Pastoralists

It is generally accepted that the earliest livestock and pottery were brought to the southern tip of Africa by Khoi-speaking herders from northern Botswana around 2000 years ago. The archaeological remains of that age, however, show no sign of such a migration. Rather, some evidence points to the arrival of the Khoi in the southwestern Cape toward the end of the first millennium AD. The earliest livestock and pottery, it is argued, probably reached the Cape of Good Hope some 2000 years ago by a process of diffusion. The implications of this model for the
current debates on the transition from hunting to herding in southern Africa are discussed.

This article examines relationships between cross-border pastoralists revolving around water and pastures. Water and pastures sustain livelihoods of people sharing common border between South Sudan and Sudan. Despite this commonality, competition between pastoralists of the Sudan and South Sudan has always degenerated into violent conflicts recorded since the period of Condominium rule. However, interests of the communities living along the Kiir/Bahr al Arab and the White Nile are localised. They are now more connected to disputed borders than to wider water rights. This article demonstrates that communal demands are politicized at the national and sub-national levels. Politics distract border communities from pursuing their realistic water access and grazing needs. It is concluded that pastoralist border communities are unable to influence land and water policies while South Sudan and the Sudan maintain hostile relations. Resumen: Este artículo examina la relación entre los pastores trashumantes transfronterizos en torno a las los recursos acuíferos y de pastoreo. Tanto el agua como los pastos suponen el modo de vida de la población que comparte la frontera entre Sudán del Sur y Sudán. A pesar de tratarse de bienes comunes, la competencia entre los pastores nómadas de Sudán y de Sudán del Sur ha degenerado siempre en conflictos violentos registrados desde el periodo del Condominio. Sin embargo, los intereses de las comunidades que viven a lo largo del río Bahr al Arab (o río Kiir) y el Nilo Blanco están localizados. De hecho, en la actualidad están más relacionados con las fronteras disputadas que con el asunto más amplio de los derechos acuíferos. Este artículo demuestra que las demandas comunitarias están politizadas a nivel nacional y sub-nacional; y que la política distrae a las comunidades fronterizas de perseguir sus objetivos realistas de acceso al agua y a los pastos. Se concluye que las comunidades pastorales fronterizas son incapaces de influenciar las políticas de agua y tierra mientras Sudán del Sur y Sudán mantengan relaciones hostiles. Las opiniones expresadas en estos artículos son propias de sus autores, y no reflejan necesariamente la opinión de UNISCI. The views expressed in these articles are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of UNISCI.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This research is the examination of the challenges and prospects of cross-border trade in Ethiopia. Cross-border trade is defined as the flow of goods and services across international land borders within a reach of duly defined area. It has two varieties-formal and informal. The former refers to trade in goods or services which is carried out by legally registered traders and fulfills all legal requirements of the trading countries while the later refers to movement of goods in which all or part of the trading activity is unrecorded or unrecognized by the government, and without adherence to procedural requirements of all formal institutions. This research mainly focuses on the informal cross-border trade and formal petty periphery trade. The formal cross-border trade between Ethiopia and neighboring countries (Kenya, Somalia and Djibouti) is also analyzed using a time series data from the National Bank of Ethiopia. Literatures explained that cross-border trade plays a critical role in providing alternative source of livelihood for pastoralists. The major actors in this trading activity are individual traders, women and micro and small enterprises. The researchers, in addition to the literature review, have employed key-informant interviews, household survey and document analysis to determine the volume of trade, the items traded, the contribution of cross-border trade for livelihood diversification and the challenges and prospects of the same. The time series data for 17 years from the National Bank of Ethiopia revealed that the total value of export of Ethiopia to Kenya, Djibouti and Somalia amounts to ETB 61 billion. Fruits and vegetables constituted the dominant share of this trade followed by live animals and chat. The researchers considered the size/volume of import and export contraband as the lowest lower limit of the informal trade as it can never be less than what is seized by authorities. Accordingly, a two years data (2012/13 & 2013/14) collected from ERCA shows that the volume of export contraband is ETB 11.5 million for 2012/13 and ETB 26 million for 2013/14. Live animals constitute 35% of this contraband export followed by cereals (20%), pulses (19%), chat (19%) and others (7%). This indicated the possibility of engaging in the sale of highland agricultural products as alternative livelihood source for pastoralists and pastoralists transitioning out of pastoralism (ToPs) in addition to trade in livestock and livestock products. On the other hand, the value of import contraband for the years 2012/13 and 2013/14 was ETB 245 million and ETB 270 million respectively. Clothes constituted the dominant share

