Niger » SocioLingo Africa

This is the modern type of bee hive used in Cameroon called a Kenyan Top Bar. The other kind is like an artificial hollow log made from bamboo-- kind of like Winnie the Pooh. And all of the bees here are African Killer Bees.

[Photo credit: rbairdpccam under a Creative Commons license]

The following programme would be a good opportunity for candidates with a first degree who are already working with NGOs in the African countries listed. You need to read the advert carefully and if you meet their criteria apply directly to the University through the links in the information section below. (I can’t pass on details for you).

The information below comes from http://www.beesfordevelopment.org/ghent

Training programme at Ghent University, Belgium

The Laboratory of Zoophysiology of the Ghent University organizes the International Training Programme ‘Beekeeping for Poverty Alleviation’ with the support of the Belgium Government and VLIR-UOS.

In 2010 we have again the opportunity to invite 16 candidates to come to Belgium to follow a four-month intensive training course that addresses all aspects involved in developing beekeeping into a powerful factor of rural development.

Only residents and nationals of a selected group of countries are eligible for this VLIR-UOS scholarship. In the past years we had none or only a few candidates from certain countries listed below.
Africa
Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, DR Congo, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Mozambique, Niger, Senegal, South Africa, Zambia

We aim at candidates that are holders of a bachelor’s degree with experience in beekeeping that wish to implement beekeeping for rural development purposes. They should have a good written and spoken command in English. Candidates meeting any of the following profiles are preferred:

Researchers connected to local universities or research institutes, preferably with a clear link to extension;

Staff members of extension centers, NGOs or other institutions actively involved in rural development and with some (applied) research facilities;

People who have recently completed their studies and have a firm intention to commit themselves to rural development.

More Information

More information and the application procedure can be found at the Belgium VLIR-UOS website: www.scholarships.vliruos.be. Please look for the Training Programme ‘Beekeeping for Poverty Alleviation’ at the University of Ghent.

If you have any questions, please email: Inge.Roman@Ugent.be

Suggested Books (US)

Suggested Books (UK)

The Best Beekeeper of Lalibela: A Tale from Africa
Honeybees of Africa (1998) (Updated version -2010 – available from US only at the moment)

Africa Education Watch Report 2010

AFRICA, AFRICA COUNTRIES, Ghana, Madagascar, Morocco, Niger, Papers & Reports Africa, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Uganda 1 Response »

Jun 162010

School Child in Ghana

[Photo Credit: World Bank Photo Collection under a Creative Commons license]

The Africa Education Watch Report (download PDF) presents a regional overview of accountability and transparency in primary education management in seven African countries. It has been produced within the framework of Africa Education Watch (AEW). AEW is a three year program (2007-2010) implemented by Transparency International (TI) that focuses on governance in the management of public funds in the primary education system.

The report focusses on Ghana, Madagascar, Morocco, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Uganda. The primary areas the report looks at are the financial systems, financial information (available to parents and others), participation (by parents and others) and corrupt practices.

Sahel Region : The hungry season starts

AFRICA, AFRICA COUNTRIES, Agriculture Africa, Cameroon, Chad, Food Africa, Mali, Niger 4 Responses »

May 282010

An aerial view of the inland Niger delta and surrounding farmlands, Mali. Image via Wikipedia

Back in the days when I lived in The Gambia we used to call this time of year ‘hungry season’. There was little available to eat in the villages and people were reliant on stored groundnuts and millet. The September harvest seems a looong time away. Today there is a warning from the World Food Programme that the situation this year is bad, really bad. Migration from villages to towns has already started as people seek to feed their families.

The following press release gives you an overview.

WFP WARNS OF GROWING CHALLENGES AS DROUGHT-STRICKEN SAHEL ENTERS HUNGER SEASON

DAKAR – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today warned of growing needs in the Eastern Sahel region of West Africa, where some 10 million people are facing a challenging season of hunger before the next harvest is due in September.

“The Sahel is one of the most destitute regions in the world and the spectre of hunger is pushing increasing numbers of people from the countryside and into cities where they are searching for food to feed their families,” said Thomas Yanga, WFP Regional Director for West Africa. “People have lost crops, livestock, and the ability to cope on their own, and the levels of malnutrition among women and children have already risen to very high levels.”

