Second Meeting of the Committee on Governance and Popular Participation

African civil society organizations (CSOs) form a sector that has become increasingly important over the past few decades in terms of its participation in the development and governance processes as well in global policy processes. This report highlights the impact and effectiveness of the participation of CSOs and NGOs in promoting development and governance in Africa

APFIC Regional Workshop on "Mainstreaming Fisheries Co-management"

This is the report of the APFIC regional workshop on "Mainstreaming fisheries co-management" held in Siem Reap, Cambodia from August 9-12, 2005 . The goal of the workshop was to provide a forum to learn from past experience and to promote devolved management of fisheries. Participants at the workshop had the opportunity to be exposed to a range of coastal and inland fisheries co-management interventions and the elaboration of approaches needed to make fisheries co-management a "mainstream" activity in developing countries. The objective of the workshop was to develop summary conclusions on the status of co-management in the region and provide some concrete recommendations for action towards mainstreaming fishery co-management in the Asia-Pacific region. The report contains the action plan and recommendations of the workshop. Many agencies (both governmental and non-governmental) are striving to improve the livelihoods of poor people that are dependent on aquatic resources by including these stakeholders in the planning and implementation of fisheries management. Many states have adopted decentralization as the way to implement future fisheries management, especially in developing countries, which often involves a partnership between government and the local communities, i.e. a co-management approach. The challenge is to find a way for co-management to become a mainstream practice of both government and non-government organizations and communities

Alex La Guma: the literary and political functions of marginality in the colonial situation

African Studies Center Working Paper No. 5

Gender differences in mobilization for collective action: case studies of villages in Northern Nigeria

"Men and women participate in collective action for different purposes in northern Nigeria. Field work conducted in six villages show that while men engage in community activities such as road repairs, maintenance of schools and hospitals, refuse collection and maintenance of the traditional village government, women mobilize around activities such as savings, house and farm work and care giving. It is argued that men mobilize around community activities outside the home because of their public orientation and because they want to maintain their dominance of that space. Women, in contrast, mobilize around activities in keeping with their domestic orientation and traditional roles such as care giving and housework. Religion also influences the extent of women's participation in collective action. Because men have command of community institutions, they are better able to access the resources embedded in these institutions, but women are able to negotiate within established social structures for better conditions. Given the socio-cultural characteristics of communities in northern Nigeria, an effective strategy for collective action is collaboration between men's and women's groups rather than separatism or integration." Authors' AbstractGender, Poverty, Collective action, Community participation, Social capital, Village associations, Northern Nigeria,