Kenya has struggled for decades to eradicate poverty, curb famine, and mitigate weather-related hazards such as floods and droughts. These hazards are likely to be further compounded by climate change since temperature and rainfall in Kenya, are expected to increase at a range of 2.5 °C–3 °C, and 5–20% respectively, by the end of the century. Moreover, research shows that a 30 cm sea-level rise would submerge 17% of the Kenya coastal region. Given that Kenya lies in the epicenter of the equator, and that two-thirds of her landmass is semi-arid, she is likely to experience extreme weather patterns. In a country pigeonholed by land ownership conflict, the internally environmentally displaced persons will probably intensify this conflict. Trans-boundary forced migration within East Africa will unfurl other predicaments because there is no legal framework protecting or recognizing environmental refugees. Using the case studies of Mandera and Turkana counties, we noted that environmental internally displaced persons are likely to intensify cattle raid attacks as well as tribal and land ownership conflicts. The research also observed that there is a protection gap of climate change/environmental refugees internationally. The research recommends national and regional agreements protecting the rights of environmental refugees, which should set the foundation for an international convention.

While good governance  has been on the development agenda,  animal health governance issues  have  remained  relatively  neglected  in  the  debate  on  animal  health  services.  This
has resulted in inadequate public and private sector investment in animal health services in pastoral remote areas. The study had three specific objectives: to assess animal health governance,  to  analyse  animal  health  services,  and  to  determine  governance  related factors affecting animal health services. The study was conducted in Ngorongoro District,
Arusha  Region,  Tanzania.  A  cross-sectional  research  design  was  used  in  this  study.  A  structured  questionnaire  with  open  and  close-ended  questions  was  administered.
Purposive  sampling  procedure  was  used  to  select  the  district,  three  wards  and  three villages. A sample size of 125 respondents was drawn from three villages by using simple
stratified  sampling  procedure.  Data  were  analysed  by  the  use  of  Statistical  Package  for Social  Sciences  (SPSS).  Descriptive  statistics  were  computed  to  assess  animal  health governance.  Frequencies,  percentages  and  cross-  tabulation  were  used  to  analyse  animal health  services.  The  findings  showed  there  was  a  weak  chain  of  command  within  the animal health governance structure. The findings also revealed poor availability of animal health  services  in  pastoral  areas.  Research  findings  showed  significant  association between  governance  and  animal  health  services  χ2  =  6.085  (p  <  0.05).  There  was significant  differences  in  the  mortality  of  livestock  where  governance  factors  held
differently (T-test = 50.230, P < 0.05). This study recommends a need to improve animal health  governance,  supportive  institutional  and  legal  frameworks  in  order  to  improve
animal health services in pastoral areas.

— This review article shows that the paradigms on the best methods of utilizing the fragile land resources in arid and semi-arid land areas (ASALs) vary, but nomadic pastoralism which is livestock keeping under constant mobility in search of water and pasture often is the main source of livelihoods for the people living in such areas. For Kenya, the ASALs constitute about 80% of the country's land area that is home to about 60% of Kenya's livestock population. However, the ASALs in Kenya suffer frequent droughts with concomitant devastating effects on livestock, and the poverty incidence in these areas is way above Kenya's national average. This situation calls for efforts to explore effective interventions to reduce poverty for pastoralists in the ASALs. Improving marketing efficiency and off-take rates for pastoral livestock to enhance household incomes has been recommended as one of these strategies. However, attempts to implement this strategy have proved ineffective, primarily because even though the pastoralists tend to keep large livestock herds, often they are unwilling to offer much for sale in the market. This study sought to identify and evaluate the factors that influence the pastoralists' beef-cattle marketing behaviour and efficiency in the ASALs of Kenya. The study found that cattle calving rate, cattle purchases rate, off-pastoral income and pastoral household dependency ratio are the main factors that influence pastoral beef-cattle marketing behaviour and efficiency. Contrary to conventional expectations, this study found that pastoral household decisions on beef cattle off-take rate in Kenya are not influenced by market information.

