COVID-19 and pastoralism in a context of rupture and structural reforms in Benin: Learning from uncertainty management from below

本项目研究当前新冠肺炎泛民的社会和经济影响，以及在传染性事件的边缘对这些现象的认识和看法。这些地区包括非洲大陆的大部分地区，这些地区的感染率位居世界最低之列。为了分析这种动态，该项目聚焦于牧民，这一群体也生活在全球流通信息流的阴影下。牧民是一个有趣的例子：他们被视为应对不确定性的专家，而他们的生计在非洲许多地区面临严重压力。这个项目的核心问题是，牧民是否会受到一种病毒的影响--如果是的话，这种病毒会在世界上完全不同的地区造成严重破坏，以及影响的程度如何。因此，该项目寻求帮助更好地了解流行病，而不是从其中心，而是从被认为是其外围的地方。为了审视当前的动态，该项目借鉴了人类学和可持续生命力框架的方法，将“不确定性”作为中心理论概念和分析镜头。由于女性往往被视为流行病的主要负担，性别被用作进一步的视角。从经验上讲，该项目试图仔细审查贝宁北部不同地区的牧民如何经历、解释和管理这场大流行。因此，将通过贝宁北部两个地区的两个案例研究--(1)牧民家庭和(2)牧民妇女协会--进行人种学研究。该项目采用混合方法，包括参与者观察、公开和现场访谈、数字交流和情况分析。描绘一幅更加微妙的图景，了解这场“全球”大流行在其边缘如何演变以及带来什么后果，以及在应对不确定性方面经验丰富的牧民如何看待大流行的结果，将有助于澄清牧民的适应范围。这一知识对于它可能如何影响该地区牧业的未来，以及它如何有助于更好地理解始于中国、欧洲或其他地方的危机的全球化影响，都是重要的。

This project examines the social and economic implications of the current COVID-19 pan-demic, and of the knowledge and perception of these phenomena at the margins of the infectious events. These margins include large parts of the African continent, which have among the lowest infection rates worldwide. For analysing such dynamics, the project fo-cuses on pastoralists, a group that is also living in the shadow of globally circulating infor-mation flows. Pastoralists are an interesting case: they are seen as experts in dealing with uncertainties, while their livelihoods have come under serious pressure in many parts of Africa. The core question of this project is whether – and if so how and to what degree – pastoralists are affected by a virus that is causing havoc in completely different parts of the world. The project therefore seeks to contribute to a better understanding of the pandemics, not from its centres but from what is assumed to be its periphery. To examine the current dynamics, the project draws on approaches from anthropology and the sustainable liveli-hood framework, using ‘uncertainty’ as central theoretical concept and analytical lens. As women are often seen as carrying the bulk of the burden of pandemics, gender is used as a further lens. Empirically, the project seeks to scrutinise how the pandemic is experienced, interpreted and managed by pastoralists in different parts of Northern Benin. Therefore, ethnographic research will be conducted through two case studies – on (1) pastoral house-holds and (2) pastoralist women’s associations – in two regions of Northern Benin. The pro-ject uses a mixed-method approach comprised of participant observation, open and stand-ardised interviews, digital communication and situational analysis. Drawing a much more nuanced picture of how and with what consequences this ‘global’ pandemic evolves at its edges and how pastoralists who are experienced in dealing with uncertainty perceive the outcomes of the pandemic will help to clarify the scope of the pastoralists’ adaptability. This knowledge is important in how it might affect the future of pastoralism in this region, but also in how it might contribute to a better understanding of the globalising effects of crises which started in China, Europe or elsewhere.