West Africa

Interracial sex mattered to the British colonial state in West Africa. In Crossing the Color Line, Carina E. Ray goes beyond this fact to reveal how Gold Coasters—their social practices, interests, and anxieties—shaped and defined these powerfully charged relations across racial lines. The interplay between African and European perspectives and practices, argues Ray, transformed these relationships into key sites for consolidating colonial rule and for contesting its racial and gendered hierarchies of power.

With rigorous methodology and innovative analyses, Ray brings Ghana and Britain into a single analytic frame by examining cases in both locales. Intimate relations between black men and white women in Britain’s port cities emerge as an influential part of the history of interracial sex and empire in ways that are connected to rather than eclipsed by relations between European men and African women in the colony.

Based on rich archival evidence and original interviews, the book moves across different registers, shifting from the micropolitics of individual disciplinary cases against colonial officers who “kept” local women to transatlantic networks of family, empire, and anticolonial resistance. In this way, Ray cuts to the heart of how interracial sex became a source of colonial anxiety and nationalist agitation during the first half of the twentieth century.

Depuis octobre 2017, Humanité & Inclusion (HI) a initié un projet d’éducation inclusive au Sahel avec pour but de contribuer à une éducation inclusive de qualité pour les filles et les garçons marginalisés au Burkina Faso, au Mali et au Niger avec le co-financement de NORAD et l’AFD.
Les filles handicapées comptent parmi les groupes les plus marginalisés de la société, en raison des normes sociales et des préjugés culturels liés au genre et au handicap. Pourtant, il existe peu d’études permettant de documenter leur situation et les difficultés spécifiques qu’elles rencontrent. C’est pourquoi, cette étude adopte une approche intersectionnelle afin de penser et d’analyser la situation des filles handicapées en combinant les effets et dynamiques de plusieurs facteurs de vulnérabilité. En effet, en utilisant le prisme des analyses de genre et de l’approche sociale du handicap, cette étude fait clairement apparaître que les filles handicapées sont concernées par la pluralité et l’articulation de systèmes de domination sociale fondés sur le genre et sur le handicap. Elles expérimentent une oppression spécifique déterminée par leur identité indissociable de filles et de personnes handicapées. Cette condition se manifeste dans toutes les sphères, publiques et privées, si bien que les filles handicapées sont exposées à des inégalités spécifiques par rapport aux garçons handicapés ainsi qu’aux filles non handicapées dans l’accès à l’éducation, à la formation, aux soins de santé entre autres.
Les résultats de l’étude serviront d’une part, à orienter l'intervention de HI et de ses partenaires dans le domaine de l’éducation, et d’autre part, de plaidoyer. Les messages clés issus de l’étude seront partagés avec des décideurs, les acteurs de la société civile et les donateurs pour les sensibiliser sur l’importance de développer des interventions d’éducation inclusive sensibles au genre.
Cf. https://genrehandicapao.hubside.fr

Bakhtine a décrit le carnaval comme un espace utopique, populiste et festif. Mon propos est que le Grand Magal, un événement religieux mouride au Sénégal ainsi qu'une fête nationale populaire, partage de nombreux parallèles notables avec le carnaval, un argument qui permet de mieux comprendre son importance de même que sa nature. Tout comme le carnaval, le Grand Magal est un espace contradictoire où les oppositions binaires s'estompent : les participants y célèbrent non seulement leur foi mais aussi leur existence humaine en embrassant les plaisirs mondains. Temporairement libérée des règles et des rôles habituels dictés par la vie quotidienne, la communauté mouride peut envisager le futur et le renouvellement, et ainsi échapper aux difficultés de la réalité. Fondée en 1887 par le Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba – fondateur du mouvement soufi musulman – à la suite d'une vision sacrée, la ville de Touba, au Sénégal, est le centre spirituel des Mourides. Chaque 18 Safar, au mois de novembre, environ 4 à 5 millions de Soufis font leur pèlerinage – leur zyara – à Touba. Celui-ci se nomme le Grand Magal : le Magal Gu Ma en wolof. Mag signifie « être important » ou « être vieux ». Magal peut donc être traduit par « célébration » ou « anniversaire » (Coulon 1999 : 196). Pendant le Magal, les disciples mourides – les talibés – font une circumambulation autour des monuments associés au Fondateur, tels que sa tombe, qui se trouve dans la grande mosquée construite en son honneur. Ils présentent des offrandes à leurs marabouts et surtout font des oblations au Khalife Général, qui est