Quite a  number of print publications and in the internet state amounts of 500 to 1500 Yuan (currently, as of Oct. 2008, approx. 65 to 200 US $) representing the per capita income of Tibetan pastoralist households. It can be observed that the public as well as many scientific papers are perceiving this „income“ in the sense of effective average (cash) earnings of rural Tibetan pastoralists, or nomads. This is a coarse misjudgement caused by being unaware of how these data were calculated. These are statistical data of the PR of China delivering – as it is done all over the world – the measures of national income and output (GNP/GNI) totaling the value of goods and services produced in an economy. In order to make different regions comparable, these measures are referred to the individual inhabitants of the respective regions–the per capita income, which represents the amount of what each citizen would receive if the yearly national (or regional) income would be divided equally among everyone. In some cases the respective sums may coincidentally conform; this is, however, not implying that the respective measures are defined in a totally different way.

Like many of their ethnic neighbours, the Bashada are agro-pastoralists and have been living relatively isolated from the modern world until one or two decades ago.
Recently more and more changes have been introduced from the outside which are having an increasing impact on the daily lives of the people.
One of these transformations is the introduction of formal education. The construction of numerous schools and increasing pressure by the government to enroll more children, especially girls, is forcing the Bashada to respond and react.
The paper shows that so far the Bashada have been able to be selective in accepting what they consider useful and in rejecting what seems harmful to their children, as well as to the core values of their culture.

Grinding hollows are found on rocks throughout much of Africa. Several sub-types exist, and Nick Walker has recently proposed the term 'ellipsoids' to describe those polished grooves, which are U-shaped in crosssection and have a canoe-shaped longitudinal profile. They are the result of a to-and-fro grinding action. Found on horizontal surfaces, ellipsoids are considered utilitarian objects, and many possible grinding functions have been attributed to them. Over a hundred such ellipsoids are recorded on the hill Kasteelberg, west coast of South Africa. Morphologically, the Kasteelberg examples resemble ellipsoids found as far north as the Tsodilo Hills in north-western Botswana. Although their specific function remains enigmatic, we argue that the Kasteelberg examples represent intensification in commodity production. Various lines of evidence suggest that this intensification took place during the early second millennium AD. Similar cases of intensified production can be seen at many sites of this period in Botswana and northern Namibia, where they have been interpreted as a response to the contemporary economic boom in the Shashe-Limpopo basin. Might the massed grinding hollows of Kasteelberg represent a similar economic reaction?

Over last decade Africa has experienced an unprecedented amounts of land being concessioned, leased or sold to business, corporations or foreign sovereign capital. The land question (who can acquire or have access to land) and the political question (who belongs in the political community) are connected to the citizenship question. These questions are among the most politicized in Africa. This article answers the following questions: Who benefits from the 'land grabs'? What can a critical analysis of the 'land grabs' tell us about the contemporary politics of development? The first section of this article discusses and provides the intellectual background that informs today's land rush. The second section discusses the competing actors involved in the land grab, winners and victims. Here I will argue that the majority of victims of land dispossession in the African context are peasants, pastoralists, nomadic, and trans-boundary communities, whose land management system is based on customary land tenure.

