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The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped societies and will continue to do so. Despite its salience, micro-scale evidence on how this pandemic reshapes the livelihood strategies of forest communities in sub-Saharan Africa are lacking. To bridge this lacuna, this paper analyses the dynamics around forest-based livelihood strategies in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Bia West District of Ghana. Key informant interviews (n = 8) and a survey of forest-dependent households (n = 100) were conducted to generate relevant data. The study identified fuelwood harvesting, medicinal plants extraction, fruit-gathering and beekeeping as the four livelihood activities that were predominantly practised in the study communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis established an increase in the number of households that diversified into fuelwood harvesting. Regarding medicinal plants collection as a livelihood strategy, less than 10% of households either diversified or intensified this practice with similar charges recorded in fruit-gathering and beekeeping. The logistic regression disclosed gender, household size, education and income, as the socioeconomic variables that significantly predict livelihood diversification and intensification during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the financial, social and physical asset base of households significantly shaped livelihood diversification. Diversification into fuelwood collection, medicinal plants extraction and beekeeping were the strategies that showed a significant positive correlation with the well-being outcomes of forest-based households. While this paper provides fresh evidence to inform the vulnerability dimension of the sustainable livelihoods framework, it further calls for policy interventions to build pandemic-resilient livelihood strategies around forest communities.

The aim of this thesis is to explore how livelihoods are recovering in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka through the lens of the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and the social networks approach—methods of inquiry that have gained considerable impetus in livelihoods research. The study is conducted with reference to two tsunami-affected fisher villages in the Hambantota District, Southern Province. It employs a qualitative ethnographic methodology that examines narratives emerging from households, local officials of government and non-government organizations, office bearers of community-based organizations, local politicians, village leaders, and key informants. Focus is on evaluating how particular roles, activities, and behaviour are given importance by these groups in specific post-tsunami contexts and how these aspects relate to broader conceptualizations of social networks, informal politics, social inequality, and ethnographic research in South Asia. The findings support four major contributions to the literature. First, social networks are significant as an object of study and a method of inquiry in understanding livelihoods post-disaster. Second, paying heed to varied forms of informal politics is critical in post-disaster analyses. Third, the concept of intersectionality can extend and improve upon prevailing approaches to social inequality in disaster recovery. Fourth, ethnographic research is valuable for understanding everyday networks, informal politics, and change in South Asia. Collectively, these findings present a human geography of post-tsunami livelihoods in Sri Lanka, where networks, politics, and inequalities, which form an essential part of everyday livelihoods, have been reproduced in disaster recovery. The thesis constitutes a means of offering expertise in the sphere of development practice, highlighting internal differentiation in access to aid as a key issue that needs to be identified and systematically addressed by policymakers and practitioners.

Tanzania is among the poorest countries in the world, with most of its population living in rural areas. Like most other developing countries, rural households' access to financial services is very limited. The government has adopted series of economic reform measures since mid-1980s that include financial liberalization. Liberalization of the financial sector facilitated participation of private financial institutions, restructuring of public financial institutions and privatization, elimination of interest rate controls, credit allocation and targeting. In addition, the role of the Bank of Tanzania in supervision and regulation of financial institutions was strengthened. Following the privatization of the financial sector, the number of financial service providers increased and diversified, which include commercial banks, development banks, insurance and social security funds, and capital markets. The role of the central bank was re-defined and strengthened in terms of price stability, supervision and regulation. Although there is an increase in financial sector service providers and products, rural households' access to financial services did not improve. To the contrary access to formal financial services is diminishing significantly, hence making poverty reduction initiatives more difficult. This study analyzed constraints to access to rural financial services, examined its impact on rural households' livelihoods, and recommended appropriate financial sector development strategies. The data for the study were collected from various sources - both primary and secondary. Primary data were collected from selected thirteen villages in Babati and government offices in the district through interviews, focus group discussions, questionnaire, and observation. Secondary information was gathered from documentary sources in the form of reports, records and review of literature. A combination of analytical tools was used - qualitative and quantitative. The study observed that history of rural finance in Tanzania is associated with colonialization of Tanganyika. The German colonial administration was the first to introduce establishment of modern commercial banking in the country in 1905 when the Deutsche Ostafrikanische bank opened a branch in Dar es Salaam. The British colonial administration, after