Yanga said despite efforts by governments and humanitarian agencies and non-governmental organizations, the situation in Sahel regions of eastern Mali, northern Cameroon, Chad and Niger is critical and more contributions are urgently needed to ease the suffering of the 3.6 million drought victims WFP is planning to assist.

NIGER: A government-led food security survey this month has confirmed the critical situation, finding nearly half of the population to be food insecure — 3.3 million people highly food insecure and 3.8 million moderately food insecure. So far, the World Food Programme is planning to provide assistance to save lives and boost the nutrition of some 2.3 million people in the worst-affected areas. To do so, WFP needs US$125 million to scale up feeding from May to December 2010.

CHAD: 2 million people require assistance due to poor harvests and unusually high rates of acute malnutrition are reported. WFP has launched an emergency operation to assist more than 700,000 people hit by drought in western and central regions.

CAMEROON: the 2009 cereal harvest in the North was 10 percent below the five-year average and 19 percent below the previous year’s production. Flooded valleys that are usually watering points for cattle dried up earlier than usual. WFP has responded with an emergency operation to feed 339,000 vulnerable people from June 2010 to 30 April 2011.

MALI: late and erratic rains in the Northeast during the last two crop seasons led to poor agro-pastoral production, resulting in more than 20 municipalities being declared highly food insecure. An estimated 258,000 people most at risk are currently receiving emergency food assistance from the government, WFP and humanitarian partners.
# # #

WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. Each year, on average, WFP feeds more than 90 million people in more than 70 countries.

WFP now provides RSS feeds to help journalists keep up with the latest press releases, videos and photos as they are published on WFP.org. For more details see: http://www.wfp.org/rss

Suggested Books (US)

Suggested Books (UK)

Niger : Growing food crisis, WFP steps up help (sociolingo.com)
Louis Belanger: Food crisis in Sahel – Looking for food in anthills (huffingtonpost.com)

Niger : Growing food crisis, WFP steps up help

AFRICA, AFRICA COUNTRIES, Agriculture Africa, ENVIRONMENT AFRICA, Food Africa, Niger 2 Responses »

Apr 262010

You may be aware that there is a growing food security problem in Niger due to drought in the Sahel region. Today I received the following press release from the World Food programme which you may be interested in. A WFP background paper on Niger: http://www.wfp.org/stories/niger-media-background is also available.

World Food Programme steps up response to growing food crisis in Niger

Press Release 26 April 2010

DAKAR – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today announced it is more than doubling the number of hungry people it feeds in Niger, providing assistance to 2.3 million people caught in a worsening food crisis caused by drought in the eastern Sahel.
“Niger has been hit extremely hard by the drought and the world has to act to prevent massive human suffering and the loss of a generation,” said Josette Sheeran, Executive Director of WFP.

Sheeran echoed comments made by the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator, John Holmes, who underlined the need for joint action between development and humanitarian actors to deal with the structural issues underlying the recurrent food crises in the Sahel region.

Weak and erratic rainfall across parts of the eastern Sahel has destroyed harvests and parched land used by pastoralist communities to graze livestock. In January, results of a national survey found that more than half Niger’s population of 13.5 million is food insecure.

The ramping up of WFP operations focuses on reducing malnutrition through general food distributions to 1.5 million people, blanket feeding for children under two years of age and supplementary feeding for children under five in the worst-affected areas.

WFP will also target pregnant women and nursing mothers as well as supporting the provision of cereal banks – community cereal stores where women buy grain at subsidized prices at the height of the ‘lean season’ when the previous harvest has run out. Communities restock the banks during the next harvest when prices are lowest.

WFP has appealed for US$182 million to scale its operations in one of the poorest countries in the world. The current shortfall is US$96 million. “We need to move quickly to provide a buffer for the people and government of Niger against the shock of a serious food crisis,” said Thomas Yanga, WFP Regional Director for West Africa.

WFP is working against time to provide food assistance as fast as possible, buying most of the needed food from neighbouring countries to significantly shorten the lead time, which is normally about four months, to deliver food to Niger.