The Ethiopian population is extremely heterogeneous, encompassing over 70 ethnic groups. The ethnic diversity among the population, and the problematic living conditions of some communities, show the need of recognition and accommodation of minority groups, and especially nomadic pastoralists. Those constitute the most marginalized groups of the Ethiopian society, affected by poverty, vulnerability, and political marginalization.
What is considered as the formal recognition and accommodation of pastoralists group by the Ethiopian government, is form of assimilation which leads to violation of their socio-economic and cultural rights.
The paper aims to illustrate how the approach of the Ethiopian government towards nomadic pastoralists failed to assure equity and social justice, going against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Basing its framework on the multiculturalists’ claim for which the recognition of individual rights is not sufficient to protect ethnic minorities, the analysis intends to highlight the lack of recognition and accommodation of nomadic pastoralists in Ethiopia.
The methodology used is literature review of secondary sources, while the method is a case study of nomadic pastoralists in Ethiopia. The material considered encompasses literature production over the concepts of multiculturalism, equity and social, as well as official reports on Ethiopia, both national, such as the 2007 Housing Census of Ethiopia, and international, for instance the 2012 Human Rights Watch’s report on indigenous peoples of the Lower Omo valley.

Debates on the subject of cultural complexity and its material manifestations are situated at the centre of research on prehistoric pastoralism in North Africa. Employing already published databases, this article integrates raw data from archaeological sites across the Sahara with ethnography to generate a framework of analysis in which changes in material culture can be interpreted. It attempts to establish a relationship between the analysis of human and cattle remains in order to study (a) the relations between modes of interment of animals and of humans, and social changes, and (b) the processes responsible for the appearance of a symbolism of power in the mid- and late Holocene funerary rituals. Their integration with landscape systems results in a conclusion of complex patterns of cultural diversity which question previous dismissals of early Saharan pastoral-is is as the progenitors of social complexity.

Nigeria is faced with incessant conflicts largely associated with key common land resource users (farmers and pastoralists). Recently, ceaseless eruption of violent conflicts between farmers-pastoralists is closely associated with common land resource equitable access, especially over farmland trespassing, conversion of grazing reserves and routes. As both farmers and pastoralists have coexisted for a long time, the complexities over the land-use system have dramatically changed. These sorts of conflicts are highly characterized with loss lives, destructions of properties, cattle theft, destructions of farmlands, etc. The present study has attempted to examine some common allegations as well as unveiling the realities regarding these recent occupational conflicts in Nigeria. This is empirical study that is qualitative in nature which depends on both primary and secondary data. However, the primary data collected were collected through focus group discussions whereas the secondary data were generated from both published as well as unpublished governmental, non-governmental, peer reviewed studies, etc. This study revealed that curtailing these conflicts require proper understanding of various common allegations, accusations and realities by both common resource patrons as well as their respective authorities. These misconceptions that needed to be properly understood include; the fear of marginalisation and loss of identity, growing demands for food and shelter, illiteracy, inequitable common resource access, notion of indigenes and settlers, ethno-religious affiliations of these conflicts, cattle rustling, conversion of grazing routes, farmland trespassing, etc. The understanding of these allegations and realities will provide necessary background towards proposing appropriate modalities for curbing these conflicts from key patron perspectives. Lastly, the study suggested the adoption of user inclusive participatory institutional arrangement and provisions by all tiers of Government through heavy fine and sections.

This study was conducted in Hanang district, Manyara region to examine the awareness of Barbaig pastoral community on the problem of climate variability and change and its effect on accelerating poverty. The study assessed the level of knowledge and experience that pastoralists have and the effects of climate variability and change to the community. The study used interview, Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and observation to collect data from respondents. A total of 100 respondents from two villages (Gisambalang and Dirma) together with 10 key informants were involved in the study. The results obtained from this study show that the majority of the respondents (76% and 72% from Gisambalang and Dirma respectively) were aware of the presence of changes in rainfall patterns and temperature. They were able to point out the causes, indicators and resulting effects of climate change. The effects associated with changes in climate noticed by pastoralist includes drought, dry of water sources, poor farm harvest and increased level of poverty. From this study it is recommended that, the policy on climate change control should be given due weight in line with special programs to be introduced to empower pastoralist communities to get correct information and modern ways in addressing issues of climate change. The government should motivate pastoralist to engage themselves in modern ways of keeping animals, environmental conservation and land use planning.

