Earthen Architecture helping the victims of the 2007 flood in Bandiagara (Mali)

International audienceOn 4 July 2007, the river crossing the city of Bandiagara overflowed due to unusually heavy rains. Within few minutes, 194 families (nearly 1,500 people), witnessed the devastation of all or part of their homes and means of subsistence. At that time, the Cultural Mission of Bandiagara and CRAterre were collaborating in the framework of the project " Renforcement des capacités locales pour une meilleure contribution du secteur de la construction au développement durable du pays dogon " (Reinforcement of local capacities for a better contribution of the construction sector to the sustainable development of Dogon country) financed by the European Union; they called upon institutions to enable them to include, as part of their activities, a contribution to the reconstruction of basic housing structures. The German organization "Misereor" and the Abbé Pierre Foundation based in France responded positively by funding the reconstruction of 20 houses for sheltering the most affected families. The project was carried out in collaboration with the local Catholic Parish (Caritas), the municipality, the Flood Victims' Association, district chiefs, and the prefecture. A Committee was established to carefully select the 20 recipient families, which would commit to collecting materials from their affected properties and participate in the construction-training activities implemented. This reconstruction project benefited from the results of an inventory of the building cultures in Dogon country that included the study of land plots, building typologies and construction techniques. On the basis of these principles, twenty basic houses were designed and built, each with a different plan, defined by the types of materials recovered, the priorities identified by the families and the possibilities for future extensions. The reconstruction process was an opportunity to demonstrate and train workers to master innovative flood-proof building techniques and combine them with traditional practices

Earthen Architecture helping the victims of the 2007 flood in Bandiagara (Mali)

International audienceOn 4 July 2007, the river crossing the city of Bandiagara overflowed due to unusually heavy rains. Within few minutes, 194 families (nearly 1,500 people), witnessed the devastation of all or part of their homes and means of subsistence. At that time, the Cultural Mission of Bandiagara and CRAterre were collaborating in the framework of the project " Renforcement des capacités locales pour une meilleure contribution du secteur de la construction au développement durable du pays dogon " (Reinforcement of local capacities for a better contribution of the construction sector to the sustainable development of Dogon country) financed by the European Union; they called upon institutions to enable them to include, as part of their activities, a contribution to the reconstruction of basic housing structures. The German organization "Misereor" and the Abbé Pierre Foundation based in France responded positively by funding the reconstruction of 20 houses for sheltering the most affected families. The project was carried out in collaboration with the local Catholic Parish (Caritas), the municipality, the Flood Victims' Association, district chiefs, and the prefecture. A Committee was established to carefully select the 20 recipient families, which would commit to collecting materials from their affected properties and participate in the construction-training activities implemented. This reconstruction project benefited from the results of an inventory of the building cultures in Dogon country that included the study of land plots, building typologies and construction techniques. On the basis of these principles, twenty basic houses were designed and built, each with a different plan, defined by the types of materials recovered, the priorities identified by the families and the possibilities for future extensions. The reconstruction process was an opportunity to demonstrate and train workers to master innovative flood-proof building techniques and combine them with traditional practices

Détermination des coûts liés aux fluctuations du taux de change sur le service de la dette extérieure du Mali

La question de l'endettement extérieur est devenue un problème majeur pour les économistes lorsqu'un certain nombre de pays en développement ayant largement emprunté sur les marchés de capitaux au début des années 1980 ont vu leur situation financière s'aggraver. Ces pays, le Mexique, l'Argentine et d'autres pays asiatiques, étaient incapables de faire face à leurs obligations financières et ont dû suspendre les paiements de leur dette pendant cette période. Depuis cette époque, la question de l'endettement est devenue un enjeu important pour les décideurs politiques et les recherches ont été multipliées dans le domaine dans l'espoir de trouver les moyens pour diminuer la dette extérieure. Certains résultats ont évoqué que le niveau élevé des taux d'intérêt, la faiblesse des exportations, l'augmentation des dépenses publiques, le taux de change, la non-rentabilité des projets financés, le déficit public, l'indépendance de la banque centrale, etc. sont les causes de l'augmentation de la dette extérieure de ces pays. Dans notre étude, nous nous sommes intéressés aux effets du taux de change sur le service de la dette extérieure d'une petite économie ouverte comme le Mali. Les conséquences des fluctuations du taux de change ont été considérables, puisqu'ils ont provoqué presque 60 % de l'augmentation de la dette. Le Mali dont le portefeuille du service de la dette extérieure est constitué de devises autres que le FCFA et l'euro, a été porté à d'importants risques de fluctuations du taux de change. Cette étude nous a permis de déterminer les coûts liés aux fluctuations du taux de change sur le service de la dette extérieure du Mali. Nos résultats ont montré qu'il y a un coût lorsqu'un pays ne coordonne pas ces facteurs économiques ou n'oriente pas parfaitement son commerce extérieur.\ud _____________________________________________________________________________