These files were converted from Word Perfect a few years ago and still undergo some correction. The current version is 30th December 2023, which has added clarification on the encoding of 'when' for past events (in chapter 13 and appendix D.).

Créés il y a plus de 20 ans avec le logiciel Word Perfect, et plus récemment convertis, ces fichiers sont édités de temps en temps alors qu'il reste quelques traces du processus de conversion. L'édition la plus récente est du 30 Décembre 2023, avec clarification, en chapitre 13 et dans l'appendice D, sur les manières de dire 'quand' pour le passé.

The Taali (stories) collected by Abdalla Diallo, to which the grammar makes reference, are available as a separate file.
Un fichier avec les Taali (contes) recuillis par Abdalla Diallo, auxquelles la grammaire fait référence, est disponible sur demande.

Since 2003, the West and Central African (WCA) cotton initiative in the World Trade Organization has stood as an ambitious case of Africa's desire to be integrated into the trading system and yet also receive reparations for past injuries. This article seeks to explore how and why the initiative debuted through close attention to the interdependence between power and language in diplomatic practice. It takes the concept of cognitive framing to explore the relationship between political legitimacy and mobilisation capacities. The genesis of cotton as ‘an issue’ is critically examined, focusing on how the WCA countries constructed a novel ‘competitive victim’ frame to define themselves and the problem. While this opening move was effective, it also featured tensions that were exploited by Northern actors who were threatened by the campaign. I argue that what followed was the introduction of a politically driven ‘counterframe’, which divided the problem into a ‘trade-related’ component and a ‘development-related’ component. It is important to understand why and how this distinction was constructed and monitored. By scrutinising the relationship between framing and institutional power, I suggest that the counterframe won over the original frame, leading to a re-positioning of the demanders and a re-calibration of their expectations.

Works on the political and economic thoughts of Thomas Sankara have gained recent currency in the light of the resurgence of decolonization of knowledge in both the global North and South. This chapter works from the wide-ranging and pluriversal political and socioeconomic imaginaries elaborated upon by Sankara (through his speeches and actions) to tease out his particular political economy as one insistent upon building a society in which each person could work toward self-liberation and dignity. I consider some of the lessons learned from the implementation of these political philosophies during the revolution of August 1983 to October 1987. Finally, I conclude by sketching some of the ways in which contemporary pan-Africanists, decolonial thinkers, green socialists, and others have revived aspects of Sankara’s political economy of justice and “revolution [as] happiness.”

Les enseignantes et enseignants, à travers leur appropriation pédagogique des technologies de l'information et de la communication (TIC) se trouvent – quelquefois émerveillés – au milieu de l'Océan. Derrière eux, il y a tout ce qu'ils ont appris, et devant, ce qu'ils ne connaissent pas encore et qui reste à explorer. Ils accompagnent leurs élèves et en invitent d'autres à les rejoindre dans ce voyage. Ils font de leur mieux pour apprendre, approfondir leur pédagogie et peut-être aussi, à travers leur exemple et leurs actes, encourager le système scolaire à se redynamiser. Internet est comme une mer de connaissances, dans un monde changeant, où il faut naviguer avec beaucoup d’ardeur – avec curiosité et habileté, avec patience, impatience et persévérance. Laissez les expériences des enseignants maliens partagés dans ce recueil vous inspirer.

