Population Growth, Urbanization, and Women's Issues in Africa: A Literature Review - Prof., Study notes of African American History

Download Population Growth, Urbanization, and Women's Issues in Africa: A Literature Review - Prof. and more Study notes African American History in PDF only on Docsity! Test Three Review for (April 12, 2011) The test will cover what we have done since the second exam (presentations, and readings) and is for 10% of the final grade in the class. The test format will be similar to the two last exams, except that there will NOT be a long answer essay question. Summary of what will be on the exam. Readings: UCA Chapter 7 Population, Urbanization and AIDS UCA Chapter 8 Africa’s Environmental Problems UCA Chapter 10 Women and Development UCA Chapter 12 African Literature Presentations: Gender Issues March 22 Dr. Njeri Marekia-Cleaveland Environmental issues March 24 Dr. Carroll Music and Dance April 5 Dr. Jean Kidula Literature April 7 Dr. Karim Traore READINGS UCA Ch. 7  Population growth rate in sub-Saharan Africa – how does this compare with the rest of the world? - The world’s highest growth rates are in Sub- Saharan Africa. The growing rate is at 2.5% a year compared with an average growth rate of 1.7% in less developed countries as a whole. Population is like to grow from 705 million in 2005 to over 1.3 billion by 2025.  The number of countries with the fastest rate of urbanization in the world that are in Africa; number of cities in Africa with a population of 1 million or more; the largest sub-Saharan African city—projected population in 2015 - The growth rate of Sub-Saharan Africa’s cities= averaging about 4.8% a year since 1980. - Africa has sixteen of the twenty countries with the fastest rate of urbanization in the world, the percentage of Africa’s population living in urban areas has double since 1965- from 14% to 39% today. These growth rate occurred within one or two cities within each country rather than being more evenly distributed. - By 2010, there will be at least 33 cities in Africa with populations of 1 million or more. - Lagos, Nigeria, Sub- Saharan Africa’s most populous city, will have over 13 million residents. Lagos is gowing so fast that by 2015 it will be the third largest cities in the world with the population of 23 million people. 1 ** Family Planning and education are needed to lower birth rates, slow urban growth and ease population pressure on the land. Africa has the world’s highest birth rates and the lowest rate of contraception usage. Economic development can reduce the rates of population growth.  The two views given of post-independence demographic trends (pp.196-199) – be able to describe the main position of each view with at least two points supporting each position. - The main explaination for sub- Saharan Africa’s resistance to the demographic transition is that Africa’s disadvantaged position in the global economy has prevented the widespread societal changes necessary for the demographic transition to occur. Most Africans have remained tied to the rural areas even when they live in the city. Some conclude that Africa is beginning its demographic transition. On the other hand, any demographic transition in Africa will remain limited for decades to come. - The demographic transition (DT) is a model used to represent the transition from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates as a country develops from a pre- industrial to an industrialized economic system. 1. Africa’s demographic transition is under way: - Decline in birth rates and overall population growth along with increased usage of family planning services and contraception. In the mid- 1990s, crude birth rate were fourty four births per 1,000 population; in 2005, the rate had dropped to 41. In the mid 1990s, overall population growth was nearly 3% per year; this has now dropped to 2.5% - Use of contraception is an important factor in the level of fertility. Those with lower fertility are generally in countries with higher rates of contraception usage; those with the highest rates of fertility, had below 10% in contraceptive usage. - They develop family planning and declining support for large families. - In most of Africa, economic crisis seems to be the major motive for smaller families and family planning. (Economic hardship- they were too poor and they couldn’t support their families for food and such). - In Caldwell and Caldwell (2002), structural adjustment programs are added as having an impact on the decline in fertility. SAPs and budget constraints led to cuts in public funding for health and education services and the imposition of user fees. Unmarried females desiring an education and career realized the negative consequences of premature mother hood and career realized the negative consequences of premature mother hood=== these trends resulted in a growing demand for contraceptive and lower fertility esp. in urban area. 2. Africa’s Demographic Transition will be limited. - The declines in Africa’s birth and growth rates and studies showing a desire for somewhat smaller families can produce only limited relief from continuing high population growth. For one, most of the declines are limited to a few countries, mainly the more developed, and those with the best family planning programs. Even when they wanted to decline the family size- the amount of children they wanted were from four- five children. - Many study also showed that men want more children than women do and are less approving of family planning and the use of contraception. = men have more control over reproductive system. 