Entomological impact of indoor residual spraying with pirimiphos-methyl: a pilot study in an area of low malaria transmission in Senegal.

BACKGROUND: Scaling-up of effective anti-malarial control strategies in Central-West region of Senegal has resulted in the sharp decline in malaria prevalence in this area. However, despite these strategies, residual malaria transmission has been observed in some villages (hot spots). The objective of this study was to assess the impact of indoor residual spraying (IRS) with pirimiphos-methyl on malaria transmission in hot spot areas. METHODS: The malaria vector population dynamics were monitored in each of the six selected villages (4 of which used IRS, 2 were unsprayed control areas) using overnight human landing catches (HLC) and pyrethrum spray catches (PSC). The host source of blood meals from freshly fed females collected using PSC was identified using the direct ELISA method. Females caught through HLC were tested by ELISA for the detection of Plasmodium falciparum circumsporozoite protein and Anopheles gambiae complex was identified using PCR. RESULTS: Preliminary data shown that the densities of Anopheles populations were significantly lower in the sprayed areas (179/702) compared to the control. Overall, malaria transmission risk was 14 times lower in the intervention zone (0.94) compared to the control zone (12.7). In the control areas, three Anopheles species belonging to the Gambiae complex (Anopheles arabiensis, Anopheles coluzzii and Anopheles melas) maintained the transmission, while only An. coluzzii was infective in the sprayed areas. CONCLUSION: The preliminary data from this pilot study showed that IRS with the CS formulation of pirimiphos-methyl is likely very effective in reducing malaria transmission risk. However, additional studies including further longitudinal entomological surveys as well as ecological and ethological and genetical characterization of vectors species and their populations are needed to better characterize the entomological impact of indoor residual spraying with pirimiphos-methyl in the residual transmission areas of Senegal

Projets situés: 10 ans d'expérience de terrain / 10 years of field experience

Ouvrage bilingue: français / anglaisCet ouvrage retrace la mise en œuvre du programme Africa 2009, initié par le Centre du patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO, à travers des projets dits situés visant à améliorer les conditions de la conservation du patrimoine immobilier dans la région de l'Afrique subsaharienne tout en se positionnant dans le cadre plus large du développement durable. Cette publication illustre le dynamisme d'un réseau de professionnels aux capacités renforcées et se veut également être un instrument incitatif pour les professionnels du patrimoine africain et leurs partenaires locaux, nationaux, régionaux et internationaux, vers la poursuite et la multiplication d'actions concrètes en faveur de ce riche patrimoine

Projets situés: 10 ans d'expérience de terrain / 10 years of field experience

Ouvrage bilingue: français / anglaisCet ouvrage retrace la mise en œuvre du programme Africa 2009, initié par le Centre du patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO, à travers des projets dits situés visant à améliorer les conditions de la conservation du patrimoine immobilier dans la région de l'Afrique subsaharienne tout en se positionnant dans le cadre plus large du développement durable. Cette publication illustre le dynamisme d'un réseau de professionnels aux capacités renforcées et se veut également être un instrument incitatif pour les professionnels du patrimoine africain et leurs partenaires locaux, nationaux, régionaux et internationaux, vers la poursuite et la multiplication d'actions concrètes en faveur de ce riche patrimoine

