This chapter discusses some of the moral economic and kinship-based affective issues that influen... more This chapter discusses some of the moral economic and kinship-based affective issues that influence the decisions of rural youth from South Wollo to move to Saudi Arabia as irregular labour migrants. This goal is achieved by examining the kinds of culturally expected entitlements and sentimentally enforced norms that both prospective migrants and sending parents effectively mobilize at different phases of the migration process. The focus is on ethnographically observed decision dilemmas especially at the initial stage when financing the cost of prospective immigration and later when anticipated migration remittances and gifts are distributed. The analysis complements works that tend to amplify the agency of individual migrants, while dumbing the equally worth studying moralistic and affective consequences on the households and communities they left behind.
:This article argues that Ethiopia's agricultural extension program, which received more gove... more :This article argues that Ethiopia's agricultural extension program, which received more government funding and donor support than other similar programs in Africa, reinforced the rural presence and authoritarian powers of the ruling party while largely failing to improve smallholder agriculture. The principal reason for this outcome has to do with the systematic entanglement of the Green Revolution package delivery system with the immediate goal of guaranteeing the party's political security. In one Amharic-speaking community that provided ethnographic information for this article, overzealous party leaders rewarded supporters at the expense of imagined opponents. This distortion, coupled with a culturally embedded concept of success (defined as upward mobility), caused pervasive fear, insecurity, suspicion, and rivalry among farmers. Not surprisingly, this insecurity has a deleterious effect on hardworking farmers. The article suggests that any meaningful attempt at improving the program must recognize the centrality of politics, especially at the community and household levels, where parochial interests interface with cultural expectations.
the claim, noting that factors which might explain the nature of political narratives as well as ... more the claim, noting that factors which might explain the nature of political narratives as well as genocide, such as ethnic demography or the economic value of a social group, fail to travel across countries. As Straus himself acknowledges, however, political elites must work with the social fabric they have if they want to govern (331). While the specifics may vary from case to case, Straus’ own analysis suggests that elites faced economic or political incentives to build inclusive, multi-ethnic coalitions at critical junctures in Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, and Senegal. Côte d’Ivoire faced a labor shortage which encouraged immigration as well as internal migration, while Mali has been characterized by cross-cutting identity cleavages. No one ethnic group constitutes a clear majority in Senegal, and Casamance is an important region economically for its agriculture and tourism. These features suggest that elites in these instances faced incentives to engage in inclusive politics, building coalitions across groups in order to come to and maintain state power. Conversely, the cases which resulted in genocide are examples of incentives for exclusive politics. Arab-Muslims controlled the state in Sudan and seemed to have little need to build coalitions with southerners, while Hutus constituted a super majority in Rwanda. To acknowledge that political narratives have material underpinnings does not necessarily deny the power of ideas. Indeed, the narratives which emerged out of these political coalitions that were formed at critical historical junctures may in turn come to play a key role in perpetuating genocide, as well as other phenomena. In conclusion, Straus’ analysis clearly advances our understanding of genocide and powerfully demonstrates the role of ideas. It also raises important questions about the interplay between material and ideational factors, shaping the agenda for future research. Megan Turnbull Skidmore College Saratoga Springs, New York doi:10.1017/asr.2018.3 [email protected]
All the reports in this series have been constructed from a number of sources: • A background pap... more All the reports in this series have been constructed from a number of sources: • A background paper on aspects of the local culture in which the Peasant Association is located, based mainly on secondary sources; • Some rapid assessment material collected in the PA by site managers and enumerators whose chief business was administering 3 rounds of a household economic survey which covered a whole year of economic activity; • A field visit to the site by an anthropologist who took a draft village profile for correction and supplementation. In a few cases the profiles were not ready before the filed visit was done, but the same questions were followed up; • A questionnaire completed by the enumerators at the end of the survey; • A community economic survey administered by the site managers. A large number of people has been involved in the construction of these profiles. Most important are the people in the villages who answered questions, raised issues we had not thought of, and provi...
The Oxford Handbook of the Ethiopian Economy, 2019
This chapter explores changes that have occurred in the ways rural people access, use, control, a... more This chapter explores changes that have occurred in the ways rural people access, use, control, and transfer land rights as Ethiopia has transitioned from the old feudal-like monarchy, through nearly two decades of military-led socialism, to the current market-led, decentralized system. The regimes embraced contrasting land policies and development approaches. However, the chapter reveals a dominant pattern in the outcome. At each juncture, land policy choice was systematically entangled with the political exigency of expanding central control down to community and household levels. Policy debates across regimes appeared less informed by what farmers themselves were trying to do to extricate themselves from the burdens of chronic food insecurity and poverty. Successive reforms failed to guarantee land access for young farmers who came of age. This generational tension in turn has impeded the tenure security and transferability of household holdings, despite the government’s efforts ...