Britain, France and the rest. Similarly Portuguese retained it coastal in Guinea, Angola and Mozambique. While among some the African country whom resisted against colonial masters and live free are: Liberia, Ethiopia and Morocco. Though Europeans conquest of Africa continent was not achieved without heavy resistance. Most African whom were living in their tribal villages they were ignorant of the revolutionary changes that Christian missionaries brought, because they adhere to their Traditional Religious believes. Changing the pagans way of life into Europeans conceptions it was not until the vacancy of labors in the public works, mines, railways, buildings, farming and taxation methods was offered. Inevitable the recruitment affected able-bodied to the condition that people were not been able to do so. But police and soldiers enjoyed for better living the laborers. The conquerors considered Traditional custom and chiefdoms beside the colonial rules. Governments had to search for revenue from mining, farming, and companies. Above mentioned had impacted the African social life, that is why Europeans settle in the African land. Europeans set an indirectly rules which had affected the Africans lives. Education became important for the mission while economic left to the private sectors. The most important it's color prejudice, Africans often cherished the Europeans life styles and their way of life. Which affected the personality lives of the Africans and the character of the society. Thus; what we can figured out in that era it is that; there is lack of imagination, humility and compassion on the minds of Europeans. Though it was the era of medieval and dogmatism in Europe. while Africans perceived it as a science and technology era because they were wonderers of European sciences and developments. On the other hand it was brutality, barbaric, supernatural beliefs, customs and the cultural practices of the Africans Tribal which impressed Europeans to explore the continent of Africa. This is partially true that Africa is a multicultural diversificated continent, which is the real background of the Europeans exploration and colonization of Africa. Indeed Africa was blessed with natural resources, tribal handcrafts, politics, culture, philosophy and natural knowledge. but unfortunately Africans are lazy, lack of initiatives and they are lacking the sense of responsibility. Just few Africans realized the epidemic of colonial era. In fact many African communities recently resemble to the European medieval stone ages. Likewise many Africans are extremely superstitious because they lack the efficient of explaining the natural phenomena, brutal enemies of one another and victims of traditional practices, this is because they think little for the future plans, they had never embarked on the humanitarian

Summary: Purpose: Cerebral malaria (CM) is suspected to be a potential cause of epilepsy in tropical areas, but little information is available. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of CM in epilepsy among children in Mali.  Methods: An exposed–nonexposed study was performed to identify children who had epilepsy after malaria in the 0- to 15-year age group. The exposure factor was CM defined according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria, and the nonexposure factor was symptomatic malaria without the characteristics of CM (NCM). All the children underwent a screening questionnaire and were examined by a medical physician. After the screening phase, a specialist in neuropediatrics examined the children suspected to have epilepsy. EEG and computed tomography (CT) scans were performed in some of these patients.  Results: In total, 101 subjects who had had CM and 222 who had had NCM were included. Fifty-four children (CM, 34; NCM, 20) were suspected to have epilepsy, and six were confirmed (CM, five; NCM, one). The incidence rate was 17.0 per 1000 person-years in the CM group and 1.8 per 1000 person-year in the NCM group; thus the relative risk (RR) was 9.4 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.3–80.3; p = 0.02]. After adjustment on age and duration of follow-up, the RR was 14.3 (95% CI, 1.6–132.0; p = 0.01).  Conclusions: The risk of sequelar epilepsy is significantly higher in the CM group compared with the NCM group. A reevaluation of this cohort should be carried out later to search for temporal epilepsy that appeared after age 10 years.

On July 12, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) removed after one month the barrier on LNG cargoes entering or leaving the loading bay at the Bonny terminal in the Niger Delta that it had imposed on Nigeria LNG Ltd. (NLNG), Africa’s biggest liquefied natural gas exporter. The panic that was during this time exhibited by European customers of NLNG shows the extent of Europe’s LNG export dependence and the necessity for European shale gas production legislation to proceed.