2 program of action called Agenda 21= which focuses on promoting both a healthy environment and the development of the world’s economies and people. The Earth Summit was followed by ten years later by the World Summit on Sustainable Development, which met in Johannesburg, South Africa (August 26- Sept 4, 2002)== reaffirmed sustainable development as a central element of the international agenda and gave new impetus to global action to fight poverty and protect the environment. They implement the Johannesburg plan- turn which turns into the MDGs later.  Overall what percentage of the world’s forests does Africa have? What country in Africa has the most? - Brazil, Indonesia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) contained a major share of the world’s tropical forests. Overall, Africa has over 17% of the world’s forests, and DRC has over 20% of Africa’s forests. Page . 240  Be able to list and briefly discuss the following causes of deforestation in Africa; - Deforestation occurs when trees are cut down to provide firewood (a primary energy source) and timber, and to free up space for more crop cultivation or grazing land. Privately rational but collectively destructive. o Poverty & underdevelopment- A major reason for the deforestation in Africa is poverty and economic underdevelopment. People do not have money for energy- therefore they rely on firewood for energy. Instead of electricity or other modern forms of energy, 90% of the population uses fuelwood for cooking in Africa, and wood and brush supply about 52% of all energy sources. o Urbanization- with the rapid increase in the number of people on the continent and higher rates of urbanization, the need for fuelwood as a source of energy will continue to grow. Urbanization seems to have a direct effect on the loss of forests in Africa, because the spread of deforestation is most noticeable near urban areas. The growth of towns and cities brings about increased demands for fuelwood and charcoal and account for much of the decline in tree stocks in the surrounding countryside. o Shifting cultivation- a practice in which subsistence farmers clear and burn a plot of land in the forest, then grow crops for one or a few years before repeating the cycle. This method allow agriculture recycles nutrients to the soil and maintain productivity without fertilizers. With increasing population and pressure on the land, in many places the fallow period is cut short. Eventually, the soil becomes unproductive, crops no longer flourish, and the trees do not grow back. o SAPs- Structually adjustment programs= Ghana’s third most important export commodity. The fact that Ghana needed foreign exchange earnings has contributed to the loss of Ghana’s already depleted forest resources. Ghana’s tropical forest area is now just 25% of its original size.  * A growing but often underreported source of deforestation is conflict and the disruptions caused by movement of large number of people.  Be able to list five countries in Africa that are largely desert (have more than 66 percent arid areas). - Botswana, Cape Verde, Chad, Djibouti, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Somalia. 5  Be able to describe the relationship of soil erosion and deforestation. Why is this a bigger issue in tropical forests (such as those in Africa) than temperate forests? (The big reason not a detailed explanation) - Soil erosion, like desertification, is tied in large measure to the problem of deforestation, reflecting the complex interdependence in the ecosystems. Tree often protect the soil from rain and wind that would otherwise wash or blow it away. Despite the luxuriant growth in tropical forests, most of the soils that support that growth are unproductive. High temperature and rainfall throughout the year encourage leaching of nutrients from the soil, so that few nutrients remain except for those held by the plants themselves. This calls for better management of topsoils, which include the need to reduce the clearing of forests.  Africa’s geologic formation= old age and its geographical location in the tropics more vulnerable to soil erosion.  Page 250  Using one of the two examples given in this chapter (pp 253-255), be able to briefly discuss the relationship between environmental problems and government development agendas. - Nigeria= oil production= Oil revenues generated by the mining and selling of oil have increased the capabilities of the Nigerian state, making it possible to finance much needed development project. But Hutchful comments that these same processes have generated growing regional inequalities, impoverishment, underemployment and degradation of the Nigerian environment. Their activities which include exploration, production, refining, and transportation- have caused widespread social and ecological disturbance. Pollution from pipeline leaks, blowouts (major oil spills, drilling fluids, and refining effluents.  The environmental problems caused by the oil industry in Nigeria have resulted in political conflict between the Nigerian government and the foreign oil companies and the local population, such as the Ogoni people of Rivers state. Recently, the Nigerian government in partnership with the major oil companies released the Niger Delta Environmental survey= to find out how serious ecological and health damages the oil industry has caused. - 1985- the entire Hadendawa people of north- eastern Sudan faced extinction due to starvation and dispersal=The Sudanese government, with the help of foreign aid, put vast amount of sugar and cotton plantations on its best land along the Nile. The land which eight out of every ten Sudanese depend for their livelihoods is slowly perished due to over use and misuse. It invested little in dryland regions.