In addition to meeting the food needs of people hit by drought, WFP provides food for meals given to hundreds of thousands of school children in Niger and assists people affected by HIV/Aids and tuberculosis.

Suggested Books (US)

Other Africa environment books

Suggested Books (UK)

Other Africa environment books

Africa IMF Reports : Niger 2009

AFRICA, AFRICA COUNTRIES, Africa IMF Reports, ECONOMY AFRICA, Niger, Papers & Reports Africa No Responses »

Feb 032010

Niamey - River Niger

[Photo credit: Guillaume Colin]

IMF Reports for Niger 2009

Press Release: Statement at the Conclusion of an IMF Staff Mission to Niger
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2009/pr09296.htm

Country Report No. 09/172: Niger: Second Review Under the Three-Year Arrangement Under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility and Request for Modification of Performance Criteria – Staff Report; Press Release on the Executive Board Discussion
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.cfm?sk=22993.0

Country’s Policy Intentions Documents — Niger: Letter of Intent and Technical Memorandum of Understanding, April 27, 2009
http://www.imf.org/External/NP/LOI/2009/ner/042709.pdf

Press Release: IMF Completes the Second Reviews under Niger’s PRGF and Approves US$5.0 million Disbursement
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2009/pr09166.htm

Press Release: Statement at the Conclusion an IMF Staff Mission to Niger
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2009/pr0979.htm

Working Paper No. 09/36: The Macroeconomic Impact of Scaled-up Aid: The Case of Niger

Author/Editor: Farah, Abdikarim; Sacerdoti, Emilio; Salinas, Gonzalo

Summary: We develop a simple macroeconomic model that assesses the effects of higher foreign aid on output growth and other macroeconomic variables, including the real exchange rate. The model is easily tractable and requires estimation of only a few basic parameters. It takes into account the impact of aid on physical and human capital accumulation, while recognizing that the impact of the latter is more protracted. Application of the model to Niger-one of the poorest countries in the world-suggests that if foreign aid as a share of GDP were to be permanently increased from the equivalent of 10 percent of GDP in 2007 to 15 percent in 2008, annual economic growth would accelerate by more than 1 percentage point, without generating significant risks for macroeconomic stability. As a result, by 2020 Niger’s income per capita would be 12.5 percent higher than it would be without increased foreign aid. Moreover, the higher growth would help Niger to cut the incidence of poverty by 25 percent by 2015, although the country will still be unable to reach the Millennium Development Goal of poverty reduction (MDG 1).
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.cfm?sk=22710.0

Country Report No. 09/70: Niger: Selected Issues and Statistical Appendix
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.cfm?sk=22731.0

Country Report No. 09/59: Niger: 2008 Article IV Consultation and First Review Under the Three-Year Arrangement Under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility, and Request for Waivers and Modification of Performance Criteria – Staff Report; Staff Supplement; Public Information Notice and Press Release on the Executive Board Discussion; and Statement by the Executive Director for Niger
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.cfm?sk=22715.0

Public Information Notice: IMF Executive Board Concludes 2008 Article IV Consultation with Niger
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pn/2009/pn0917.htm

Country’s Policy Intentions Documents — Niger: Letter of Intent, Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies, and Technical Memorandum of Understanding, December 3, 2008
http://www.imf.org/External/NP/LOI/2008/ner/120308.pdf

All information from http://www.imf.org

To view and print pdf files you need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader which is available at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html.

TAKE A LOOK: For tracking globalization and its impact on individual economies, please see the new IMF Survey magazine online at http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/home.aspx News, views, and analysis from the IMF.

Suggested Books (US)

Suggested Books (UK)

Africa CFP : US militarization of the Sahara-Sahel - Security, Space and Imperialism (4 Jan 2010)

AFRICA, AFRICA COUNTRIES, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Call for papers, Chad, EDUCATION AFRICA, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Politics Africa, Senegal, Tunisia No Responses »

Dec 122009

Call for Papers

The Concerned Africa Scholars Bulletin is currently compiling papers, interventions and reviews for a special issue on the post-9/11 US securitization of the Sahara-Sahel region of West Africa.

