Cette thèse rend compte de la crise de 1989 en Mauritanie, de ses ressorts lointains et complexes, et du processus inabouti de sortie négociée d’un conflit longtemps recouvert du voile du déni et du silence. Au-delà d’une simple histoire événementielle, elle se propose de considérer les raisons, pour parler comme George Mosse, de la « brutalisation » de la société mauritanienne, la signification dont cette violence et son exacerbation était porteuse et la « politique de réconciliation » initiée par les gouvernements successifs après la chute du président Ould Taya en août 2005. Ce travail, qui est donc une écriture de l’histoire du passé violent et de ses voies d’extrication en Mauritanie, a supposé de notre part de répondre à deux impératifs : premièrement, comprendre le sens des événements, le comment et le pourquoi. Autrement dit, travailler, tout en les interrogeant, à la restitution objective des faits. Deuxièmement, évoquer ce qu’a été la politique de l’Etat mauritanien pour faire face à son histoire problématique, faite de tensions ethniques et sociales, et trouver une issue à la crise. / Cette thèse rend compte de la crise de 1989 en Mauritanie, de ses ressorts lointains et complexes, et du processus inabouti de sortie négociée d’un conflit longtemps recouvert du voile du déni et du silence. Au-delà d’une simple histoire événementielle, elle se propose de considérer les raisons, pour parler comme George Mosse, de la « brutalisation » de la société mauritanienne, la signification dont cette violence et son exacerbation était porteuse et la « politique de réconciliation » initiée par les gouvernements successifs après la chute du président Ould Taya en août 2005. Ce travail, qui est donc une écriture de l’histoire du passé violent et de ses voies d’extrication en Mauritanie, a supposé de notre part de répondre à deux impératifs : premièrement, comprendre le sens des événements, le comment et le pourquoi. Autrement dit, travailler, tout en les interrogeant, à la restitution objective des faits. Deuxièmement, évoquer ce qu’a été la politique de l’Etat mauritanien pour faire face à son histoire problématique, faite de tensions ethniques et sociales, et trouver une issue à la crise.

Le licenciement pour motif personnel, à la différence du licenciement pour motif économique, est intimement lié à la personne du salarié. Il constitue une notion essentielle en droit du travail, qu'on retrouve dans la plupart des États au monde, mais souvent, sous une terminologie différente. Face à ce constat, on serait tenté de se demander si laréglementation du licenciement pour motif personnel est réellement variable d'un pays à un autre. La réponse à cette question suppose une analyse comparée des législations de certains États. À ce titre, seuls la France et le Sénégal, deux États qui sont par ailleurs fortement liés par l'histoire, ont retenu notre attention. L'étude du droit du licenciement pour motif personnel en France et au Sénégal laisse entrevoir à la fois des similitudes et des divergences. Cette situation se justifierait d'ailleurs à plus d'un titre. En effet, parce que la France a constitué la puissance colonisatrice du Sénégal de 1854 jusqu'en 1960, le droit français a largement influencé le droit sénégalais et ce, depuis belle lurette. Mais, on ne peut s'empêcher de constater que cet impact a tendance à s'amenuiser de plus en plus. En effet, il apparait qu'à un moment donné, le législateur sénégalais a pris conscience du fait que l'idéal serait, non pas de mettre en place un droit du travail qui serait en grande partie calqué sur le droit de son ancienne puissance colonisatrice, mais plutôt d'élaborer un droit qui prendrait en compte les spécificités locales et les réalités nationales. Cette volonté du législateur est d'ailleurs visible aussi bien à travers l'ancien Code du travail sénégalais de 1961 qu'au niveau du nouveau Code de 1997. Le législateur de l'OHADA, de son coté, a su quelque peu freiner cette tendance. Une analyse minutieuse des dispositions de l'avant-projet d'acte uniforme portant sur le droit du travail laisse supposer un réel rapprochement avec le droit français actuel. Notre étude constitue donc l'occasion d'analyser cette évolution originale. De façon plus précise, elle permet, non seulement de recenser et d'expliquer les divergences notées au sein des droits français et sénégalais, mais aussi de mettre en exergue