L’enregistrement des électeurs est un moment clef du processus électoral, trop rarement pris en compte par les chercheurs. Cet article, exploratoire, est écrit du point de vue d’un observateur
participant, responsable d’un point d’enregistrement situé en zone rurale dans l’Etat de Jigawa, au nord du Nigéria. Il propose une vision, de l’intérieur, du dispositif mis en place par la commission électorale indépendante (INEC), et de son déploiement. Au-delà de la description de cet ambitieux projet biométrique, jamais tenté en Afrique de l’Ouest, l’article se présente comme une narration et micro-analyse de l’interaction à ce point d’enregistrement entre les représentants de l’Etat fédéral et les électeurs, femmes et hommes. Se dessinent alors des zones de contestation et d’adhésion au processus électoral et, en ombre portée, les acteurs et les ingrédients d’un succès en demie teinte.

Many mining and development experts consider artisanal diamond mining to be a form of gambling. In Sierra Leone’s mining areas, this comparison also recurs occasionally in miners’ discourses. However, the idea that mining is like gambling deserves critical scrutiny as it allows only a limited, stereotypical representation of this work. This article considers mining as a complex combination of material production and imaginaries oriented by a specific ethic. Central to the understanding of this ethic is a repertoire of religious metaphors that inform miners’ working and ritual practices.
By drawing upon my ethnographic experience in Sierra Leone (2007–2011), I examine the vocabulary of contingency which the miners use to make sense of their successes and failures and guide their daily decision-making. Moreover, I show how this vocabulary mirrors the daily efforts  of miners in (re)producing the social reality in and around diamond mines. What I mean to  highlight is the ways in which diamond miners challenge dominant discourses depicting them as immoral, antisocial agents.

Competition from weeds is one of major biophysical constraints to rice (Oryza spp.) production in sub-Saharan Africa. Smallholder rice farmers require efficient, affordable and labor-saving weed management technologies. Mechanical weeders have shown to fit this profile. Several mechanical weeder types exist but little is known about locally specific differences in performance and farmer preference between these types. Three to six different weeder types were evaluated at 10 different sites across seven countries — i.e. Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda, and Togo. A total of 310 farmers (173 male, 137 female) tested the weeders, scored them for their preference, and compared them with their own weed management practices. In a follow-up study, 186 farmers from Benin and Nigeria received the ring hoe, which was the most preferred in these two countries, to use it during the entire crop growing season. Famers were surveyed on their experiences. The probabili...

The Bamiléké of Cameroon have long believed that after the corpses of their ancestors have rotted they can be exhumed and the skulls used to communicate with the spirits of the dead, as well as their godhead, to receive spiritual guidance. The religious rite, which has necromancy at its fulcrum, is of ancient origin and the Bamiléké have practiced it for thousands of years. Urbanisation has impinged upon the Skull Cult as it is forbidden to move ancestral skulls, which must at all times remain in the natal village of the deceased. Nevertheless, city-dwellers who are beset by misfortune may travel to the birth places of their ancestors to honour them and perform rites to propitiate them. However, although urbanisation has adversely affected the practice, it is the Catholic Church that has most infringed upon the Skull Cult. Due to pressure from the officiants of the local Catholic Church, which has labelled the skull cult 'barbaric' and even Satanic.

La production de coton en Afrique de l’Ouest est basée sur un système de production intensive chimique qui a des effets négatifs sur la santé humaine et l’environnement. La volatilité du marché mondial est également problématique, laissant de nombreux agriculteurs endettés lorsque les prix baissent. La production de coton biologique offre une alternative plus sûre et plus rentable, avec jusqu’à deux à trois fois plus de profit et des formes plus sûres et biologiques de lutte contre les parasites et de fertilisation des sols.

Commemorating its 50th anniversary of independence as a sovereign state in 2010, the West African country of Mali is abuzz with celebration. The centuries-old tradition of vibrant storyteller-musicians sing, accompanied by the mellifluous sounds of the stringed kora and xylophonic bala, and punctuated by the distinctive beats of the dunuba and tabale. Since September 2010, the djeli or griots, as they  are known in the region, have a new story to weave into their repertoire—the tale of the opening of a new urban park, the size of 250 football fields, which sits at  the centre of one of Africa’s fastest growing cities.

