Democratic decentralization in sub-Saharan Africa: its contribution to forest management, livelihoods, and enfranchisement

2010 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. C. RIBOT ◽  
J. F. LUND ◽  
T. TREUE
Keyword(s):  
Forest Management ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Rural Livelihoods ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Popular Participation ◽  
Local Decision ◽  
Democratic Decentralization ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Expected Benefits

SUMMARYEfforts to promote popular participation in forest management in Sub-Saharan Africa have faced many obstacles and disappointments. Although promises of improvements in relation to forest management, rural livelihoods and local enfranchisement have been achieved in some cases, accounts of frustration outnumber those of success. Focusing on participation through democratic decentralization (namely the transfer of meaningful discretionary powers to local representative authorities), this paper reviews recent empirical studies on the outcomes of popular participation in forest management. The implementation of decentralization of forest management, and ecological, livelihood and democracy outcomes are examined, and misconceptions in analyses of decentralized forestry are explored. The expected benefits of democratic decentralization within forestry are rarely realized because democratic decentralization is rarely established. In most cases, local authorities do not represent the local population or their space of discretion is so narrow that they have little effect on management. There is little official local management taking place, even under so-called decentralized or participatory management arrangements. If ever significant space for local discretion under democratic authorities is created, researchers will have the opportunity to study whether democratic decentralization can deliver the theoretically promised positive outcomes. Nevertheless, some cases shed light on effects of local decision making. Three general observations are made on effects of decentralization. First, environmental, livelihood and democracy objectives are not always mutually reinforcing, and under some circumstances they may be at odds. Second, environmental effects of improved forest management often result in benefits accruing to distant or higher-scale aggregate populations, while local communities carry the costs. Third, poor peoples' use of natural resources to maintain their livelihoods often conflicts with profit and revenue interests of local elites, national commercial interests and governments. A negotiated minimum social and environmental standards approach to decentralization of forest management may safeguard essential ecological functions and at the same time protect essential livelihood and economic values of forests at all scales of society. The remainder of decisions, such as how forests are used, by whom and for what, could then be safely placed at the discretion of responsive local representatives.

scholarly journals Mapping 20 Years of Urban Expansion in 45 Urban Areas of Sub-Saharan Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 525
Author(s):  
Yann Forget ◽  
Michal Shimoni ◽  
Marius Gilbert ◽  
Catherine Linard
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Urban Expansion ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Annual Growth Rate ◽  
Urban Dynamics ◽  
Mapping Approach ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact

By 2050, half of the net increase in the world’s population is expected to reside in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), driving high urbanization rates and drastic land cover changes. However, the data-scarce environment of SSA limits our understanding of the urban dynamics in the region. In this context, Earth Observation (EO) is an opportunity to gather accurate and up-to-date spatial information on urban extents. During the last decade, the adoption of open-access policies by major EO programs (CBERS, Landsat, Sentinel) has allowed the production of several global high resolution (10–30 m) maps of human settlements. However, mapping accuracies in SSA are usually lower, limited by the lack of reference datasets to support the training and the validation of the classification models. Here we propose a mapping approach based on multi-sensor satellite imagery (Landsat, Sentinel-1, Envisat, ERS) and volunteered geographic information (OpenStreetMap) to solve the challenges of urban remote sensing in SSA. The proposed mapping approach is assessed in 17 case studies for an average F1-score of 0.93, and applied in 45 urban areas of SSA to produce a dataset of urban expansion from 1995 to 2015. Across the case studies, built-up areas averaged a compound annual growth rate of 5.5% between 1995 and 2015. The comparison with local population dynamics reveals the heterogeneity of urban dynamics in SSA. Overall, population densities in built-up areas are decreasing. However, the impact of population growth on urban expansion differs depending on the size of the urban area and its income class.

Adoption of improved cassava varieties in Nigeria: Insights from DNA fingerprinting versus self-reporting varietal identification approaches

2021 ◽  
pp. 003072702199003
Author(s):  
Patience Ifeyinwa Opata ◽  
Oguejiofor Joseph Okorie ◽  
Juliana Chinasa Iwuchukwu ◽  
Chukwuma Otum Ume ◽  
Oyakhilomen Oyinbo
Keyword(s):  
Measurement Errors ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Adoption Studies ◽  
Hidden Hunger ◽  
Varietal Identification ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Cassava Varieties

Much of the empirical studies on crop varietal adoption in Sub-Saharan Africa relied on self-reported adoption in farm-household surveys, which is prone to measurement errors. In addition, farmers’ perceptions of consumption-related varietal traits in adoption studies has received limited attention compared with production-related traits. Using DNA-based and self-reported adoption measures, we analyze the adoption of improved cassava varieties (ICVs) with a focus on the extent of varietal misidentification, the sensitivity of the drivers of adoption to varietal misidentification and the role of farmers’ perceptions of biofortification trait in adoption decisions. We find that the adoption rate of ICVs is relatively high using both DNA-based and self-reported adoption measures, but there is notable misclassification in varietal adoption. We find that the mismatch in DNA-based and self-reported adoption measures leads to some variation in the factors that influence the likelihood and intensity of adoption of ICVs. This suggests that appropriate varietal identification helps in better understanding of the drivers of adoption. In addition, we find that despite the observed varietal misclassification, farmers’ perceptions of biofortification trait is significantly correlated with the probability and intensity of adoption of ICVs using both DNA-based and self-reported varietal identification. This suggests that inclusion of biofortification trait in cassava matters for both the likelihood and extent of adoption of ICVs. The latter lends credence to the emerging policy interests in breeding programs for biofortified crops to address hidden hunger in Nigeria.