les innovations apportées par l'avant-projet d'acte uniforme de l'OHADA portant sur le droit du travail. / The redundancy for personal reason, unlike the redundancy for economic reason,is intimately linked to the person of the employee. It is an essential concept inlabor law, found in most states in the world but often under different terminology. ln front of this report, wc wouId be tried to wonder if the regulations of the redundancy for personal reason are really variable from a country to another.The answer to this question requires a comparative analysis of the laws of certain states. For this reason, only France and Senegal, two States which are, in addition, strongly bound by the history, held our attention. The study of the law of dismissal for personal reason in France and in Senegal suggests both similarities and differences. This is justified also in more ways. Indeed, because France constituted the colonizing power of Senegal from 1854 to1960, French law largely influenced Senegalese law. But today, it seems that this impact tends to fade more and more. Indeed, it appears that at sorne point, Senegalese legislators realized that the ideal would be not to establish a labor law that is largely modeled on the Law of its old colonizing power but rather to develop a law that takes into account local and national realities. This assertion is also visible both through the Senegalese former Labour Code of 1961 than at the new Code of 1997. The OHADA legislator, for his part, has curb this trend. Careful analysis of the provisions of the preliminary Uniform Act on employment law suggests a real reconciliation with current French law. Our study is therefore an opportunity to analyze this original evolution. In a more precise way, it constitutes the occasion to count and explain the divergences noted within the French and Senegalese laws, but also to put forward the innovations brought by the OHADA Law.

This thesis examines the evolving gender relationships exposed by and contested through the Senegalese art of seduction, mokk pooj. The Wolof expression encompasses a set of feminine attitudes and actions (culinary prowess, docility, eroticism) that reflect values such as teraanga (hospitality), sutura (discretion), and muñ (patience, endurance). These beliefs and the discursive practices that perpetuate them are central to the reproduction of a gendered, normative, patriarchal, polygamous Senegalese sexual imaginary, but are framed within the playful and pleasurable realm of seduction and sexuality. Indeed, mokk pooj implies a satisfying sexual life based on a religiously-­‐informed sexual ethics: in a country where 95% of people identify as Muslim, marriage and procreation are divine recommendations, and sexual pleasure is said to make a married couple feel closer to Allah. In consequence, objects and strategies that enhance sexual satisfaction are an integral part of the Senegalese seduction toolkit. Each chapter pays attention to a specific element of the material culture of seduction and explores how it exposes larger gender dynamics. By taking potions and amulets, money, aphrodisiacs, food, and lingerie as the starting point of each chapter, I explore how these objects relate to concepts of social conformity and normativity, love, anxiety, complementarity and agency. In doing so, I analyse the gendered labour – the art/work of seduction – that goes into mokk pooj. David Graeber (2012) suggests that within hierarchical relationships, individuals in an inferior position (women) have to constantly imagine, understand, manage and care about the egos, perspectives and points of view of those on the top (men) while the latter rarely reciprocate. While Graeber contends that this ‘interpretive labor’ or ‘imaginative identification’ reproduces an internalised structural violence, I analyse mokk pooj as an affective economy in which women’s emotional, interpretive labour, becomes an agentive, albeit conservative, tool of negotiation and power (Mahmood 2005). In imagining and interpreting men’s needs and desires, Senegalese women uphold the Senegalese sexual imaginary that portray them as docile and submissive. However, it is through the apparent conformity and subdued demeanour that mokk pooj requires of them that Senegalese women manage to portray themselves as good women and consequently enhance their agentive power of negotiation.