the defeat of Germans in World War I, promoted establishment of commercial banks in Tanganyika in order to support commercialization of the economy. Consequently, German banks were replaced and commercial bank branches were established in other parts of the country. The independent government undertook massive re-organization of the financial sector and much attention was put on agricultural credit. Agricultural credit was organized through specialized agricultural credit organizations that corroborated with state owned commercial banks. However, the co-operative movement were assigned important role in credit administration on the ground as they are closer to the beneficiaries. The financial structure after independence up to the 1990s, when reforms were ushered in, is characterized by state owned financial institutions with pervasive interference. Credit was directed on the basis of the government priorities with little regard to credit worthiness analysis. The National Bank of Commerce (NBC) and Co-operative and Rural Development Bank (CRDB) were the dominant banks that implemented the government monetary policy. Emphasis was put on credit and savings mobilization was neglected. The CRDB operated mostly on managing donor funds meant for rural development. Liberalization of the financial sector was introduced through the Banking and Financial Institutions Act (BAFIA) of 1991 to address the weaknesses observed in the financial sector. It was envisaged to improve access to financial services through enhanced competition, increased and diversified financial products and providers, and improved integration of the financial system. However, assessment of the impact of the financial liberalization has mixed results. While there are distinct expansion in financial institutions, products and services; these are more concentrated in urban areas and accessed mostly by wealthy clients. Consequently, rural households' access to finance is diminishing. On the other hand, most financial institutions continue to employ traditional banking approaches - of insistence on collateral, preference for less risky category of clients, bias towards large loans, and bureaucratic procedures in providing loans. Besides, there are limited initiatives in product innovation, design of appropriate delivery mechanisms, and high interest rates spreads that discouraged potentials borrowers and depositors. As a result of poor access to financial services, most households have strengthened self-financing mechanisms through the informal arrangements. Although, the semi-formal - especially member based financial institutions and some Financial NGOs (FiNGOs) are attempting to correct the financial imbalances, their outreach, products and services are still limited. While there are improvement in supervision and regulation of the financial sector, it must be noted that prudential regulation and supervisions as part of the financial infrastructure if not carefully used, will undermine the efficiency of the financial market. The study concludes that rural households need a variety of financial products that include savings facilities, loans, insurance, leasing, and means of transfer payments. The degree of demand for these products is, however, determined by household's level of poverty, household size, level of education and skills, life cycle needs, and local market opportunities. However, financial sector reforms had little impact on households' livelihoods. Its implementation is associated with an increase in inequalities and poverty. Besides, there is a reduced funding as well as investment in agriculture, which forms the key sector of the economy. Consequently, the performance of the agricultural sector has been declining although its contribution to GDP is still significant. Assessing the supply and demand for rural financial services, it is concluded that rural areas are hardly served by banks hence limiting access to financial services. Prior to liberalization, government owned financial institutions provided limited financial services to rural areas organized through co-operatives and specialized credit agencies. CRDB was responsible for organization of credit for farm inputs, while NBC provided crop finance. In addition, CRDB also facilitated rural development programmes through donor funds. With the liberalization of the financial sector - co-operatives have collapsed, development banks are no longer active, and commercial banks have withdrawn from serving rural areas, thus creating a "supply gap" that is being replaced by informal finance. Furthermore, the study observed that demands for financial services is determined by age of the borrower, household size, and distance from a financial institution, the cost of borrowing that include loan transaction costs plus interest rate charged, bank procedures and conditions, policy and regulatory framework and institutional and infrastructural conditions. The study recommends the following: (i) Continued efforts for establishment of supportive macroeconomic and sectoral policies - financial, fiscal, monetary & rural development - and legal and regulatory framework that facilitates the growth of the rural financial markets, (ii) A facilitative intervention by the government in the development of the financial markets that addresses the national poverty reduction development objective through economic growth is required. The desired actions are those that focus on improvement in demand for financial services, reduced bureaucratic banking conditions, reduced transactions costs, improved infrastructure, and reduction of other structural bottlenecks limiting access to financial services, (iii) Development of appropriate financial institutions and products relevant for the rural sector requires government guidance through policy, development of appropriate financial infrastructure (legal, regulation and information), and incentive mechanisms. (iv) Intervention by the government in institutional and infrastructural development is required so as to facilitate the functioning of markets. There must be purposive investment strategy that supports development of the public infrastructure - such as transport and communication, electricity, security system, and research and development. Institutional development - judiciary machinery, credit