scholarly journals Between Village and Town: Small-Town Urbanism in Sub-Saharan Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1417
Author(s):  
Jytte Agergaard ◽  
Susanne Kirkegaard ◽  
Torben Birch-Thomsen
Keyword(s):  
Small Town ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Urban Transformation ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Starting Point

In the next twenty years, urban populations in Africa are expected to double, while urban land cover could triple. An often-overlooked dimension of this urban transformation is the growth of small towns and medium-sized cities. In this paper, we explore the ways in which small towns are straddling rural and urban life, and consider how insights into this in-betweenness can contribute to our understanding of Africa’s urban transformation. In particular, we examine the ways in which urbanism is produced and expressed in places where urban living is emerging but the administrative label for such locations is still ‘village’. For this purpose, we draw on case-study material from two small towns in Tanzania, comprising both qualitative and quantitative data, including analyses of photographs and maps collected in 2010–2018. First, we explore the dwindling role of agriculture and the importance of farming, businesses and services for the diversification of livelihoods. However, income diversification varies substantially among population groups, depending on economic and migrant status, gender, and age. Second, we show the ways in which institutions, buildings, and transport infrastructure display the material dimensions of urbanism, and how urbanism is planned and aspired to. Third, we describe how well-established middle-aged households, independent women (some of whom are mothers), and young people, mostly living in single-person households, explain their visions and values of the ways in which urbanism is expressed in small towns. In conclusion, we discuss the implications of this urban life-in-becoming of small towns for urban planning, emphasizing the importance of the development of inclusive local governance. Ultimately, we argue that our study establishes an important starting point for further explorations of the role of the simultaneous production and expression of urbanism in small town urbanization.

Trade Union Politics in Sub-Saharan Africa

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Bernards
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Structural Adjustment ◽  
Transport Infrastructure ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Political Role ◽  
International Labor ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
International Labor Movement ◽  
The Unemployed

Although unionized workers have rarely represented more than a small minority of the population anywhere in sub-Saharan Africa, trade unions have played, and continue to play, a significant political role. Trade unions still occupy strategic choke points in many African economies, particularly around transport infrastructure, and retain a spatially concentrated organizational base as well as a degree of symbolic power drawn from participation in struggles against colonialism, apartheid, and authoritarianism. Three persistent dilemmas have strongly shaped the role of African trade unions and driven much of the academic debate about them. First are debates about the relationships between trade unions and political parties. These date to the often-fraught relationships between unions and anti-colonial movements in the last years of colonial rule. Pitched struggles, both within trade unions and between unions and governing parties, were often fought in the decade after the end of formal colonization over the degree of autonomy that unions should have from governing parties. These were often resolved through the widespread repression of politically independent unionism in the 1970s. This relationship, however, became untenable under processes of structural adjustment, and unions have often played a significant role in protests against neoliberal reforms, which have spurred widespread political transformation. Second are debates about the relationships of trade unions to non-unionized workers, especially the unemployed or the “informal” sector. Critics on both left and right have long pointed to the relatively privileged position of trade unions. This has consistently been invoked by governments seeking to justify the limited political role of trade unions as well as policies for wage restraint, state retrenchment, or currency devaluation that have negatively affected organized labor. However, given the increasingly widespread nature of informality and unemployment in contemporary Africa, trade unions have begun to make tentative steps toward organizing informal and unemployed workers in some cases. Finally, the relationships of African unions to the international labor movement and to international organizations have often been important. African unions have frequently drawn on links to international trade unions, regional institutions, or the International Labour Organization (ILO) as a way of compensating for domestic weaknesses. These strategies, however, have often engendered significant conflicts around the differing objectives of African and metropolitan actors, between African unions over access to international resources, and concerning “imperialism” by American and European unions.

scholarly journals Platform economy: (dis-) embeddedness processes in urban spaces

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sina Hardaker
Keyword(s):  
Urban Life ◽  
Urban Transformation ◽  
Urban Spaces ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Essential Dynamics ◽  
Detailed Understanding ◽  
Digital Platforms ◽  
Regulatory Frameworks ◽  
Platform Economy