This thesis reports on research into a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme in Senegal: Strengthening Mathematics, Science, and Technologies in Education Project (Projet de Renforcement de l'Enseignement des Mathématiques, des Sciences et de la Technologie, or PREMST). The literature review reveals very few examples of CPD changing teaching practices of teachers especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. However in this case, large-scale official project evaluations claim that some positive changes seem to have occurred, but give few details about the nature of the changes or how they have been brought about. This research seeks to understand the complexities of pedagogical change that teachers have gone through as a result of their participation in the CPD programmes through a more detailed investigation. The research examines the cases of five teachers in three schools that stakeholders claim to have gone through positive changes in the last three years. The research methods include focus-group discussions, lesson observation, and interviews before and after lessons. Lesson observation was aided by video and audio recording engaging with particular actions in the lesson observed. This process allowed me to understand how teachers reflected upon their own teaching and pupils' learning. The research finds that PREMST helped teachers envision how teaching should be conducted, by providing a structured approach to conduct a lesson. A visible change has been brought about in the classroom because the way training is conducted is well-integrated in the learning mechanism of teachers. However, the change in teaching practice has not necessarily brought a positive change in the learning of pupils. Apparent emphasis on group work has changed the modality of lessons, but it has not changed how teachers think about teaching. Given the difficulties involved in pedagogical change, emphasising specific skills may have been the necessary and practical first step, but changing these teaching practices is not enough. The research found that teachers still paid little attention to the learning of individual pupils. Teachers have changed their practices in terms of teaching methods used in the classroom, but the change in pedagogy has remained minimal because they have not understood the underlying premise of the new pedagogy. Unless they realise that their present manner of teaching does not enable the learning of pupils in a sufficient manner, their change is likely to remain at the level of teaching methods, not the pedagogy which incorporates the theories of learning and assumptions behind the practices. A key outcome of the research was to identify the next step for PREMST, namely to redirect the focus of teachers from the teaching procedures to the learning of pupils, by asking them to pay attention to what pupils say or write during the lesson. The thesis concludes by describing how this is being achieved through a shift in focus on classroom practice, through a training model based on lesson study.

La question du financement des Petites et Moyennes entreprises est récurrente partout dans le monde. Elle est encore plus préoccupante en Afrique subsaharienne, alors même que les PME apparaissent comme des acteurs clés pour sortir du sous-développement. Au Sénégal les pouvoirs publics cherchent depuis plusieurs années des solutions pour améliorer l’accès des PME au financement bancaire. Cependant, le problème de financement bancaire demeure le principal obstacle au développement des PME. C’est dans ce sens que nous nous sommes demandé pourquoi les PME sénégalaises rencontrent autant de difficultés à accéder au financement bancaire. L’objectif de notre recherche est d’identifier les facteurs susceptibles d’influencer l’obtention de financement bancaire pour une PME sénégalaise. Notre première phase de recherche a été de faire un état des lieux de la littérature et des études empiriques sur le financement des PME. Sur cette base, nous avons élaboré nos hypothèses de recherche que nous avons testées selon une méthode de recherche mixte. D’une part nous avons adopté une démarche quantitative en élaborant un questionnaire soumis à des dirigeants de PME ; d’autre part nous avons adopté une démarche qualitative en menant des entretiens avec 10 agents de banque et 10 dirigeants de PME. L’analyse de nos hypothèses donne les résultats principaux suivants : l’existence de liens forts positifs entre la disponibilité de garantie, la qualité des documents comptables, la taille de la PME d’une part, et l’obtention de financement bancaire d’autre part ; l’adoption du financement relationnel ainsi que l’existence de relations interpersonnelles favorisent l’accès au financement bancaire. Nos résultats confortent des études antérieures effectuées dans d’autres contextes et peuvent faire l’objet de recommandations aux dirigeants de PME, aux banques et aux pouvoirs publics. / The issue of financing small and medium-sized enterprises is recurrent all over the world. It is even more worrying in sub-Saharan Africa where the SME sector is the chance to get out of underdevelopment. In Senegal, public authorities have been seeking solutions for several years to improve SMEs' access to bank financing. However, the problem of bank financing remains the main obstacle to the development of SMEs. So, we wondered why Senegalese SMEs encounter so many difficulties in accessing bank financing. The objective of our research is to identify the factors likely to influence the obtaining of bank financing for a Senegalese SME. On the basis of a review the literature, we developed our research hypotheses that we tested using a mixed search method. On the one hand we adopted a quantitative approach by developing a questionnaire submitted to SME managers; on the other hand, we have adopted a qualitative approach by conducting interviews with 10 bank agents and 10 SME managers. The analysis of our assumptions shows the following main results: the existence of strong positive links between the availability of guarantee, the quality of the book-keeping, the size of the SME on the one hand, and the obtaining of bank financing; the adoption of relational financing and the existence of interpersonal relationships favor access to bank financing. Our results support previous studies in other contexts and can be the subject of recommendations to SME managers, banks and the public authorities.

