Labour and livelihoods

The dynamics of contemporary local-government policies and economic development in West Papua

There have been enormous political, economic, and social changes in West Papua. Every governor of West Papua has designed programmes to boost economic development and reduce poverty. The influx of migrant workers under the ‘transmigration programme’ into West Papua has limited the job opportunities for indigenous people in the labour market.

Author: 
Mollet, Julius Ary
Page: 
232

A confluence of Fair Trade and organic agriculture in southern India

Although the confluence of Fair Trade and organic agriculture has become a salient phenomenon, they contradict each other at the production level: Fair Trade focuses on specific products, while organic agriculture targets production units. This article explores how Southern small-scale producers cope with this discrepancy, by observing one farmers’ group’s attempt to obtain the two certifications in India. This case study identifies stakeholders who react to the two certifications differently under different livelihood strategies.

Author: 
Makita, Rie
Page: 
205

Capacity building for adaptive management: a problem-based learning approach

As natural-resource issues become more complex, particularly in developing-world contexts, there is a growing need for adaptive management solutions. However, the skills necessary to deal with these increasingly complex situations are not always present in many low-income countries. There is also a growing recognition that many capacity-building activities are limited in their effectiveness. This article suggests a problem-based learning (PBL) approach to capacity building.

Author: 
Mistry, Jayalaxshmi
Author: 
Berardi, Andrea
Author: 
Roopsind, Indranee
Author: 
Davis, Odacy
Author: 
Haynes, Lakeram
Author: 
Davis, Orville
Author: 
Simpson, Matthew
Page: 
190

A new Fair Trade registration scheme based on the relations of production

Fashion, accessories, and homeware fall outside the regulations of Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO), which certifies mostly food products. A handful of fashion-led Fair Trade enterprises are now providing ranges of high-quality desirable products, made by workers employed in urban enterprises as well as independent producers in cooperatives. Tabeisa, an NGO involved in Fair Trade retailing, has developed a new regulatory framework which uniquely starts by defining the relations of production between all actors in the chain.

Author: 
McDowall, Hannah
Author: 
Humphreys, John
Author: 
Conlon, Jane
Page: 
143

Micro-insurance through corporate-NGO partnerships in West Bengal: opportunities and constraints

This Practical Note examines the nascent micro-insurance sector in West Bengal, paying particular attention to the corporate–NGO partnership model for micro-insurance distribution, which has been enabled by India’s unique regulatory framework. We challenge the popular construction of this model as a ‘win–win’ for all parties by analysing conflicting understandings of micro-insurance schemes and their purposes by insurance companies, NGOs, and poor villagers.

Author: 
Véron, René
Author: 
Majumdar, Ananya
Page: 
122

Rethinking monitoring in a complex messy partnership in Brazil

Since 1996, CTA-ZM, a local Brazilian NGO, has been developing better ways to understand its work on pro-poor institutional transformation in Minas Gerais. It operates within a ‘messy partnership’ which includes farmer trade unions, associations, social movements, and academic institutions. The combined challenge of institutional transformation and messy partnerships has made it clear that mainstream monitoring is inadequate to trigger the diversity and depth of learning required within concerted action.

Author: 
Guijt, Irene
Page: 
996

Addressing the research–development disconnect: lessons from East and Central African Highlands

A growing concern about the limited impact of agricultural research and development on natural-resources management (NRM) and livelihoods in the highlands of East and Central Africa led to the establishment in 1995 of the African Highlands Initiative, with a mandate to develop methodologies for integrated NRM and institutionalise them in partner organisations. Emerging lessons show that a combination of innovative approaches is necessary for enhanced uptake of NRM practices.

Author: 
Mowo, Jeremias
Author: 
Opondo, Chris
Author: 
Nyaki, Adolf
Author: 
Adimassu, Zenebe
Page: 
994

Livelihoods-based impact assessment in the rice–wheat farming system of South Asia

This article reports on an ex-ante impact study in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of South Asia. The study, guided by a livelihoods approach, developed a spatial-mapping methodology based on secondary data for 18 variables which served as indicators of the five livelihood classes of assets (natural, physical, financial, social, and human). The overall livelihood-asset index showed a significant and strong negative correlation (R = –0.65, P = 0.00) with the national poverty line, with poverty peaking in districts where the assets base was lowest, and vice versa.

Author: 
Hellin, Jon
Author: 
Erenstein, Olaf
Author: 
Chandna, Parvesh
Author: 
Dixon, John
Page: 
933

The role of self-help groups in empowering disabled women: a case study in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

The literature on self-help groups (SHGs) shows a mixed record on empowering women both economically and socially, while the literature on Women with Disabilities (WWDs) highlights the problems of isolation that exacerbate their disadvantages. This article, asking whether SHGs can empower WWDs, is based on a study conducted in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. It concludes that being an SHG member is useful for gaining employment that leads to better recognition in the family and society.

Author: 
Dhungana, Bishnu Maya
Author: 
Kusakabe, Kyoko
Page: 
855

Development and Agroforestry: Scaling Up the Impacts of Research

Edited by: 
Franzel, Steven
Edited by: 
Cooper, Peter
Edited by: 
Denning, Glenn L.
Edited by: 
Eade, Deborah

ImageAgriculturalists have been benefiting from the range of products and services that trees can supply for thousands of years. Through the integration of trees into agricultural landscapes, farmers and land users at all levels can enjoy diversified production, and a range of social, economic, and environmental benefits. Agroforestry is the scientific application of this widespread body of knowledge.

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