AbstractDigital platforms, understood as multi-sided matchmakers, have amassed huge power, reimagining the role of consumers, producers, and even ownership. They increasingly dictate the way the economy and urban life is organized. Yet, despite their influential and far-reaching role in shaping our economic as well as sociocultural world, our understanding of their embeddedness, namely how their activities are embedded in systems of social and societal relationships and how they conceptualize their main functions and actions in relation to their wider setting, remains rudimentary. Consequently, the purpose of this frontier paper is threefold. Firstly, it reveals the need to discuss and evaluate (dis-)embedding processes in platform urbanism in order to understand the underlying dynamics of platform power and urban transformation. Secondly, it aims to reveal the main reasons in regard to the difficulties in pinpointing digital platforms embeddedness. Thirdly, it seeks to propose future research unravelling the (dis-)embeddedness of the platform economy.This paper argues for three main reasons namely unawareness, unaccountability and non-transparency of digital platforms that drive the lack of embeddedness and reaffirms platform power. This is mainly based on the configuration of new commodities, platforms’ strategic avoidance of labour protections and other regulatory frameworks as well as platforms’ secrecy in which they operate. This frontier paper argues that transferring the concept of embeddedness to the platform economy might serve as a valuable tool to understand and pinpoint essential dynamics and relationships at play, therefore proposing embeddedness as a basis for future research on the platform economy. It strongly argues that a more detailed understanding is urgently needed, in order to be able to understand, accompany and actively influence the development of the platform economy in regulatory terms.

Structure of the Local Tiers in Germany

2016 ◽  
pp. 51-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jochen Franzke
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Public Management ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Long Term Trends

This chapter analyses basic long-term trends in local governance in Germany in their functional, political, territorial and administrative dimensions. The traditions and legal framework of German local self-government form the starting point of the chapter. Subsequently, the role of the local level in the German federal system and the level of its autonomy are analysed. After that, the most important political-administrative actors in local governance examines, such as councilors, mayors, local administration, local branches of political parties and free voters associations. In describing the long-term trends and challenges in German local politics, special attention is paid to local public management, local democracy and citizen participation. Finally, the chapter ends with a summary of the most important aspects of the development of the municipalities and districts in Germany and with a view towards further reform.

Small-Town Agricultural Markets in Northern Ghana and Their Connection to Rural and Urban Transformation

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Karg ◽  
Imogen Bellwood-Howard ◽  
Edmund K. Akoto-Danso ◽  
Johannes Schlesinger ◽  
Takemore Chagomoka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Small Town ◽  
Urban Transformation ◽  
Northern Ghana ◽  
Agricultural Markets ◽  
Rural And Urban

Reworking the Geography of the Long Boom; The Small Town Experience of Restructuring in Reefton, New Zealand

1997 ◽  
Vol 29 (8) ◽  
pp. 1381-1397 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Conradson ◽  
E Pawson
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Small Town ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Economic Base ◽  
The West ◽  
Domestic Industry ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Key Features ◽  
The Town

During the postwar long boom, the economic, political, and cultural configurations adopted to regulate the crisis tendencies of capitalism in New Zealand were broadly those of social democracy. Key features of social democratic policy in this period were the assistance of primary production through subsidies, the protection of domestic industry, a well-developed welfare state, and the promotion of economic development in marginal places and regions. These regulatory arrangements found expression as a distinctive geography of the long boom. In small towns this was typified by clusters of agencies associated with the state's intervention in production and its provision of infrastructure. Local employment was often concentrated in these agencies. We examine the nature of such a geography during the long boom in Reefton, a small town on the West Coast of the South Island, and its subsequent reworking during the restructuring of the 1980s. This reworking is explored through a focus on the major state and private sector workplaces within the town's economic base and their employees. As key influences upon the newly emerging geography of the town, the forms of local governance that are being adopted in order to attract the spending and investment lost during restructuring are examined.