This chapter discusses some of the moral economic and kinship-based affective issues that influen... more This chapter discusses some of the moral economic and kinship-based affective issues that influence the decisions of rural youth from South Wollo to move to Saudi Arabia as irregular labour migrants. This goal is achieved by examining the kinds of culturally expected entitlements and sentimentally enforced norms that both prospective migrants and sending parents effectively mobilize at different phases of the migration process. The focus is on ethnographically observed decision dilemmas especially at the initial stage when financing the cost of prospective immigration and later when anticipated migration remittances and gifts are distributed. The analysis complements works that tend to amplify the agency of individual migrants, while dumbing the equally worth studying moralistic and affective consequences on the households and communities they left behind.
:This article argues that Ethiopia's agricultural extension program, which received more gove... more :This article argues that Ethiopia's agricultural extension program, which received more government funding and donor support than other similar programs in Africa, reinforced the rural presence and authoritarian powers of the ruling party while largely failing to improve smallholder agriculture. The principal reason for this outcome has to do with the systematic entanglement of the Green Revolution package delivery system with the immediate goal of guaranteeing the party's political security. In one Amharic-speaking community that provided ethnographic information for this article, overzealous party leaders rewarded supporters at the expense of imagined opponents. This distortion, coupled with a culturally embedded concept of success (defined as upward mobility), caused pervasive fear, insecurity, suspicion, and rivalry among farmers. Not surprisingly, this insecurity has a deleterious effect on hardworking farmers. The article suggests that any meaningful attempt at improving the program must recognize the centrality of politics, especially at the community and household levels, where parochial interests interface with cultural expectations.
the claim, noting that factors which might explain the nature of political narratives as well as ... more the claim, noting that factors which might explain the nature of political narratives as well as genocide, such as ethnic demography or the economic value of a social group, fail to travel across countries. As Straus himself acknowledges, however, political elites must work with the social fabric they have if they want to govern (331). While the specifics may vary from case to case, Straus’ own analysis suggests that elites faced economic or political incentives to build inclusive, multi-ethnic coalitions at critical junctures in Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, and Senegal. Côte d’Ivoire faced a labor shortage which encouraged immigration as well as internal migration, while Mali has been characterized by cross-cutting identity cleavages. No one ethnic group constitutes a clear majority in Senegal, and Casamance is an important region economically for its agriculture and tourism. These features suggest that elites in these instances faced incentives to engage in inclusive politics, building coalitions across groups in order to come to and maintain state power. Conversely, the cases which resulted in genocide are examples of incentives for exclusive politics. Arab-Muslims controlled the state in Sudan and seemed to have little need to build coalitions with southerners, while Hutus constituted a super majority in Rwanda. To acknowledge that political narratives have material underpinnings does not necessarily deny the power of ideas. Indeed, the narratives which emerged out of these political coalitions that were formed at critical historical junctures may in turn come to play a key role in perpetuating genocide, as well as other phenomena. In conclusion, Straus’ analysis clearly advances our understanding of genocide and powerfully demonstrates the role of ideas. It also raises important questions about the interplay between material and ideational factors, shaping the agenda for future research. Megan Turnbull Skidmore College Saratoga Springs, New York doi:10.1017/asr.2018.3 [email protected]
All the reports in this series have been constructed from a number of sources: • A background pap... more All the reports in this series have been constructed from a number of sources: • A background paper on aspects of the local culture in which the Peasant Association is located, based mainly on secondary sources; • Some rapid assessment material collected in the PA by site managers and enumerators whose chief business was administering 3 rounds of a household economic survey which covered a whole year of economic activity; • A field visit to the site by an anthropologist who took a draft village profile for correction and supplementation. In a few cases the profiles were not ready before the filed visit was done, but the same questions were followed up; • A questionnaire completed by the enumerators at the end of the survey; • A community economic survey administered by the site managers. A large number of people has been involved in the construction of these profiles. Most important are the people in the villages who answered questions, raised issues we had not thought of, and provi...
The Oxford Handbook of the Ethiopian Economy, 2019
This chapter explores changes that have occurred in the ways rural people access, use, control, a... more This chapter explores changes that have occurred in the ways rural people access, use, control, and transfer land rights as Ethiopia has transitioned from the old feudal-like monarchy, through nearly two decades of military-led socialism, to the current market-led, decentralized system. The regimes embraced contrasting land policies and development approaches. However, the chapter reveals a dominant pattern in the outcome. At each juncture, land policy choice was systematically entangled with the political exigency of expanding central control down to community and household levels. Policy debates across regimes appeared less informed by what farmers themselves were trying to do to extricate themselves from the burdens of chronic food insecurity and poverty. Successive reforms failed to guarantee land access for young farmers who came of age. This generational tension in turn has impeded the tenure security and transferability of household holdings, despite the government’s efforts ...
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