Showing papers by "Christophe Béné published in 2012"

Resilience: New Utopia or New Tyranny? Reflection about the Potentials and Limits of the Concept of Resilience in Relation to Vulnerability Reduction Programmes

Abstract: Resilience is becoming influential in development and vulnerability reduction sectors such as social protection, disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. Policy makers, donors and international development agencies are now increasingly referring to the term. In that context, the objective of this paper was to assess in a critical manner the advantages and limits of resilience. While the review highlights some positive elements –in particular the ability of the term to foster integrated approach across sectors– it also shows that resilience has important limitations. In particular it is not a pro-poor concept, and the objective of poverty reduction cannot simply be substituted by resilience building.

Shocks and social protection in the Horn of Africa : analysis from the Productive Safety Net Programme in Ethiopia

Abstract: Summary Using panel data from the Ethiopian Productive Safety Net Program, this paper explores the degree to which this social protection programme has been successful in protecting its beneficiaries against the various shocks that have affected the Horn of Africa in the recent past. The analysis suggests that although the PSNP has managed to improve households’ food security and wellbeing, the positive effects of the programme are not robust enough to shield recipients completely against the impacts of severe shocks.

Analysis of power in fisheries co-management: experiences from Malawi

Abstract: In this article we analyze co-management arrangements in Malawi through the lenses of the concept of power We focus the analysis at the local level where most of the more important actors operate These include the fishing communities and the Department of Fisheries, but also the traditional leaders and the new local management entities created through co-management reforms—the so-called beach village committees Our analysis, based on decentralization and power frameworks, shows that co-management arrangements are characterized by unequal power distribution among these different actors, often resulting in the marginalization of the fishers themselves In this new institutional landscape the role of the perceived key partners including the traditional leaders and the Department of Fisheries remains unclear, with a combination of both positive and negative outcomes

Vulnerability and adaptation of African rural populations to hydro-climate change: experience from fishing communities in the Inner Niger Delta (Mali)

Abstract: In this paper we examine ways Sahelian floodplain fishers have adapted to the strong environmental variations that have affected the region in the last two decades. We analyse their vulnerability and adaptive capacity in the face of expected changes in rainfall combined with the predicted effects of dam construction. Data from the Inner Niger Delta in Mali were used to show that fishers were highly sensitive to past and recent variations in the hydro-climatic conditions. Moreover, it appears their traditional livelihood strategies, although diversified, sophisticated and well suited to historical conditions, offer a limited set of options to adapt to increased environmental constraints. For fish-dependent households that have adopted a mixed set of activities through farming, the high seasonality and constraints characterizing both their main activities (fishing and farming) does not allow switching between activities. For those households that undertake seasonal fishing migrations, there is little opportunity to modify migration routes or find new settlements sites inside the delta because of the high population density in this area. In sum, although the adoption of diversified and spatially discrete patterns in livelihood activities is often presented as a strategy to reduce vulnerability, such a strategy does not appear sufficient to allow fishers of the delta to successfully face the increasing constraints associated with the changes in hydro-climatic conditions. In such a context, fishing communities will be driven towards more drastic strategies of adaptation and/or coping such as switching to new activities based on agricultural innovations or emigration from the delta. Both strategies present many hazards, particularly in the absence of supportive public policy.

Design and Implementation of Fishery Modules in Integrated Household Surveys in Developing Countries

Abstract: Fish and other aquatic animals contribute to the food security of citizens of developing countries, both as a source of income and as a component of healthy diets, yet fishing is not currently captured in most integrated household surveys. This sourcebook provides essential technical guidance on the design of statistical modules and questionnaires aimed at collecting fishery data at the household level. Background on the main policies important to the fishery sector, information on the data needed to analyze issues of policy relevance, and methodology on the construction of survey questions to collect necessary data are also provided. The document is organized to provide essential technical guidance on how to design statistical modules and questionnaires aimed at collecting fishery data at the household level. It includes an overview of the main technical and statistical challenges related to sampling fishery-dependent households. The document starts with an introductory section identifying the potential reasons why fisheries and in particular small-scale fisheries have not been adequately included in national statistical systems in a large number of countries. The report then proposes a succinct review of what is known (and what remains unknown) about small-scale fisheries and their contribution to the livelihoods of households in sub-Saharan Africa. It also provides readers with background on the main policies that are important to the fishery sector, information on the data needed to analyze issues of policy relevance, and methodology on the construction of survey questions to collect necessary data.