreement between the European Union and South Africa. As members - with South Africa ... Show moreThis study discusses the fate of Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland (BLNS) following the 1999 free trade agreement between the European Union and South Africa. As members - with South Africa - of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), the BLNS countries are now effectively locked into reciprocal trade liberalization with the EU. The BLNS governments' acceptance of the agreement was accompanied by offers of various forms of financial assistance. The study clarifies the links between trade liberalization and financial compensation, and their longer-term implications for BLNS countries' economic relations with the EU. It finds that not economic adjustment but the political acceptance of free trade has played a leading role in the way compensation payments have been granted. [ASC Leiden abstract] Show less
Zimbabawe's land reform programme has attracted the attention of many commentators and has elicited a multiplicity of interpretations. By and large, however, this exercise has been politicized,... Show moreZimbabawe's land reform programme has attracted the attention of many commentators and has elicited a multiplicity of interpretations. By and large, however, this exercise has been politicized, that is, those who have criticized or justified the programme have done so on political or economic grounds. The relationship between land and indigenous religion has not been sufficiently examined. The present paper explores this relationship through an analysis of the reburial of fallen heroes, spearheaded by Zimbabwean war veterans. It argues that the reburial activities reflect Zimbabwe's incorporation of religion into political discourse and that the Shona people understand this link in terms of their traditional cosmology. As ritual practice, reburials are effective tools for shaping the politics of restitution, nationbuilding and moral accountability. [Book abstract] Show less
The study of sexuality in Ethiopia has until now remained largely the domain of medical scientists, public health professionals and epidemiologists; barely touched upon by sociologists,... Show moreThe study of sexuality in Ethiopia has until now remained largely the domain of medical scientists, public health professionals and epidemiologists; barely touched upon by sociologists, anthropologists and other social scientists. To the author's knowledge, no study has been carried out about the perceptions of different sexual practices in Ethiopia. This book is therefore a pioneering work that explores how young people in the Ethiopian town of Dessie express their sexuality and are experiencing HIV/AIDS in their daily lives. It also considers how poverty and other related structural factors are linked to HIV/AIDS infection and other processes affecting the sexuality of young people, how young people and key informants receive, interpret and evaluate ongoing interventions, and what can be done to reduce infection rates. The book provides insights into the role and interrelationship of the underlying structural, social and cultural factors in the context of HIV/AIDS transmission and prevention. Show less