== no irrigation system when drought came. Neither have the government’s investments in cash crops produced money to pay the nation’s way through the drought. The result is starvation and debt. UCA Ch. 10 - During pre-colonial timers the status and degree of autonomy of women in Africa relative to other regions of the world  The impact of slavery was crucial in many parts of the continent. Population movement, wars, disease, loss of productive labor power, and a breakdown of familiar social institution. Even thought with these problems, the gender relationships in Africa were prevalent. Women varied from being subordinated to a headmen, queen, king, head of council, and a warrior.  *parallel authority structure between men and women in Africa. It reflected the sexual division of labor and the different spheres of activity for men and women. ex) titles that were given to men and women. ekwe title is associated with the goddess Idemili. This 6 title is given to the most high status Ibo women if Nigeria. The most powerful of these women was known was Agba ekwe. Also most women were served as religiopolitical functions thru goddness figure.  Eventhough women did have these positions of influence and power, males typically had more formal authority positions than females, ****degree of male dominance existed.  Women had rights to land, animals, labor, and the products of their own or other’s labor. ***women were producers: they grew food, animals, and made tools, cooked, helped construct residences. They hauled wood and sole their surplus in local markets. Women were also reproducers in societies.**** These vital roles were normally translated into high status for women and more autonomy than was typical for women in most regions of the world. - The practice of bridewealth in terms of the value it ascribes to women in Africa, particularly in pre-colonial times.  a typical custom in Africa which requires a transfer of goods and services from the male family to that of the bride or to the bride herself. It’s rather than just “selling a daughter”, it indicates high value of African women. the family needs to compensate with the loss of their daughters who will bring wealth to her husband’s family.****Bridewealth not only adds to the prospective bride’s sense of her own worth but also provides material benefits for her family. Also, traditionally, women do not take their husband’s name when they marry (to retain their own identity with respect to their family of origin). Once they marry, women have right to leave a husband in case of mistreats. However, her family might have to return the bridewealth or leave her children to husband’s family. Polygyny  family labor was the primary means of accumulating wealth, acquiring women was necessary to family prosperity. Family gained not only her productive contribution but also more children. - Key points in “Women in Economy” section o Statistics of women’s involvement in agricultural and their ownership of land  70-80% of the agricultural labor and produce up to 80% of the staple food. They also cultivate about half of all cash crops. Despite women’s contributions to the agricultural economy, only 7-8% own land or have leaseholds to land. o The division of labor between men and women Women work much more than men; an average woman’s work is 50% longer than a man’s. women work in the field an average of 1,000 hours per year and spend an additional 3 to 4 hours a day preparing food, cooking, and collecting firewood and water. **inequitable division of labor that women must carry heavy loads while the men carry nothing. Men often spend more on bikes, watches, and radios for themselves. Women use most of their income for the household and their children. o Gap in schooling for males and females  education is especially low for girls in rural areas where fewer than 25% of poor girls are in school. Although about 20% 7 The constants of African oral traditions are transmitted in a variety of ways. In some societies, such as the Dogon(Mali), any elder who takes the time can learn oral traditions. Other extreme case of Wolof (Senegal) griot, which belongs to a hereditary caste attached to a noble family. Griot learns the tradition by heart from his or her father from the time he or she can speak. This information is considered a sacred trust. Whatever the mode of transmission, it is the elders who are repositories of the treasures of oral tradition, so that it is said, “Every time an elder one dies, a library burns down.”  Be able to discuss the implications of the statement: “Every time an old one dies, a library burns down.” (p. 353)  Be able to list and briefly describe the genres of African oral literature. - Prose tales: prose in the African oral tradition is that which tends toward ordinary speech as opposed to chanting or singing, although it may contain elements of the latter. Its principal form on record is the tale, which contains elements of myth, legend and history. Tales which are generally performed at night by adults, amy include mime, dance, and song; may mix animals, humans, and divine beings; and amy exist in related group sor cycvles, such as the cycle of the hare or tortoise or the hyena. Tales serve many other functions, they can explain a behavior, pose a problem rather than give a cleaer moral lesson. Also tales can explain the founding of a dynasty, the origins of a people, or the behavior of a god. - Myth: myth may be defined as a “story of a complex of story elements taken as expressing . . . certain deep-lying aspects of human and transhumant existence”. Ex. Myth that explains how the universe spirals out from a single seed. - Poetry: in oral literature, poetry is distinguished from normal speech by the sustained rhythm and modulation of the voice. It ranges from formal epic chants to informal melodic songs. o Narrative epic: usually a chanted formulaic narrative that takes several days to perform, the epic tells historical legends dealing with conquerors and founders of a dynasty. o Occupational poetry: it consists of poetry that belongs to a group exercising a trade such as farming, fishing, or hunting. o Cult poetry: is sung during ritual for the divinities and as an aid in the practice of medicine o Praise song: rulers and other important men and women. more likely battle song  Forms of written African literature: indigenous languages and European languages. 