The Nordic Africa Institute – Publications

Droughts have severely affected the pastoral production system resulting in hunger, massive loss of livestock, acute water shortages, and drought-related conflicts. This study aimed to understand the drought adaptive mechanisms from a gender perspective in Modogashe Ward, Kenya. To achieve this, the study investigated the impacts of droughts and the various ways in which men and women cope and adapt to the impacts. Due to the homogeneousness in sociocultural and economic activities in the Ward data was obtained from 60 respondents comprising 30 males and 30 females through a stratified random sampling method. One respondent, either the husband or wife, was chosen per household. Both men and women rely on pastoralism as the main source of livelihood. Thus, the impacts and adaptation mechanisms were similar for both genders. However, due to the attachment of men to livestock, the impacts and adaptation mechanisms revolved around environmental factors while those of women revolved around the provision of household basic needs. Furthermore, the study area had limited adaptation mechanisms options resulting in similar coping and adaptation strategies among men and women but with minor variations in the preferred strategies. The variations in the preferred strategies were a reflection of the existing gender roles within the social construct of the community. Men were inclined toward measures that promote livestock keeping while women preferred measures that enhanced the provision of household basic needs. The findings from this study highlight the significant role of gender dimensions driven by the local socio-cultural settings in influencing the uptake of drought adaptation practices and strategies among communities.

This working paper explores the perspectives of young men and women in rural Kenya on social equity and climate adaptation. It draws on research conducted in three Endorois indigenous communities in Baringo County. Focus group discussions addressed young people’s understandings and experiences of social equity and fairness, empowerment, collective action, local governance, natural resource management, and climate adaptation. By applying a social equity lens to young people’s understandings and interpretations of the risks and opportunities they face, this research aims to identify entry points that empower them to advance their own lives and communities in ways they value. The findings suggest that young men and women perceive their communities as largely equitable — despite facing compounding disadvantages that include climate change and loss of livestock, the mainstay of their livelihoods. They value social equity and fairness, advocating for a balanced approach that prioritizes the most vulnerable, treats people equally, and ensures inclusive decision-making guided by competent leaders. Based on these understandings, they emphasize the strength of their village institutions and of their generation’s agency and capabilities. Nevertheless, the testimonies also reveal significant barriers to achieving equitable climate adaptation, related to the need for greater access to resources and opportunities. Young women, especially, report a deep sense of marginalization and experience significant gender inequalities, noting their limited participation in the institutions and networks governing decision-making and resource distribution within their households and communities. Despite these challenges, both young women and men in the study had attained education at high school or college level, and felt empowered by their academic achievements. Their aspirations for improving their lives and strengthen their villages’ resilience to climate change offer a basis for optimism. The study proposes investing in stakeholder capacity, fostering youth leadership and intergenerational exchanges, and developing strategies and partnerships responsive to the needs of rural youth, with particular concern for young women’s inclusion. It underscores the importance of locally-led governance, inclusive decision-making, and collective action as key to achieving equitable climate adaptation and social transformation.

In the mountainous areas of south-western Uganda, peasant miners are characterized aspeople who ‘work for the stomach’ and pursue an unsustainable activity: extracting alluvialgold with artisanal technology. After days of hard work in the mines, they allegedly squander their money on alcohol and sex. A common way of disapproving of these miners’ behaviour isto compare them to lake fishers (ababariya). By focusing on the ababariya narrative as anentry point into the lifeways of miners, and the relationship between mining and fishing andagriculture, we explore how peasant miners think about a sustainable life. Our argument isthat the ababariya can be instrumental in the reproduction and legitimization of existing social and economic inequalities. We therefore examine the contexts that frame the ababariyanarrative and the inequalities that it legitimizes. This leads us to reflect on whether this narrative on ‘excessive behaviours’ reveals something about an alternative way of thinkingabout economy and social relationships based on abundance rather than scarcity.

The recent South African election marked a historic shift, as the ANC lost the parliamentary majority it had held ever since the end of apartheid. Women remain underrepresented in both parliament and government. Leaving aside the numbers, the new political landscape, with its multiparty cabinet and increasingly violent opposition, has brought fresh challenges for women in politics. They will have to join forces across party lines to resist the rise of big man politics, marked by patriarchal behaviour and violent masculinity.