Atlantic billfish include sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus), blue marlin (Makaira nigricans), white marlin (Kajikia albida, formerly Tetrapturus albidus) and the spearfishes (Tetrapturus); these fishes are found in tropical and subtropical waters. The spearfishes include the longbill spearfish (T. pfluegeri), the Mediterranean spearfish (T. belone) and the roundscale spearfish (T. georgii). The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) is the regional fishery management organization that conducts research to determine the condition of tuna and billfish resources and supports international cooperative management. ICCAT has determined that blue marlin and white marlin are overfished; the status of sailfish and spearfish are unknown, but overfishing is thought to be occurring. Management of these resources is complicated by uncertainty in the biological models, but uncertainty about the fishers who target these resources. This dissertation studied artisanal fishing fleets that target Atlantic billfish in Venezuela and Ghana, as well as studied recreational charter boat fishing fleets in South Florida and Senegal. The information from these fleets was used to develop performance indicators that evaluate the socioeconomic performance of these fleets. An allocation model was developed to determine the optimal allocation of billfish resources among recreational and artisanal fishers in Ghana, West Africa. Finally, the issues and challenges of managing Atlantic billfish were identified as well as a possible future framework. Results indicate that performance indicators can be used to contrast fleets with different operational objectives. Fishers do produce positive fishing profits in both artisanal and recreational fleets; however, Senegalese recreational anglers are particularly sensitive to fuel costs. Results of the allocation model suggest that the artisanal sector should be allocated 95% of the quota in Ghana. There is the possibility to over-allocate quota to the recreational sector due to methodological differences in determining benefit f and the practice of catch-and-release. ICCAT's limited purview over socioeconomics was identified as the major impediment to effective billfish management. Therefore, it is recommended that the institutional structure for billfish management be modified to include socioeconomic issues, most especially strengthening the link to local institutions in fishing communities.