1) the African literary response to European accounts about Africa 2) the shift in the postcolonial era from responding to European literature to addressing problems of the new African nations. Written African literature in European languages was born in reation to European colonial writings intended to explain Africa to other Europeans. Although individual authors have varying positions, they tend to smooth over differences in order to “invent” the concept of Africa as a place with cultural constants. The French general wrote distinguished studies of the Wolof (Senegal) with the intention of infiltrating them and subjecting them to French domination. 10   The variations in African literatures in the European languages Written African literature in European languages was born in reaction to European colonial writings intended to explain Africa to other European colonial writings intended to explain Africa to other Europeans. European writings take many forms, including novels such as Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, travelogues such as Andre Gide’s Voyage to the Congo, and reports to various commercial companies intending to set up operations on the continent. Also colonial newspapers are an important source of European views.  For each of the following authors be able to identify what country they come from, what language(s) they write in and two of their most famous works. Camara Laye: represents the beauty and harmony of traditional African culture but also the painful necessity of change. L’Enfant noir (1953;Dark Child), Le Regard du roi (1954; Radiance of the King), Dramouss (1966; A dream of Africa). His works are written in french. Chinua Achebe : major Nigerian novelist who has written poetry, short stories, and various children’s stories. He is a writer from the more learned tradition of Nigerian writing. Morning yet on Creation Day (1975). His first novel, Things Fall Apart (1958). His third novel, “Arrow of God” (1964). His second and fourth novels, “No Longer at Ease (1960)”. “Man of the People (1964)” After a period of more than 20 years, he published another novel, “Anthills of the Savannah” in 1987. His works are written in English. Ngugi wa Thiong’o : the Kenyan writer, formerly James Ngugi. His novels, Weep Not Child (1964), The River Between (1965), and A Grain of Wheat (1967). Petals of Blood (1977) – a picture of corruption in modern day Kenya. Devil on the Cross(1982) – was originally written in Kikuyu. He is one of the most powerful writers in Africa today and one of the leading proponenets of writing in African languages. He has several plays, ; “The Black Hermit (1968)”,The Rebel (1970), Wound in the heart (1970), and I will Marry when I Want (1982). Short stories – secret lives and other stories 1975 Critical essays (homecoming; essays on African and Caribbean literature, culture and politics 1972) 11 PRESENTATIONS Gender Issues – Njeri Marekia-Cleaveland (March 22)  Ms. Marekia-Cleaveland described women’s issues in Africa as being very diverse, be able to discuss three factors contributing to this diversity. She also mentioned some commonalities, know two of these. - Urban and rural women: diversity among African families (connection to the “home base” even among urban and diasporic Africans. Even though they are not back at home, they always try to reconnect to their past- family’s teaching. - Differences in some issues such as abortion. Priorities vary too. Rural women might value access to basic needs such as paved roads higher than political representation. - There are area where it has no highland and there are some that do= diversity= pastoral nomadic communities- different from women in highland areas. - Issues common to all/most: Political representation, access to resources, basic human rights, inheritance Some are global trends.  Ms. Marekia-Cleaveland mentioned four African countries that have policies that have increased females in political positions-which countries are they (know 3)?  Ms. Marekia-Cleaveland described women’s roles in pre-colonial African society. What roles did she describe for men and women? How did she describe the influence of women in this society? - Precolonial= they have strict gender roles. Men involved in community affairs while women took care of the domestic matters. - In Kenya women provide 75-80% of labor in food production.- in competition with coffee production with other continent such as Columbia. Men own most of the land. New constitution provides inheritance of land for women.  Be able to discuss the impact of colonialism on gender roles as described by Ms. Marekia- Cleaveland—eg. in agriculture, land ownership, views on work to care for the family vs. employment, General description of the “Hut tax” and it’s impact. - About 75-80% of women work in rural areas. - Women in Kenya can and do purchase land, sometimes inherit it but there are financial limitation for most women. Some women were able to receive land but that was because they weren’t married- by having land, it gives them some power at least. - Division of labor in the formal sector is gendered with more women in secretarial services, teaching and nursing. Few women in medicines and engineering. Recently, new trends (colleges encourage women to take science courses). 12