Etic and emic perspectives on HIV/AIDS impacts on rural livelihoods and agricultural practice in Sub-Saharan Africa

Using an HIV/AIDS lens in looking at developments in rural livelihoods and agricultural practice reveals a diversity of critical impacts of the epidemic. Still, in most of the countries hardest-hit by HIV/ AIDS the agricultural sector lacks adequate policies and programmes to deal with the crisis. This paper examines the results of research about HIV/AIDS impacts on rural livelihoods and agricultural practice in Sub-Saharan Africa that was carried out during the past five years. Most of the researchers concerned are affiliated with Wageningen University. A number of them contributed as authors to the present special issue. In the review and synthesis presented in this paper both an etic and an emic perspective are used. The etic picture is one of mixed evidence regarding the livelihood effects of HIV/AIDS. Eliciting the views of people living with HIV/AIDS (the emic perspective) revealed continuity between notions of health of the human body and health of crops and the natural environment. This is particularly relevant for the practice and language of extension services and the effectiveness of approaches used by organizations – governmental and non-governmental – that try to mitigate the impacts the epidemic has on farmers and rural livelihoods

Fish and Female Agency in a Madurese Fishing Village in Indonesia

Le rôle crucial des femmes dans l’économie halieutique locale et leur haut degré d’autonomie sociale constituaient deux traits remarquables de l’organisation socio-économique du village de pêcheurs de Patondu (Madura) en 1978. Un nouveau travail de terrain en 2004 montre que se sont produits au cours de ces 26 ans dans la pêcherie des changements technologiques et économiques de grande portée. De plus, avec la mise en place d’équipements publics, Patondu est désormais mieux relié au monde extérieur. En 2004, pourtant, les femmes y ont, autant sinon plus qu’avant, une place éminente. Les cas de six femmes actives dans le commerce et le traitement du poisson et le financement de la pêche sont examinés. Les pangamba’, considérées dans la littérature comme formant « un groupe phénoménal » , méritent une attention particulière : ces femmes – marchandes, entrepreneures et banquières, tout à la fois – sont les pivots de l’économie halieutique, comme « matrones » dans les relations de « matronage » qui structurent les réseaux socio-économiques. La solide position des femmes repose sur une division sexuelle du travail, écologiquement et culturellement fondée dans la société de Patondu, qui leur ouvre un vaste champ d’opportunités d’action dans les sphères économique et sociale. La vie quotidienne de Patondu s’apprécie en ichtyo-valeur et les femmes déterminent cette valeur. Elles contrôlent donc, dans une large mesure, l’économie halieutique locale. De plus, la limite fluide entre les sphères domestique et économique évite aux femmes le confinement au foyer et leur permet de jouer ce rôle de matrones dans la sphère économique. Des recherches sur les commerçantes des marchés à Java ont produit des résultats similaires. La société de Patondu n’est pas égalitaire et, même si le genre, comme facteur de stratification, recoupe d’autres facteurs et si le hiatus entre femmes aisée et pauvres s’est élargi, le contraste de genre demeure dominant et compréhensif.In 1978 two remarkable features of the economic and social organization of the fishing village of Patondu on the island of Madura were women’s key role in the local fishing economy and their large measure of social autonomy. Fieldwork carried out in 2004 showed that, during the 26 years in-between, far-reaching technological and economic changes in fishery had taken place. Public facilities had become available to Patondu, which was now better connected to the outside world. Yet in 2004, the position of its women was still strong, if not stronger than before. To find an explanation, six cases of women active in fish trading and processing and in fishery finance were documented, survey findings checked for trends, and key informants interviewed. The pangambă’ warrants special attention: A trader, entrepreneur, and banker, all in one, she plays a pivotal role in the fishing economy. Referred to in the literature as a “phenomenal group of women,” the pangambă’ are the matrons in the matronage relationships structuring the local socio-economic networks. The analysis shows that the explanation for the strong position of women lies in the ecologically and culturally underpinned, gendered division of labor in Patondu society that provides women with ample space and opportunities to exercise agency in the economic and social spheres. Since daily life in Patondu is taken at “fish value” and it is the women who manipulate and determine this value, they control the local fishing economy to a large extent. Furthermore, the boundaries between the domestic and economic spheres are fluid, preventing women from being domestically confined and enabling them to play their role as matrons in the economic sphere. Research on women traders in the Javanese market system has yielded similar findings. Patondu society is not egalitarian and, although gender as a stratifying variable intersects with other variables and the gap between well-to-do and poor women has widened, the gender difference has remained all-pervasive and encompassing