Verbal Autopsy Interview Standardization Study

2020 ◽  
pp. 301-320
Author(s):  
Clarissa Surek-Clark
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Autopsy ◽  
Medical Personnel ◽  
Field Work ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Cultural Mediator ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Survey Instruments ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Ethnographic Field Work

Verbal autopsy is a widely known method used for epidemiological and vital registration purposes by demographic surveillance sites throughout the developing world. While the interview assessing causes of death may be conducted and recorded in local languages, the information collected in survey instruments and used by medical personnel as a starting point for analysis is often in English, or other colonial languages. Given the thus far unexplored role of the fieldworker as an interpreter and cultural mediator, ethnographic field work was conducted in six Health and Demographic Surveillance sites in Sub-Saharan Africa that participate in the Alpha Network, with the aim to understand linguistic, cultural, and survey administration practices during each site’s ongoing Verbal Autopsy interview process. This chapter reports on initial results from the study, including challenges faced by the Verbal Autopsy teams, as well as providing initial solutions applicable to professionals interested in health and language methodology.

scholarly journals The role of small town in household livelihood diversification in Ethiopia rural areas

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 230-241
Author(s):  
Kiros Tsegay ◽  
Hongzhong Fan ◽  
Hailay Shifare ◽  
PriyanganiAdikari AM.
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Small Town ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Livelihood Diversification ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Urban Rural ◽  
Household Heads

There is a high expectation that urban-rural linkage in general and the function of small towns, in particular, has a great role in livelihood diversification and poverty reduction in rural areas than sectoral development. However, the previous empirical studies give little attention to the function of small towns and the livelihood diversification of rural communities. We analyze the function of a small town and participating in non-farm economic activities from a rural farm household survey of 371 farmer household heads in Ethiopia. The data was analyzed using a logistic regression model and statistical description. The study found that rural households who have road access have likely participated in none-farm activities and it has positive and significant effects. Education and FHH has also a significant relationship with the function of a small town. Distance from the small town has a significant and positive impact on the non-farm economic activities of rural communities. Overall, benefits from the function of small towns such as the provision of road access, agricultural extension, financial credit services, administrative services, educational and health services are some of the provisions of a small town. Therefore, a comprehensive integrated urban-rural linkage strategy could empower rural farm smallholders to diversify their livelihoods through strengthening small town functions is mandatory. The role of small towns needs to be integrated into rural communities. Participate in livelihood diversification strategies and achieve sustainable development goals by 2030 at large. 

INTERPRETATION OF SINO-RUSSIAN CULTURE AND HUMANITIES COOPERATION IN THE NEW ERA

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 186-193
Author(s):  
REN YANYAN ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Current Status ◽  
Human Relations ◽  
New Era ◽  
Russian Culture ◽  
The People ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Cooperative Partnership ◽  
Belt And Road ◽  
The Belt And Road

The friendship between nations lies in the mutual affinity of the people, and the people’s affinity lies in the communion of hearts. The cultural and humanities cooperation between China and Russia has a long history. In recent years, under the role of the“Belt and Road” initiative, the SCO, and the Sino-Russian Humanities Cooperation Committee, Sino-Russian culture and humanities cooperation has continued to deepen. Entering a new era, taking the opportunity to promote Sino-Russian relations into a “new era China-Russia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership”, the development of human relations between the two countries has entered a new historical starting point, while also facing a series of problems and challenges. This article is based on the current status of Sino-Russian human relations in the new era, interprets the characteristics of Sino-Russian human relations in the new era, analyzes the problems and challenges of Sino-Russian human relations in the new era, and tries to propose solutions and solutions with a view to further developing Sino-Russian cultural and humanities relations in the new era. It is a useful reference, and provides a reference for future related research, and ultimately helps the Sino-Russian cultural and humanities relations in the new era to be stable and far-reaching.

MULTI - DIMENSIONAL ROLE OF A PHARMACIST IN HOSPITAL: A HEALTH CARE PROVIDER

2018 ◽  
pp. 5-7
Author(s):  
Singh S ◽  
Virmani T ◽  
Virmani R ◽  
Geeta . ◽  
Gupta J
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Health Care Services ◽  
Drug Product ◽  
Hospital Pharmacist ◽  
Therapeutic Monitoring ◽  
Direct Patient Care ◽  
Rural And Urban Areas ◽  
Rural And Urban

