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

该项目研究了当前COVID-19大流行的社会和经济影响，以及在传染性事件的边缘对这些现象的知识和看法。这些边缘地区包括非洲大陆的大部分地区，这些地区的感染率是世界上最低的。为了分析这种动态，该项目重点关注牧民，他们也生活在全球传播信息流的阴影下。牧民是一个有趣的例子：他们被视为处理不确定性的专家，而在非洲许多地方，他们的生计却受到严重压力。该项目的核心问题是，牧民是否-如果是的话，如何以及在多大程度上-受到一种在世界完全不同地区造成严重破坏的病毒的影响。因此，该项目力求促进更好地了解这些流行病，不是从其中心，而是从被认为是其外围的地方。为了研究当前的动态，该项目借鉴了人类学和可持续发展框架的方法，使用“不确定性”作为中心理论概念和分析透镜。由于妇女往往被视为大部分流行病的负担，性别被用作另一个透镜。从经验上讲，该项目试图仔细研究贝宁北方不同地区的牧民是如何经历、解释和管理这种流行病的。因此，将在贝宁北方的两个地区通过两个案例研究-关于（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，包括参与观察，开放和标准化的访谈，数字通信和情景分析。描绘一幅更加微妙的画面，说明这一“全球”流行病在其边缘如何演变以及产生何种后果，以及在应对不确定性方面经验丰富的牧民如何看待这一流行病的后果，将有助于澄清牧民的适应范围。这些知识对于它如何影响该地区畜牧业的未来非常重要，而且对于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也非常重要。

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.