bureaus, and property rights and business registry are required. Furthermore, training and capacity building so as to change peoples' mindsets concerning loans and savings mobilization, and (v) There is a need for building up a "New Role" for financial institutions. Financial institutions need to revisit their financial terms and conditions in favor of the development of RFMs, especially in terms of bank conditions, interest rate spreads, demand for collateral, and requirements for addressing the needs of the poor and rural population, Furthermore, financial institutions need to become more innovative in developing new products and services, improvement in organization of rural financial institutions, delivery mechanisms, and establishment of the institutional framework for integration of MFIs into the national financial system in the country. The following areas require further studies: (i) development of realistic rural development strategy that covers, among others, the development of the financial markets, (ii) institutionalization of the rural property ownership rights in order to establish how these can be used productively, through say mortgage, collateral, and/or sale for cash income, and (iii) Mechanisms for enforcement of loan repayments in rural areas - especially the lessons from informal operators. Experiences have shown that under informal credit arrangements, there are few default cases as opposed to formal commercial credit practices. / Development Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Development Studies)

This thesis examines the relationship between environmental stress and human mobility with a view to understanding the impacts of climate change on human migration. Using a conjuncture of political ecology and migration theory, it firstly explores the literature on 'environmental refugees' identifying a distinction between general agreement on the existence of a relationship between environmental stress and migration, and debate over the appropriateness of the 'environmental refugee' as a suitable means for representing that relationship. Secondly this conjuncture is used to examine accounts from farmers and migrants in northern Ethiopia, with a focus on understanding how environmental and non-environmental factors interact to shape mobility decisions in a context of environmental stresses, thought analogous to those predicted to accompany future climate change. The principal finding of the study is that although environmental stress matters in mobility decisions, it does so due to the context of non-environmental factors in which it occurs, not in spite of them. With this in mind the work provides a framework of additive, vulnerability, enabling and barrier effects as a means for elaborating our understanding of how environmental and non-environmental factors interact to determine mobility strategies in a context of environmental stress. Focussing on the role of non-environmental factors, the work reveals that while biophysical features operate at a macro-scale to shape mobility decisions, these decisions are determined by non-environmental features operating at a micro-scale. The research then traces differences in the existence of these micro-scale, non-environmental, factors across two field sites, finding that their origins lie in both historical and contemporary forces of regional and global political economy. As such, the work concludes that understanding the relationship between climate change and human migration will require a contextualisation of that relationship within this broader framework.

Population displacement has long been a controversial companion of development. The central tension has been between the position challenging the kind of development that removes people from their homes, livelihoods and communities, and a managerial position that the impoverishment risks of displacement can be mitigated through an effective intervention. Whereas recent research has been devoted to unpacking a rather unsuccessful performance of involuntary resettlement as a mitigation measure, this study aims to question the assumption of mitigation itself by expanding the concept of development impacts beyond the realm of displacement. Through an empirical study of a railway project in Metro Manila, the Philippines, I examine how urban residents are affected by a large-scale demolition and displacement that took place in their locality. Semi-structured interviews were conducted along the railway tracks after the land was cleared of informal settlements since the study placed particular focus on residents who were not physically displaced. They are identified in my research as non-displaced people. Few studies have addressed the possibility that other people might have been adversely affected in situ and this is particularly so in urban areas. Empirical findings reveal that the physical environment and socio-economic relationships in the locality were significantly transformed through the clearance; impacting the tenure status, livelihoods and social milieu of non-displaced people. Tenure security was important for avoiding displacement but was not a definitive factor as a number of people are still informal settlers who continue to be faced with other eviction threats. For the non-displaced, the physical change of the locality became relevant when their productive capital, notably, a second house or business space, was affected. The loss or erosion of physical capital had a secondary impact on livelihoods, which was compounded by the rupture in the local livelihood network following a mass population outflow. Whereas the income of locally-based businesses decreased substantially, livelihoods that operate beyond the locality remain relatively resilient. Differentiated experiences of a local change are also reflected in a range of evaluations that describe local social ambiance before and after the event. Diverse ways in which non-displaced people were affected underline that the current conceptualisation of impacts is limited to one dimension of displacement. This raises the need to adopt a more holistic and disaggregated approach to understanding the complexities of development impacts. A discussion on whether and how they can be mitigated would benefit further from such a comprehensive study.