scholarly journals Charcoal and Wood Biomass Utilization in Uganda: The Socioeconomic and Environmental Dynamics and Implications

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (20) ◽  
pp. 8337
Author(s):  
Dastan Bamwesigye ◽  
Petr Kupec ◽  
Georges Chekuimo ◽  
Jindrich Pavlis ◽  
Obed Asamoah ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Natural Forests ◽  
Fuel Use ◽  
Wood Fuel ◽  
Biomass Utilization ◽  
Qualitative Approaches ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Government

Charcoal and firewood fuel biomass utilization is thought to be the main cause of deforestation in Uganda. Moreover, the practice of utilizing charcoal and wood fuel in Uganda is said to impact the health of many women and children in the region. The goal of this study was to comprehensively analyze charcoal and wood fuel utilization processes in Uganda and sub-Saharan Africa and the environmental and socioeconomic dynamics and implications. The study equally intended to model out some possible improvements to wood fuel use while conserving natural forests. Both qualitative and qualitative approaches were used to study the charcoal and wood fuel energy situation in Uganda. The study collected field data (sample size: 199) which was subjected to descriptive analysis. The findings show that over 90% of households in Uganda and the sub- Saharan region use firewood and charcoal wood fuel, and that this fuel use creates social and environmental hazards. Our findings are also in agreement with numerous empirical studies showing that firewood and charcoal biomass are among the major causes of deforestation in Uganda and the sub-Saharan region. Ceteris paribus, we propose the adoption of Improved Eco-Stoves (ICE), which not only enable comprehensive combustion but also lessen the quantity of firewood used by more than 60%, together with policy decisions on the government of Uganda, given peoples willingness to take on alternative energy sources such as gas and electricity.

scholarly journals A Multi-Phase Assessment of the Effects of COVID-19 on Food Systems and Rural Livelihoods in Zimbabwe

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vine Mutyasira
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Rapid Assessment ◽  
Policy Research ◽  
Rural Livelihoods ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Response Measures ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Multi Phase

The COVID-19 pandemic has continued to affect agri-food systems around the world and lay bare its fragility, worsening the welfare of millions of smallholder farmers whose livelihoods are anchored on agricultural activities. For the vast majority of sub-Saharan Africa, COVID-19 has coincided with a number of other macroeconomic shocks, which have also exacerbated the impacts of the pandemic on food security, nutrition and general livelihoods, as well curtailed policy responses and mitigation strategies. In Zimbabwe, the COVID-19 pandemic struck at a time the country was experiencing a worsening economic and humanitarian situation. This study focused more on community and household dynamics and response measures to cope with the pandemic. This paper presents a summary of findings emerging from a series of rapid assessment studies undertaken by the Agricultural Policy Research in Africa (APRA) Programme in Mvurwi and Concession areas of Mazowe District in Zimbabwe to examine how COVID-19 is affecting food systems and rural livelihoods in our research communities.

Comparative Effects of Foreign Direct Investment from China and Other Sources on Africa’s Economic Growth

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 382-408
Author(s):  
Marvellous Ngundu ◽  
Nicholas Ngepah
Keyword(s):  
Direct Investment ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Growth Effects ◽  
Solow Growth Model ◽  
The Us ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact

This study examines comparatively the growth effects of FDI from China, the European Union, the US and the rest of Asia in Sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2003–2012. We develop theoretical arguments from the existing literature to show that differences in FDI data sources, methodological and econometric approaches may be part of the explanation for mixed findings of previous empirical studies, precisely on the growth effects of Chinese FDI in Africa. Our results using bilateral FDI data compiled by UNCTAD, the FDI-augmented version of the Solow growth model and the 2SLS estimator indicate a significantly negative direct impact of Chinese FDI on growth in Sub-Saharan Africa while the impact of other FDI sources is statistically insignificant. JEL Classification: B22, E22, F43

Rural Poverty and Artisanal Mining in Sub-Saharan Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 162-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Issah Musah-Surugu Justice ◽  
Albert Ahenkan ◽  
Justice Nyigmah Bawole ◽  
Emmanuel Yeboah-Assiamah
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Rural Poverty ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Single Factor ◽  
Rural People ◽  
Artisanal Mining ◽  
Institutional Failure ◽  
Alternative Livelihood ◽  
Sub Saharan

Attempts to discuss small-scale artisanal mining (ASM) within the lenses of environment–poverty paradox have had two contending schools of thought. The first lens is the most dominant and holds that a single factor, ‘poverty’, drives people into ASM. The second lens contends that multiples of complex factors better explain who and why rural populations elect to enter employment in ASM. The literature appears to have largely focused on the single perspective, while the multi-complex web of factors has been largely ignored or at best just mentioned in passing. Employing the multi-complex perspective, this article provides a novel framework for unpacking the multiple factors that drive rural people into ASM in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We argue that a single factor (‘poverty’) is inadequate to explain why rural people choose ASM as an alternative livelihood source and any policy intervention based on such perspective may rarely succeed. Our discussion highlights that institutional failure, including foreign/external takeover, poor politico-regulatory environment and unfavourable climate have sanctioned rural people to engage in such arduous and unsafe livelihood support activity which degrades the environment. Both theoretical and empirical studies from SSA have been used to support the argument.

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