This research project set out to develop and apply a framework for assessing how energy systems may be structured to help society progress towards sustainability. The general intent was to outline a way to decide upon the things that matter in order to make better decisions that will lead to positive near- and long-term outcomes. There are various ways of reaching the goal described above, and the path chosen in this dissertation centred on Gibson’s (2006) sustainability assessment framework, an approach to integrated sustainability-based decision-making. In order to contribute to extending and specifying Gibson’s approach to sustainability assessment for energy undertakings, this project developed a theoretical framework grounded in various forms of complexity and energy. The journey described in the dissertation begins with an exploration of the complexity of science, the subject of Chapter 2. We live in a world characterized by inherent uncertainty, multiple worldviews, conflicting values, power dynamics and a whole host of other challenges to science and decision-making. Many of the environmental and human challenges we currently face have arisen in part because we do not sufficiently respect the limits to knowledge and the personal biases we all bring to the table. Chapter 2 develops a framework for knowledge generation and decision-making situated within its social context, and operationalizes this framework through the process of criteria specification. Drawing from multiple sources of data – particularly documentary analysis, semi-structured interviews and observation – the criteria specification cycle provided the means of and determining and deciding upon the things that matter in a given case and context. The complexity of science is only half the story emerging from the complex systems literature. From a different perspective, it is evident that we live in a world of complex dynamics and interconnections, and it is important to ensure that whatever energy paths we set out on recognize these dynamics. Fortunately, there is a wide range of literature relating to the characteristics of complex systems in general, as well as their energy and material flows in societies. These literatures are explored in Chapter 3 to develop an understanding of and guidelines for managing complex systems to the extent possible and appropriate. Building on the theory developed in Chapters 2 and 3, the discussion in Chapter 4 began to develop an understanding of energy systems and energy decision-making and was structured around three general questions: (1) what is the energy problem? (2) what are the characteristics of an appropriate and constructive relationship with energy? and (3) how can the necessary and desired sociotechnical systems changes be achieved. These questions were largely addressed through an exploration of the soft energy path and transition management and led to two sets of guidelines designed to address energy systems structure and change. The theoretical framework developed over Chapters 2-4 was consolidated into a proposed set of sustainability criteria for energy undertakings. The sustainability criteria set represents the principal theoretical contribution of the dissertation to the academy and the broader assessment community, and outlines a suite of generally desirable system attributes and actions for achieving progress towards sustainability, as opposed to an acceptability threshold. The proposed sustainability criteria are primarily intended for application regarding energy undertakings at a wide variety of scales, but are much more broadly relevant. In a manner that is more iterative than can be described in this abstract, the sustainability assessment framework described in this dissertation was applied in, and enriched through, four distinct case studies that assessed (1) the 2006 Ontario Integrated Power Systems Plan proposed by the Ontario Power Authority. The Integrated Power Systems Plan was originally framed as a coal versus nuclear problem, as opposed to a critical appraisal of power systems planning; and in doing so it underplayed potential for conservation, demand management, increased renewable energy, and social change; (2) a small-scale biodiesel operation in Barbados. The plant owner collected used cooking oil from restaurants, roadside stands, and individual homes, and converted it into biodiesel using a first-generation processing technology known as transesterification. (3) a sugarcane-ethanol plant in the Tietê-Jacaré Watershed of São Paulo, Brazil. The sugarcane ethanol mill harvests approximately 21,000 hectares of sugarcane crops from seven municipalities and produces hydrated ethanol for domestic markets, and sugar for domestic and international markets; and (4) the agricultural and energy systems in Senegal. Senegal suffers from significant deforestation and soil fertility decline coupled with demographic change. The many interconnections between the energy and agricultural systems require an integrated assessment of both. Each individual case study stands alone in providing novel insights emerging from application of the framework in the particular case and context. At the more general level, five important insights emerged from the case studies, including: (1) the benefits of, and need for, maintaining a flexible unit of analysis so as to improve problem structuring; (2) the importance of grounding an assessment within its context; (3) the benefits of seeking integration and positive indirect effects; (4), the need to plan for and develop energy bridges towards feasible and desirable energy futures; and (5), the need for caution in the face of thresholds and uncertainty. The individual and general insights from the case studies were incorporated into the most recent version of the sustainability assessment framework described in this dissertation. The framework is suitable for application, with specification for particular case and context, to all types of energy systems at all scales.