They are seeking contributions that will elucidate and dissect the various logics and effects of the increased US military presence in
the countries of Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Algeria and Morocco. Contributions from other countries in the region — e.g., Nigeria, Chad,
Burkina Faso, Senegal, Tunisia, Libya — will also be warmly welcome.

They will accept contributions from any disciplinary background, as well as non-affiliated or independent scholars, researchers and critics.

Full length paper (10,000 words, including notes and bibliography)

Intervention (up to 6,000 words)

Book or other media review (up to 3,000 words)

Please send proposals to Jacob Mundy (jam214@ex.ac.uk) by 4 January 2010. Successful proposals will be notified by the end of that week. Contributions will be due 1 February 2010.

African Music from Niger

AFRICA, CULTURE AFRICA, Music Africa, Niger 1 Response »

Oct 102009

Music from Niger has received little international attention unlike the music of its neighbours Mali and Nigeria. But there is a vibrant music scene in Niger which remains a mix between traditional and new music styles particularly Rap Nigerien.

Traditional Music

Many of the ethnic groups in Niger cross the boundaries between countries. In French colonial times each ethnic group kept their own music traditions, but, since the death of Seyni Kountché in 1987 and free elections in 1999, the relaxation of governmental control has encouraged traditional and mixed styles of music to flourish.

Tuareg music in Niger is probably the best known internationally. Traditional Tuareg music tends to be gendered with women’s music using Tinde drums with clapping and men’s music using a one-stringed viol. Tuareg Blues is the most famous of the Tuareg music styles typified by players such as Abdallah ag Oumbadougoufrom Agadez and his band Takrist n’Akal, Moussa ag Keyna’s group Toumast, and the performer Mouma Bob.
Nomadic Wodaabe and Fulani have a tradition of group singing with stamping and bells and have griots who are a caste of traditional praise singers. The Gerewol Festival is a showcase for this musical style.
The Beriberi use complex group singing.
Djerma and Songhai around the capital Niamey are solo singers and players who use lutes, flutes and string instruments, and have griots.
The Hausa also have a griot caste and use lutes, drums and wind instruments including a kind of shawm and a trumpet which can be extremely large.

Modern Nigerien Music

Nigerien Hip Hop or Tuareg Blues crosses ethnic boundaries and is a mix of ethnic styles and languages. Through participation in the Festival in the Desert in Mali and promotion by international record producers Nigerien music is becoming better known. The European Development Fund helped to found The Centre for Musical Training and Promotion in 1990 to retain cultural heritage and encourage modern Nigerien music.

Videos

A great site for exploring African music is http://www.musicvideos.the-real-africa.com. They have a page specifically on Music Videos of Niger which is really worth exploring.

Here is a video of a Tuareg wedding with music by Koudede.

The group Mama Kassey combine traditional Songhai music with modern jazz. I particularly liked this recording by them of
Dadayé Houmé which has some great Niger pix in it and some closeups of Nigerien instruments.

Another video I like of Mama Kassey is Denke Denke played by

Suggested Books

The Rough Guide to World Music : Volume 1 (Rough Guide Reference)

African Music: A People’s Art

African Rhythm and African Sensibility: Aesthetics and Social Action in African Musical Idioms

Suggested CDs

Tekana (Niger)

Niger – Music of the Tuaregs, Vol. 2: In Gall

Guitars from Agadez: Music of Niger

Saharan Archaeological Research Association

AFRICA, Algeria, Archaeology Africa, Chad, EDUCATION AFRICA, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Research Africa No Responses »

Sep 292009

The Saharan Archaeological Research Association (SARA) considers any aspect of Saharan studies to be relevant to its interests. However, at this point of the research process most of the research attention is being focused on the western Sahara. Over time, it is believed that the geographical interests of SARA will expand to other adjacent regions and beyond. However, unlike the eastern side of the desert, countries such as Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Western Sahara and southern Algeria have had little exposure to climate or archaeological studies. Those rare scientists who have chosen to work in this underrepresented region of the world are applauded and encouraged to join their interests and expertise toward the broader goal of documenting and interpreting the process of early social complexity in the Sahara.

Read more here:
http://www.saharanresearch.org

Africa Niger : Literacy classes for farmers

AFRICA, Agriculture Africa, ECONOMY AFRICA, Niger No Responses »

Aug 142009

Niger has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world. Nationwide almost 3 million people live in severe food insecurity. Farmers need to be literate in order to be able to manage harvests, access services, check prices, negotiate with buyers and keep records.

