Transforming livelihoods at the margins: understanding changing class dynamics in Karamoja, Uganda

Over the past two generations, livestock loss and hunger – caused by violent conflict and drought – drove many transhumant agro-­‐pastoralists living in central Karamoja to resettle in unpopulated areas more suitable for agricultural production. These areas, mostly located in the southern and western parts of the region, were historically used by herdsmen as dry season grazing rangelands, while they now house permanent settlements populated by sedentarized ‘marginal farmers’ and town-­‐based workers. The village of Lojom, located in one of the most fertile areas of Karamoja in the vicinity of a small trading centre, presents a perfect example of this process of livelihood transformation, since most of its inhabitants and predecessors were former herders. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the causes and drivers of socioeconomic differentiation in the village of Lojom through an extended case study. The major studies on pastoralism of the past thirty years demonstrate there has been an increased impoverishment and destitution among former pastoralists as a result of sedentarization. This thesis argues that the transition from the traditional agro-pastoral system to a more diversified set of economic activities and livelihoods has introduced new dynamics in class relations. The newly established relations of production among classes have polarized the inhabitants of Lojom into a handful of ‘elite’ families and a majority of destitute families. While the better off and middle classes foster their wealth accumulation through livelihood differentiation, residence in town and engagement with traditional livelihood systems, the poor and very poor barely meet their food requirements and have almost no opportunities for wealth accumulation. Further, this transition has also amplified the systematic exploitation of women’s labour by male heads of families, to the point that within a single family belonging to the wealthiest class the level of welfare of the women is much lower than that of the men. In conclusion, the current relations of production among social classes and gender groups in Lojom can only reproduce the material and social conditions that ultimately create and maintain poverty for many

Providing Social Assistance and Humanitarian Relief: The Case for Embracing Uncertainty

Motivation Social assistance and humanitarian relief in disaster response increasingly overlap, especially where recurrent crises and persistent conflicts prevail. In such situations, distinctions between risk and uncertainty become especially important. Shifting the focus from risk assessment and management to embracing uncertainty is important for policy and practice. Purpose The paper assesses the suitability of two approaches to social assistance and humanitarian relief where crises recur and conflicts persist: risk assessment and management; and embracing uncertainty and ignorance. Methods and approach We review different approaches to social assistance, humanitarian relief and disaster response, and ask how they are framed. We draw on experiences from social assistance, humanitarian relief and disaster response programmes, highlighting the professional, bureaucratic and institutional features that influence programme design and functioning. These are compared with ‘high-reliability’ approaches as deployed in other ‘critical infrastructures’ — such as water and energy supply. Findings Mainstream approaches centre on risk assessment and management, assuming predictability and stability. This is problematic, especially in settings of crisis and conflict where there may be no functioning delivery system for social assistance and relief. Alternatives to the mainstream risk-focused approaches are highlighted. These emphasise learning, collaboration, adaptation and flexibility. Such approaches must build on embedded practices of moral economy, collective action and mutual care and be supported through professional and institutional capacities that generate reliability. Policy implications We suggest a new agenda for the intersection of social assistance, humanitarian relief and disaster response, which makes uncertainty the focus for rethinking responses at scale, especially in crisis and conflict-affected settings

Changes in the drylands of Eastern Africa: a review of evidence and data and their implications for efforts to strengthening resilience

Includes Final report, March 2016Changes in the drylands of eastern Africa These reports detail evidence and data of long-term changes in the drylands of eastern Africa and the implications of these for efforts to strengthen resilience within pastoral systems. The region covered includes Ethiopia, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, and Somalia. The reports were prepared for a study commissioned by the DFID East Africa Research Hub, and its aims were three-fold: 1. To synthesise evidence across scholarly and available materials on poverty, vulnerability, livelihoods and change in eastern Africa’s drylands; 2. To catalogue national and sub-national datasets on poverty, vulnerability, livelihoods and resilience; and 3. To identify and report on priority, long-term evidence-gaps as well as recommendations on future research and data collection. Led by Dr. Jeremy Lind and Professor Rachel Sabates-Wheeler, the studies are based on a review of over 400 scholarly and grey literature reports, as well as assessment of over 100 data-sets from the region. The main report details the overall findings of the evidence synthesis and mapping of data-sets. A technical note provides in-depth findings of the evidence synthesis and data mapping exercise as well as the methodology that was used. The technical note can be read alongside a catalogue of the evidence that was reviewed and data-sets. A case study report assesses evidence and data of long-term change in five pastoral systems in the region: the Somali zone of Ethiopia, the Borana Plateau in southern Ethiopia, the South Rift Valley in Kenya, the Karamoja region of Uganda, and Bahr al Ghazal in South Sudan.Dfi