This research begins to explore what political tools are necessary to elevate women’s position in society by transforming legislation. Women in Francophone West Africa do not enjoy certain basic rights and there is need to improve their status. The promotion and appointment of women to the position of prime minister, Mame Madior Boyé in Senegal in 2001 and Mariam Kaidama Cissé Sidibé in Mali in 2011, gives us hope that women-friendly agendas will be given priority. I pose the question: Did the appointment of these two women to the heads of their respective governments improve the status of women and their political representation in West Africa? There is existing research that suggests that more women in government increases the visibility of women’s issues. I argue that simply having women in positions of power is not sufficient; participation in informal politics and civil society is imperative. These women have to go into the position with a commitment to women’s issues and a willingness to work with the already existent networks of women’s associations dedicated to furthering women’s rights. I study the successful passage of a new woman-friendly constitution in Senegal. In particular, I look at each participant’s role in making this happen, the associations who pushed for reforms for many years, the reformist president Wade, and Boyé who was a founding member of one of the central women’s associations, the Association of Senegalese Female Legal Practitioners. I compare this with the unsuccessful signing of new family code in Mali. I discuss the disinterest and indecisiveness of the president and Sidibé, as well as the influence of the strong opposition from the conservative High Islamic Council. There are also institutional barriers to change, namely the pluralist legal system of customary law, Islamic law, and state law. Finally, I discuss other possible reasons for the differences in these two countries’ results, such as Senegal’s longer history of democracy and general acceptance of modernity and women’s rights.

Participatory action research (PAR) oriented by an eco-system health framework is one approach to involving marginalised peoples in their own problem solving. A PAR project during 2005-06 that engaged peri-urban farmers in Senegal using popular education documented change on environment and health perceptions and behaviour. Health as a theme took on greater importance, as farmers related good health to their ability to work and their overall productivity. Farmers came to better recognize the symptoms of pesticide poisoning and to establish more clearly the link between pesticide-related work practices and health effects. Less clear remained their recognition of symptoms and links with wastewater use practices, though malaria and parasitic infection were linked to urban agriculture. African worldviews, including notions of locus of power, were important determinants of perceived vulnerability to risks. Farmers cited fatigue as an important clue to the work-health interface and indicator of overall wellbeing. Farmers’ understanding evolved to become more dynamic, describing the complex web of environmentally-related health risk. By 2006, farmers experimented more with less toxic pest control methods, adjusted their clothing to protect their skin and mouth, and reduced some exposure pathways through improved hygiene behaviour. However, toxic pesticides continued to be used and exposure to wastewater with limited protection remained widespread. Change was dependent upon: the researcher’s deep understanding of how farmers learned; farmers’ trust in the purveyors of new information; and the clarity, consistency and relevance of messages devised. Change varied with farmers’ literacy; the language used; and the way in which tools and media were interpreted culturally and technically. The health belief model provided a partial explanation for changes in perceptions and behaviour. Social, political and economic barriers preventing change included: leaving the onus for change on farmers, diminishing the responsibility of pesticide manufacturers and governments; land tenure arrangements which reduced investment in health and environment protection; urban poverty and illiteracy; and eco-system constraints. Examination of the PAR process, its leadership, owners, tools and ideas developed, and knowledge created provided useful insight into issues of power and control.

As immigrants arrive in a new culture, they must modify their behaviors to adapt to their host society. Through a review of current literature, I will examine the psychological and sociological aspects of immigration and the effects on migrant identity. I will argue that migrants most desire a bicultural identity, in which they retain some elements of their ethno-cultural identity while adopting some values of French society. The construction of a bicultural identity presents a challenge due to the particular philosophical foundations of the French nation-state and French culture. In the next chapter, I will analyze the challenges Senegalese migrants confront as they seek to build a bicultural identity. France’s assimilationist tradition presents an ideological barrier to successful integration and a model which must be examined to understand France’s identity politics. Resulting secondary barriers are evident in France’s social and economic policies, which have an exclusionary impact on immigrants and ethnic minorities. Senegalese migrants comprise a particularly vulnerable minority group in France, and socioeconomic pressures are especially influential on the integration of Senegalese migrants due to religious differences, the practice of polygamy, a high concentration in the service sector, and one the largest average household sizes. I will examine how France’s policies and societal behavior affect Senegalese-migrant identity and integration. In the last chapter, I will examine Senegalese perceptions of France and immigration, which are radically different from the true experiences of Senegalese migrants in France.