Thesis (MA (Sociology and Social Anthropology))--Stellenbosch University, 2009. / ENGLISH SUMMARY: Women’s livelihoods are not only experienced differently, but are articulated in different ways. This dissertation begins from the understanding that women’s livelihoods are processual, complex and contextual. They are embedded in multifarious processes, structures, discourses and everyday practices, which are locally defined and globally linked. This thesis interrogates women’s articulations of empowerment and agency that were central to their community and entrepreneurial activities. Women’s social actions and responses to constraints and transformation they encountered in the valley were sites of struggle. Informed by local women’s perspectives and articulations of empowerment, this ethnography focuses on how women practiced their livelihoods: how they manoeuvred, negotiated and performed their livelihood tactics in response to local, national and global constraints. The study narrates how women in a rural valley in the Winelands of the Western Cape (South Africa) spoke of how they felt ‘empowered’ despite constraints. They claimed that they exhibited productive moments and harnessed opportunities to rise above constraints. They felt that in general men in their communities were passive in their response to crisis in the valley. Women’s narratives of empowerment in the Dwars River Valley invoked ideas of ‘women of steel’ and ‘moments’ of agency. These helped to re-fashion local gender orders and rehabilitate notions of ‘appropriate’ women’s work. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die bestaanswyses van vroue word nie slegs in die uitleef daarvan waargeneem nie, maar is dikwels ook ‘n fokus van gespreksvoering. Die uitgangspunt van hierdie tesis is dat vroue se bestaanswyses metodies, kompleks en kontekstueel is. Dit word begrond deur uiteenlopende prosesse, strukture, diskoerse, en alledaagse gebruike wat plaaslik gedefinieer word en globaal gebonde is. Hierdie tesis ondersoek vroue se artikulasie van bemagtiging en agentskap wat sentraal tot hul gemeenskap en entrepreneurskap aktiwiteite staan. Vroue se sosiale handelinge en reaksies tot struikelblokke en transformasie wat hulle in die vallei in die gesig gestaar het, is beduidend van ‘n plek van worsteling. Hierdie etnografie word toegelig deur plaaslike vroue se perspektiewe en artikulasie van bemagtiging en fokus op hoe hulle hul bestaanswyse beoefen het: hoe vroue bestaanswyse taktieke gemanipuleer, onderhandel en ook uitgevoer het as reaksie op plaaslike, nasionale en globale beperkinge. Hierdie studie vertel hoe vroue in ‘n landelike vallei van die Wynlande in die Wes-Kaap (Suid-Afrika) praat oor hoe hul ‘bemagtig’ voel, ten spyte van beperkinge. Hulle voer aan dat hul produktiewe oomblikke vertoon en gebruik maak van geleenthede om bo beperkinge uit te styg. Hulle voel dat mans oor die algemeen passief in hul reaksie op krisis is. Vroue se verhale van bemagtiging in die Dwars Rivier Vallei roep beelde op van ‘vroue van staal’ en ‘oomblikke’ van agentskap. Dit het bygedra tot die herskepping van plaaslike gender rolle en die hervestiging van idees oor ‘gepaste’ werk vir vroue.

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This report addresses the problem: how to improve approaches to fish seed production in smallholder aquaculture systems of Northeast Thailand? The work was carried out as a component of the U.K. Government Department for International Development Aquaculture Research Programme funded project, R7052: Improving freshwater fish seed supply and performance in smallholder aquaculture systems in Asia. From 1997 to 2003 the project worked in collaboration with regional partners in Bangladesh, Laos P.D.R., Thailand and Vietnam on constraints to seed production and distribution. The research problem called for improvement, implying that change was required in the way that seed was produced. The hypothesis that active collaboration in research by seed producers and institutional partners, facilitated by project staff would enable all participants to extend their understanding of the situation, contribute to the knowledge base and that resulting accommodations would lead to a continuous process of planning, action and reflection toward changes required for improvement. Reflection on the project outputs indicated that quality of fish seed was variable but there was no agreement on the nature of the problem among stakeholders. The decision was made to shift the research focus away from looking for technical problems and to focus instead on examining ways that existing knowledge could be integrated in a learning process with key stakeholders. The research problem then became to find an appropriate, effective and efficient methodology to achieve this; participatory action research was chosen for evaluation. Participatory action research is a collaborative approach involving the researcher in a facilitative role working with stakeholder groups to enable systematic investigation of issues, planning and action to resolve the issues. Outcomes should be action and public knowledge that feed in to further reflection and action in an ongoing learning cycle. Implementation of the methodology was carried out over two stages; the first planned set of activities involved extension of the existing collaborative arrangement with the Thai Government Department of Fisheries (DoF) and the Asian Institute of Technology Aqua Outreach Programme (AOP) in order to prepare a field research team and plan for field activities. The second stage was participatory action research field work which involved invitations to collaborate being extended to four formal groups and one informal group of hatchery operators in two Provinces of Northeast Thailand. Research facilitated by the research team used a range of participatory methods for identification and prioritisation issues, analysis, action planning, monitoring and evaluation. Actions were supported by the project logistically and financially. The exploratory approach to project planning meant that monitoring processes was as important as monitoring specific indicators. The output of the first set of activities was a formal agreement to collaborate however the strength of the collaboration was indicated by the low level of commitment shown by the DoF and AOP representatives in planning and team building. The lack of commitment had important implications for impact and sustainability of the research. Greater attention to the partnership process was an important lesson. Four of the hatchery operators’ groups approached accepted the invitation to collaborate with the project. This collaboration resulted in a range of knowledge outcomes, the development of social relations horizontally within the hatchery groups and vertically to include individuals from service providing agencies in the local administration. Participatory evaluation by participants and the DoF partners was positive. Evaluation of the project indicated that the approach was; appropriate in terms of the needs of primary stakeholders, the requirements of the donor and the circumstances under which it was carried out; effective in achieving knowledge outcomes that contributed to gains in livelihood assets for participants but ineffective in influencing the policies, institutions and processes that would have ensured sustainable impact from the collaboration as a result of the shortcomings in the institutional partnership arrangements; efficient in terms of resource use to obtain outputs and also in emergence of lessons to inform future practice.