Policymakers at the local/city government level are crucial to continental integration projects like the African free trade agreement and the free movement protocol. However, they are not represented in the African Union (AU) and other international bodies where such projects are negotiated and designed. City-to-city cooperation between Africa’s two major economic hubs, Lagos and Johannesburg, would not only unleash strategic synergies and drive continental integration, but would also leverage private-sector involvement and influence other cities to enter into similar cross-border partnerships.

Turning a blind eye to the complexity of insecurities in Africa, peacebuilding discourses and practices on the continent have been too much focused on military interventions in regions like the Sahel, notably Mali. This paper critiques prevalent conceptualizations and practices, highlighting their shortcomings in effectively addressing the specific regional realities of the continent. It argues for a more nuanced understanding of African contexts, emphasizing the need to incorporate local perspectives and traditional governance structures into peacebuilding efforts. Additionally, it critiques the dominance of Western methods and perspectives in peacebuilding policies and advocates for greater recognition of African agency in defining and addressing security challenges. Overall, the paper recommends a hybrid and inclusive approach to peacebuilding that integrates indigenous knowledge and local capacities alongside international frameworks.

Recent climate changes have increased the incidences of severe droughts and floods, which have increased the vulnerability ofpastoralists in the Kenyan drylands. Thus, there is a need to carry out a situational analysis of groundwater as it is the main source ofwater which provides baseline information useful for planning Analysis of results indicates that Turkana County is dominated byshallow wells and boreholes with the shallowest wells located along the seasonal rivers and Lake Turkana. The borehole depth wasfound to range between 20 to 200m. Most of the boreholes located near Lake Turkana were shallower compared to those far away fromthe lake with a depth ranging between 0 to 52m. Most of the boreholes had a low yield that ranged between 1.2 to 4.6m3/hr be attributedto the basement rocks which are prevalent in the county and are classified as poor aquifers. The water points were mainly dense inurban areas, which was mainly the central region where the water demand was high and this was attributed to the high population. Thegroundwater levels occurred mostly at 13m indicating that Turkana County has mostly shallow aquifers that predominantly occurredalong the river valleys and at the edge of the volcanic deposits. The groundwater quality is mainly saline as most of the boreholes hadhigh TDS, EC and chloride levels. The presence of high fluoride levels indicates the presence of high volcanic rocks that have highfluoride ions that are largely prevalent in the study region. The Sulphate, Nitrite and Nitrate Levels in all the water samples analyzedwere below the EU, WHO and KEBs standards indicating the low anthropogenic activities carried out in the drylands as most farmersare pastoralists. The most prevalent cation was sodium in some of the boreholes indicating why the groundwater was saline.

We examine the perceived business risks and impacts on performance associated with the Russian aggression in Ukraine in February 2022 among 450 Egyptian small and medium-sized agrifood enterprises. Our analysis identifies six distinct clusters of enterprises based on their perceived risks and three clusters based on the observed impacts of the war. We find a strong association between perceived business risks and observed impacts, suggesting that the risks identified by agrifood SMEs significantly influence their actual business performance. This underscores the importance of understanding and effectively managing perceived risks to mitigate the negative impacts of external shocks, enhance operational resilience, and improve overall performance. Moreover, the results indicate that the consequences of the war extend beyond direct effects on agrifood enterprises, affecting various stages of the agrifood chain. This implies that, in times of crisis, the absence of a well-functioning agrifood SME sector may threaten the sustainability of the entire agrifood value chain. These insights contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the experiences of agrifood SMEs during the early stages of the war, helping policymakers and enterprises prioritize risk management strategies and allocate resources effectively to enhance performance and competitiveness in times of crisis.

A study of the perspectives of young indigenous men and women in rural communities in Kenya shows that strong institutions for local governance, inclusive decision-making and collective action are key for social equity and climate adaptation. To achieve this, we need to: (1) invest in the capacities of stakeholders to promote locally-led climate and equity initiatives; (2) promote young women’s and men’s leadership and networks, together with inter-generational exchange of experiences; and (3) build strategies and partnerships that are responsive to locally-identified youth needs.