Over last decade Africa has experienced an unprecedented amounts of land being concessioned, leased or sold to business, corporations or foreign sovereign capital. The land question (who can acquire or have access to land) and the political question (who belongs in the political community) are connected to the citizenship question. These questions are among the most politicized in Africa. This article answers the following questions: Who benefits from the ‘land grabs’? What can a critical analysis of the ‘land grabs’ tell us about the contemporary politics of development? The first section of this article discusses and provides the intellectual background that informs today’s land rush. The second section discusses the competing actors involved in the land grab, winners and victims. Here I will argue that the majority of victims of land dispossession in the African context are peasants, pastoralists, nomadic, and transboundary communities, whose land management system is based on cu...

Pastoral Buradiga herders are among the poorest and most vulnerable populations in Tanzania. Like many East African pastoralists Buradiga have become marginalised within the national economy. They are struggling to survive and to retain their traditional lifestyle. Reaching them with formal or informal education has become a major challenge. For the modern Tanzanian society, education is seen as an instrument of transforming pastoralists into settled farmers, labourers, modern livestock producers, and loyal citizens. The education-for-development approaches are accounts of pastoralists' poverty and assume that education will improve their standard of living. Together with national politics, Christianity/missionaries played, and still play, an important role in influencing pastoralists to change their traditional belief, which is represented by sending children to schools. This paper charts the past and the current (educational) activities of missionaries among pastoralists especially the Datoga clan Buradiga in central Tanzania and the way how the concept of preaching was and is received by them. In particular, the focus is on how Christianity is impacting the abandoning of the traditional way of life in a small Burediga community and subsequent change in approach towards education. Buradiga is a name of one of the several Datoga clans, which are dispersed in different Tanzanian regions. I decided to use the clan name instead of the name Datoga, due to differences between single clans inflicted by the isolation from other clans and influences by neighbouring tribes. In this particular topic focused on Christianity, Buradiga are still considered 'pagans' compared to the biggest clan Barabaig or Rotigenga, where missionaries arrived many decades before.

Repeated and lingering famine in the Horn of Africa has produced enormous pastoralist refugee populations in a region where livestock production is a major form of land use. Permanently settling destitute pastoralists has a record of failure. It can disrupt host land-uses, causing social and ecological problems, and prevent the utilization of very large grazing areas where pastoralism may be the only ecologically and economically sustainable land-use. Herd reconstitution should be considered an option in relief and rehabilitation programmes for pastoralists. This paper examines a design where the most proven and immediate way of sustaining stockless pastoralists – farming – can be used to facilitate restocking objectives. Using data gathered in Somalia, estimates of livestock carrying capacity are linked with forage resources, land area, livestock units, and the frequency of good, average, and poor (drought) water years, to explore the possibilities for incorporating restocking into refugee rehabilitation efforts.

The identification of pastoral nomads in archaeological contexts in the Near East is generally based on demonstrating how pastoral campsites differ from farms, towns, and villages. The recognition of mobile pastoralists at multi-period ephemeral sites is more difficult because the architectural remains from earlier periods do not provide insights into the socio-economic organization of the people who reused these settlements in later periods.To address this issue the pottery from the site of Rekhes Nafha 396 in Israel is used to test the observation that pastoral encampments and sedentary occupations exhibit different percentages of cooking pots and storage jars. The results of this study suggest that high percentages of cooking pots and low percentages of storage jars within the total pottery assemblage at ephemeral sites, such as Rekhes Nafha 396, provide a means to identify, from an archaeological perspective, the reoccupation of these settlements by pastoral nomads. The identification of pastoral campsites on the fringe of agricultural settlements in the Negev Highlands is important for modeling symbiotic relationships between pastoral nomads and complex societies in the 6th through 8th centuries A.D.