"Our
ground never refuses to accept what we plant. Even if
it is tired it still does its best to produce a small
amount. " [PDF 236KB]
Elisabeth Nadjiyo (Female, 45 years),
from Mara, Chad.
The stories of the Sahel, told by
those who have long lived in the region, and who relate
a lifetime of changes. These oral accounts, used with
permission, are from "At the Desert's Edge:
Oral Histories from the Sahel" published by
SOS Sahel and the Panos Institute.
To order this book with its entire compilation of oral
accounts from the Sahel, click
here or write to otp@panoslondon.org.uk
Burkina
Faso| Chad |Ethiopia|
Mali |Mauritania
| Senegal | Sudan
Burkina Faso
Interviews were gathered from settled
farmers in Ouahigouya, in the north of the country,
and from local farmers in Sapone. Both collections were
conducted in Moore.
Read about: Kabré Gomtenga (Female,
70 years), Samné Goama (Female, 40
years), Roamba Tampoko (Female, 40
years), from Saponé
» "We
have no methods of contraception other than abstinence.
Women try to
wait
three years between each child." [PDF 342KB]
Read about: Fatimata Sawadogo (Female,
62 years) from Ouahigouya
» "I
prefer a large family. If some children die, there are
still some left to help
you
when you are old. To help ensure I have enough to survive
on - both
millet
and money - I have worked hard to bring up my grandchildren.
It is a
hard
life for an old woman." [PDF 452KB]
Read about: Haoua Ouédraogo (F, 62
years), Lizèta Porgo (F, 62 years)
from Ouahigouya
» "As
for the division of labor within the family, it is the
job of the women to spin
and
weave the cotton, fetch the water and grind the millet.
The cotton cloth
is
then given to the boys in the family. If they are intelligent,
they sell it so
they
can build their future." [PDF 502KB]
Chad
Interviews in Chad were all conducted
in Arabic. Interviews were collected from Mara, a fishing
community on the River Chari, north of the capital,
N'Djamena, and from Koudere.
Read about: Elisabeth Nadjiyo (Female,
45 years), from Mara
» "Our
ground never refuses to accept what we plant. Even if
it is tired it still
does
its best to produce a small amount. " [PDF 236KB]
Read about: Mariam Madra (Female) from
Ad Djob, Koudere
» "Men
and women used to farm together in the same field. Now
men spend so
much
time traveling in search of work that its more practical
for women to
have
their own fields." [PDF 351KB]
Ethiopia
Interviews were collected from farmers,
pastoralists and agro-pastoralists. All interviews took
place before the political changes of 1991.
Read about: Kebede Bantiwalu (Male,
75 years), from Cherecha, Adis Alem.
» "With
the present ban on hunting, we farmers are having to
stay around our
farms
the whole day long, just to protect our crops - because
a herd of pigs
or
troop of baboons can completely destroy our fields in
a few hours."
[PDF 236KB]
Read about: Yetemegn Damtew (Female,
53 years), from Lower Kutaber Gorge, Wollo.
» "Today,
I too can take my grain to a modern mill: the era dominated
by the
backbreaking
chore of grinding grain has come to an end." [PDF
208KB]
Mali
Interviews were conducted with farmers
in Bore and near Gao.
Read about: Se'e Dembélè
(Male, 70 years), from Tana
» "We
have benefited from new equipment. Now we believe we
must place our
trust
in them because we realize we cannot begin to redress
the damage
done
without their help"[PDF 389KB]
Mauritania
Interviews were conducted in Hasaniya
and were gathered from former pastoralists and other
migrants from rural areas, living in shanty settlements
on the outskirts of the capital city, Nouakchott; and
with fishermen in a coastal district north of Nouakchott.
Read about: Treinicha Mint Beidi (Female,
40-45 years), from Nouakchott
» "Everyone,
even the blind and handicapped, had a role."[PDF
455KB]
Read about: Fatimetou Mint Mohamed el Mokhatar
(Female, 70 years), from Nouakchott
» "It
was a race between us and the locusts to reach the vegetation."
[PDF 443KB]
Senegal
Interviews were conducted with farmers,
pastoralists and fishermen based along the Senegal River.
Read about: Wakary Gassama (Male, 70
years) from Bakel
» "Young
people used to be industrious. After working in their
parent's field,
they
would go and look for their own work. But today, all
the young people
have
watches, and at midday they return to their houses to
sleep."
[PDF 265KB]
Read about: Sadio Dramé (Male,
62 years), from Gandé
» "Fishing
today and yesterday are two different things: yesterday
you went to
fish
in the lakes, whereas today you have to fish in your
pocket. If you have
anything
in your pocket, then you can get a fish, but if you
don't - you won't
get
any fish." [PDF 635KB]
Sudan
Interviews in Sudan were in three
very different communities: in villages to the north
of Khartoum, among irrigation farmers, and in Kordofan
with pastoralists, agro-pastoralists and farmers - all
in Arabic; and with Eritrean and Tigrayan refugees in
a UNHCR camp in Tigrigna, Tigre and Amharic.
Read about: Adam el Imam (Male, 98
years) from El Ushara, Shendi
» "The
change which has had the greatest impact has been the
widespread
introduction
of improved education." [PDF 200KB]
Read about: Mohamed el Awad Ali (Male,
70 years) from El Ushara, Shendi.
» "Since
the Second World War, I have concentrated on agriculture,
which is
better
now than in the past, because it yields money."
[PDF 195KB] |