High-depth African genomes inform human migration and health

The African continent is regarded as the cradle of modern humans and African genomes contain more genetic variation than those from any other continent, yet only a fraction of the genetic diversity among African individuals has been surveyed1. Here we performed whole-genome sequencing analyses of 426 individuals—comprising 50 ethnolinguistic groups, including previously unsampled populations—to explore the breadth of genomic diversity across Africa. We uncovered more than 3 million previously undescribed variants, most of which were found among individuals from newly sampled ethnolinguistic groups, as well as 62 previously unreported loci that are under strong selection, which were predominantly found in genes that are involved in viral immunity, DNA repair and metabolism. We observed complex patterns of ancestral admixture and putative-damaging and novel variation, both within and between populations, alongside evidence that Zambia was a likely intermediate site along the routes of expansion of Bantu-speaking populations. Pathogenic variants in genes that are currently characterized as medically relevant were uncommon—but in other genes, variants denoted as ‘likely pathogenic’ in the ClinVar database were commonly observed. Collectively, these findings refine our current understanding of continental migration, identify gene flow and the response to human disease as strong drivers of genome-level population variation, and underscore the scientific imperative for a broader characterization of the genomic diversity of African individuals to understand human ancestry and improve health

High-depth African genomes inform human migration and health

The African continent is regarded as the cradle of modern humans and African genomes contain more genetic variation than those from any other continent, yet only a fraction of the genetic diversity among African individuals has been surveyed1. Here we performed whole-genome sequencing analyses of 426 individuals—comprising 50 ethnolinguistic groups, including previously unsampled populations—to explore the breadth of genomic diversity across Africa. We uncovered more than 3 million previously undescribed variants, most of which were found among individuals from newly sampled ethnolinguistic groups, as well as 62 previously unreported loci that are under strong selection, which were predominantly found in genes that are involved in viral immunity, DNA repair and metabolism. We observed complex patterns of ancestral admixture and putative-damaging and novel variation, both within and between populations, alongside evidence that Zambia was a likely intermediate site along the routes of expansion of Bantu-speaking populations. Pathogenic variants in genes that are currently characterized as medically relevant were uncommon—but in other genes, variants denoted as ‘likely pathogenic’ in the ClinVar database were commonly observed. Collectively, these findings refine our current understanding of continental migration, identify gene flow and the response to human disease as strong drivers of genome-level population variation, and underscore the scientific imperative for a broader characterization of the genomic diversity of African individuals to understand human ancestry and improve health

Informativo mujer, no. 166

International audienceArticle extrait des actes du colloque Terra 2016: JOFFROY, Thierry, GUILLAUD, Hubert, SADOZAÏ, Chamsia (dir.) 2018, Terra Lyon 2016: Articles sélectionnés pour publication en ligne / articles selected for on-line publication / artículos seleccionados para publicación en línea. Villefontaine : CRAterre. ISBN 979-10-96446-12-4

Le temple d'Arou. Falaises de Bandiagara, Pays Dogon.

International audienceRelevant le défi avec persévérance, la Mission Culturelle de Bandiagara est aujourd’hui devenue un des services déconcentrés de l’État les plus actifs de la zone. Au-delà, en développant un Plan de conservation et de gestion élaboré en partenariat avec les autres acteurs opérant surle site, elle a su créer un cadre synergique et fédérateur indispensable pour la préservation des valeurs exceptionnelles du site et l’établissement de priorités pour sa bonne conservation dans une perspective de développement durable.Le temple d’Arou est un élément majeur de la culture dogon. En péril, ce patrimoine méritait une action d’envergure. Celle-ci a été possible grâce à l’appui du World Monument Watch qui avait déjà soutenu l’élaboration du Plan de conservation et de gestion du site en 2004. Il m’est agréable de profiter de l’occasion qui m’est donnée ici de remercier cette institution, ses responsables et ses donateurs. Qu’ils reçoiventtoute notre gratitude ! Enfin, je souhaite à chacun de pouvoir se rendre à Arou. La visite du temple et des autres sites culturels et naturels qui se trouvent aux alentours est une expérience unique et particulièrement enrichissante