With US$30,000 from the Spanish government, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) launched 26 village literacy classes in March 2009 with hundreds of farmers in the central Tahoua and south-eastern Zinder regions.[IRIN NEWS]

Half of these literacy classes are exclusively for women. The role of women in agricultural production needs to be an important focus for agencies because although they are responsible for half of the food production in sub-Sahara Africa they receive very little help.

Read the IRIN report on this

Read the BBC Country Profile for Niger

Suggested Books

Niger: The Bradt Travel Guide

Niger Map by ITMB (Travel Reference Map)

Nomads of Niger

Africa History : Western Sudan 500-1400 AD

AFRICA, AFRICA COUNTRIES, Burkina Faso, Gambia, History Africa, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal 2 Responses »

Jun 272009

The pyramid field of Nuri contained 21 kings together with 52 queens and princesess . The first to build his tomb at Nuri was king Taharqa. His pyramid had 51.75 m square and 40 or 50 m high. Taharqa subterranean chambers are the most elaborate of any Kushite tomb. The entrance was by an eastern stairway trench , north of the pyramid's central axis, reflecting the alignment of the original smaller pyramid. Three steps led to a doorway, with a moulded frame, that opened to a tunnel, widened and heightened into an antechamber with a barrel-vaulted ceiling. Six massive pillars carved from the natural rock divide the burial chamber into two side aisles and a central nave, each with a barrel-vaulted ceiling. The entire chamber was surrounded by a moat-like corridor entered steps leading down from in front of the antechamber doorway. After Taharqa 21 kings and 53 queens and princesess were buried at Nuri under pyramids of good masonry, using blocks of local red sandstone. The Nuri pyramids were generally much larger than those at el-Kurru, reaching heights of 20 to 30 m. The last king to be buried at Nuri died in about 308 BC. Taken in Nuri,Northern Sudan. Check set: Pyramids & templeS: www.flickr.com/photos/vithassan/sets/72157594264778397/

[Photo credit: Vít Hassan]

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has some excellent African history pages. The one on Western Sudan 500-1000 AD gives a timeline for the region which encompasses present-day Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Mauretania and eastern Niger. One of the things I found interesting was that Jenne Jeno in Mali pre-dated this period.

The western Sudan is crisscrossed with trade routes linking this interior region of West Africa to the Atlantic coast and ultimately to cities across the Sahara. The western Sudan is the first area of sub-Saharan Africa to be reached by Muslim traders, and the influx of wealth, goods, and cultural and religious influences contributes to the dynamic artistic production. Nok, in the eastern part of the region, is one of the earliest African centers of ironworking and terracotta figure production. Jenne-jeno, populated as early as 250 B.C., is the oldest known city of sub-Saharan Africa. By 850 A.D., it has become a major urban center but is just one of at least twelve sites of comparable size in the middle Niger region. Several other significant political and commercial centers emerge during this period, including Timbuktu, an important site of Islamic religion and scholarship as well as trade.

Read the full article

There is also a time line for the years 1000 -1400 AD

The influence of Islam and the deepening networks of tradespur the growth of several great savanna states, including the Ghana, Mali, and Songhai empires. Further development of metallurgy contributes to both material wealth and artistic production, and Arab reports depict the Ghana empire as the “Land of Gold.” As well as stimulating trade, Islam sparks great cultural and artistic innovation, producing newly syncretic mixes of distinctive regional and Islamic traditions. In 1324–25, the ruler Mansa Musa brings the wealth of the Mali empire to the attention of Europe, North Africa, and Arabia when he completes a pilgrimage to Mecca. Architectural traditions are transformed during the Mali empire. The construction of enormous adobe mosques such as those at Jenne and Timbuktu dates to the thirteenth century. The mosques standing today in West Africa are the product of long histories of construction and reconstruction. They nevertheless reflect the economic conditions, cultural histories, and architectural traditions of the medieval empires from which they originated.

Read the full article

Suggested Books (US)

Suggested Books (UK)

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Beekeeping and Poverty Alleviation in Africa