The objective of this study was to point out multi-dimensional role of a pharmacist with a special emphasis on the hospital pharmacist. Apharmacist is a person who is involved in designing, creating or manufacturing of a drug product, dispensing of a drug, managing and planning ofa pharmaceutical care. They are experts on the action and uses of drugs, including their chemistry, pharmacology and formulation. Theprofessional life of a hospital pharmacist might seem insignificant as compared to that of doctors, but actually they are highly trained healthprofessionals who plays important role in patient safety, patient compliance, therapeutic monitoring and even in direct patient care. With thepassage of time and advancements in health care services and pharmaceuticals, the role of a hospital pharmacist has become more diversified. Toa career, a hospital pharmacist must possess a diploma/degree in pharmacy from an accredited pharmacy college and must be registered with thestate pharmacy council of their respective region. In this study, we have assessed the behavior, communication skills, qualifications of thepharmacist, prescription handling ability and other factors to evaluate the diversified role of hospital pharmacist and their comparison withpharmacists practicing in rural and urban areas. Current surveys show that the pharmacists are not practicing as per the standard due to lack ofproper guidelines and watch over their practicing sense. The rules and guidelines prescribed by the Food and drug administration (FDA) andIndian pharmacopeia commission (IPC) were not followed by the pharmacist.

La conexión entre política de cohesión y gobernanza económica en la UE: Eficiencia del nuevo marco para abordar las consecuencias de la crisis

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 44-62
Author(s):  
Laura Gómez Urquijo
Keyword(s):  
Social Protection ◽  
Economic Governance ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Investment Funds ◽  
Current Economic Crisis ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
New Economic Governance ◽  
Social Protection Systems ◽  
New Instruments

The objective of this article is to contribute to the discussion on the validity of new instruments to enhance cohesion in the European Union (EU). First, we question to which extent cohesion policy is submitted to the new economic governance. Second, we discuss this subordination affects the fulfillment of cohesion aims. This question is especially relevant due to the increase of inequalities in the current economic crisis and the great diversity among State Members (including social protection systems and expenses). Thus, our starting point is the new economic governance framework and its impact on the fulfillment of cohesion objectives. Statistical data are considered with this aim. Next, we will assess the role of European Structural and Investment Funds to eventually compensate public expense cuts, as well as its subordination to the macroeconomic government. This aspect will be contrasted through the study of Country Specific Recommendations given by the European Semester. Spanish El objetivo de este artículo es contribuir a la discusión sobre la validez de los nuevos instrumentos para fomentar la cohesión en la Unión Europea. Nos preguntamos en qué modo queda sometida la política de cohesión a la nueva gobernanza económica y cómo afecta a la efectividad para cubrir susfines. Esta cuestión es particularmente relevante ante el incremento de las desigualdades suscitado en la crisis económica actual. Por ello, nuestro punto de partida es el nuevo marco de gobernanza económica y su impacto en el cumplimiento de los objetivos de cohesión, considerando para ello datos estadísticos. A continuación, valoraremos, el papel de los Fondos Estructurales y de Inversión Europeos como posibles compensadores de la reducción del gasto público así como su subordinación al gobierno macroeconómico. Esta cuestión será contrastada también a través del examen de las Recomendaciones Específicas por país dadas por el Semestre Europeo. French Le but de cet article est de contribuer à la discussion sur la validité de nouveaux instruments pour promouvoir la cohésion dans l'UE. Nous avons considéré, d'une part, en quoi la politique de cohésion est soumise à la nouvelle gouvernance économique et, d'autre part, la façon dont elle utilise l'efficacité pour répondre à ses fins.Cette question est particulièrement pertinente étant donnée l'augmentation de l'inégalité soulevée par la crise économique actuelle, dans un contexte de grande diversité d'États membres, notamment en ce qui concerne les systèmes de protection sociale et les dépenses publiques. Par conséquent, notre point de départ s'inscrit dans le nouveau cadre de gouvernance économique et son impact sur la mise en œuvre des objectifs de cohésion, à partir de la prise en compte de données statistiques. Pour ce faire, nous évaluons le rôle des Fonds Structurels Européens, leur capacité de compenser la réduction des dépenses publiques et leur subordination au gouvernement macroéconomique. Ce e question sera également abordée par l'examen des recommandations spécifiques par pays fournies par le Semestre Européen.

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