Report presenting the main findings from a community-based emancipatory disability research conducted in three counties (Bong, Nimba and Grand Gedeh) in Liberia in West Africa. The research focused on the physical, social, cultural, economic, attitudinal and technical barriers faced by persons with different kinds of disabilities living in rural and often isolated areas in the counties. It is a summary and easy to read version of a more detailed report.

This paper analyses the emerging gas industry in Ghana, specifically natural gas price formation and identifies the constraints to the development of gas markets, and the role of policy in shaping this market. Our findings indicate that a review of the current uniform transportation and distribution tariffs is necessary to bring domestic gas prices down. This will, in turn, catalyse broad-based development and inclusive growth through the economic multipliers it creates. The paper provides a basis for informed, evidence-based policymaking and discussions on gas use and gas pricing.

Food security in West Africa could be improved if basic taxonomic information about pests and biocontrol agents was readily available for the region. Because predatory ladybeetles have been important elements in pest management programs in other regions of the world, we reviewed the literature, conducted field surveys, and visited natural history museums in order to produce a catalogue of the Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of West Africa. The catalogue includes 250 species representing 38 genera and 18 tribes, as well as summaries of available biological and distributional data.

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This report analyses road accessibility, transport corridors and checkpoints set up in border towns in West Africa. An innovative model shows that the population base of border towns could be 14% greater if there were no delays at border crossings. The existence of roadside checks decreases the size of this population base from 12 to 50%. A study of 59 jointly planned or operated border posts in sub-Saharan Africa shows that trade facilitation runs up against the special interests of public servants and private-sector actors making a living from regional integration frictions. This work is published on the OECD iLibrary, which gathers all OECD books, periodicals and statistical databases. Visit www.oecd-ilibrary.org for more information.

In a compelling mix of literary narrative and ethnography, anthropologist Alma Gottlieb and writer Philip Graham continue the long journey of cultural engagement with the Beng people of Cote d'Ivoire that they first recounted in their award-winning memoir Parallel Worlds. Their commitment over the span of several decades has lent them a rare insight. Braiding their own stories with those of the villagers of Asagbe and Kosangbe, Gottlieb and Graham take turns recounting a host of unexpected dramas with these West African villages, prompting serious questions about the fraught nature of cultural contact. Through events such as a religious leader's declaration that the authors' six-year-old son, Nathaniel, is the reincarnation of a revered ancestor, or Graham's late father being accepted into the Beng afterlife, or the increasing, sometimes dangerous madness of a villager, the authors are forced to reconcile their anthropological and literary gaze with the deepest parts of their personal lives. Along with these intimate dramas, they follow the Beng from times of peace through the times of tragedy that led to Cote d'Ivoire's recent civil conflicts. From these and many other interweaving narratives - and with the combined strengths of an anthropologist and a literary writer - "Braided Worlds" examines the impact of postcolonialism, race, and global inequity at the same time that it chronicles a living, breathing village community where two very different worlds meet.

Ostatniego ćwierćwiecza polskich przemian politycznych dotyka i niniejsza publikacja, która jest zbiorem artykułów przygotowanych przez pracowników naukowych i doktorantów z różnych ośrodków w kraju. Prace dotykają zarówno polityki wewnętrznej, jak i zagranicznej państwa, co oznacza, że odnoszą się do stosunkowo dużego obszaru poznawczego. Zdecydowaną przewagę uzyskały w tej tematyce problemy zewnątrzpaństwowe odnoszące się do Unii Europejskiej, polityki zagranicznej, kilku aspektów bezpieczeństwa europejskiego i międzynarodowego, migracji wewnątrzeuropejskich czy Kościoła katolickiego. Wszystkie te kwestie mieszczą się w ogólnych zarysach „wybranych problemów politycznych” państwa polskiego w latach 1989-2014. Zadaniem niniejszej publikacji stało się przybliżenie Czytelnikom takich problemów politycznych Polski z ostatniego ćwierćwiecza, które wymagają dodatkowego komentarza, pogłębionych analiz podmiotowych i przedmiotowych oraz ciągle aktualnego spojrzenia metodologicznego i merytorycznego.