Food and nutrition security as gendered social practice

In many parts of the world, the food security of households and the nutrition security of individual household members, in particular that of children, are still at risk, in spite of the progress made in combatting hunger at the global level. The prevailing opinion among scientists and development practioners alike is that women’s empowerment is the key to household food security and good nutrition of children. Similarly, it is thought that gender inequalities manifest themselves in dietary discrimination of women resulting in their lesser access to sufficient and nutritious food. To investigate the credibility of these ‘common truths’, empirical evidence on women’s roles in the social practices that aim at realizing household food security and good family nutrition was reviewed. It can be concluded that women definitely yield and wield power through their involvement in and responsibility for these practices, but that – at the same time – enhancing women’s capabilities by improved access to critical resources would benefit their household’s food security and their children’s nutrition. Furthermore, except for the region of South Asia, gender inequalities do not visibly result in a gender gap in nutrition, although women’s specific dietary needs in relation to pregnancy and motherhood are not always recognized

Women's autonomy and husbands' involvement in maternal health care in Nepal

Both increasing women’s autonomy and increasing husbands’ involvement in maternal health care are promising strategies to enhance maternal health care utilization. However, these two may be at odds with each other insofar as autonomouswomenmay not seek their husband’s involvement, and involved husbands may limit women’s autonomy. This study assessed the relationship between women’s autonomy and husbands’ involvement in maternal health care. Field work for this study was carried out during SeptembereNovember 2011 in the Kailali district of Nepal. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were used to investigate the extent of husbands’ involvement in maternal health care. A survey was carried out among 341 randomly selectedwomenwho delivered a live baby within one year prior to the survey. The results showthat husbandswere involved in giving advice, supporting to reduce the householdwork burden, and makingfinancial and transportation arrangements for the delivery. After adjustment for other covariates, economic autonomy was associated with lower likelihood of discussion with husband during pregnancy, while domestic decision-making autonomy was associated with both lower likelihood of discussion with husband during pregnancy and the husband’s presence at antenatal care (ANC) visits. Movement autonomy was associated with lower likelihood of the husband’s presence at ANC visits. Intra-spousal communication was associated with higher likelihood of discussing health with the husband during pregnancy, birth preparedness, and the husbands’ presence at the health facility delivery. The magnitude and direction of association varied per autonomy dimension. These findings suggest that programs to improve the women’s autonomy and at the sametimeincrease the husband’s involvement should be carefully planned. Despite the traditional cultural beliefs that go against the involvement of husbands, Nepalese husbands are increasingly entering into the area of maternal health which was traditionally considered ‘women’s business’

Migration to and from the terai: shifting movements and motives

In Nepal, the historical evidence shows that migration to the terai increased after the eradication of malaria in the late 1950s and has been increasing ever since. More recently, however, out-migration from the terai is rapidly increasing. By applying both qualitative and quantitative research methods, in-depth qualitative interviews, focus group discussions and household survey were used for data collection, with considerable inputs from ethnographical fieldwork for about 21 months. The paper presents three types of population flows in the historical pattern. First, the history of Nepal as an arena of population movement; second, the gradual opening up of the terai, leading to the hills-terai movement; and the third, the current outward flow as an individual migration for work. The paper exemplifies that poverty and lack of arable land are not the only push factors, but that pursuing a better quality of life is gaining importance as a migration motive. We conclude that like movements of people, their motives for moving are also not static and cannot be taken for granted