DOCSLIB.ORG

Traditional Ecological Knowledge-Based Assessment Of

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Traditional Ecological Knowledge-Based Assessment Of Agbani et al. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2018) 14:21 https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-018-0219-6 RESEARCH Open Access Traditional ecological knowledge-based assessment of threatened woody species and their potential substitutes in the Atakora mountain chain, a threatened hotspot of biodiversity in Northwestern Benin, West Africa Pierre Onodje Agbani1, Konoutan Médard Kafoutchoni2, Kolawolé Valère Salako2* , Rodrigue Castro Gbedomon2, Ahuéfa Mauricel Kégbé2, Hahn Karen3 and Brice Sinsin1 Abstract Background: Atakora mountains in Benin are a unique but fragile ecosystem, harboring many endemic plant species. The ecosystem is undergoing degradation, and the woody vegetation is dramatically declining due to high anthropogenic actions and recurrent drought. This study aimed to (i) assess the diversity of threatened woody species and (ii) identify their potential substitutes in the three regions of the Atakora mountains namely East Atakora, Central Atakora, and West Atakora. Methods: The data were collected during expeditions on surveyed localities through semi-structured individual interviews. Free-listing was used to record threatened woody species and which were important and why. Alpha- diversity indices were used to assess diversity of threatened and important threatened woody species. A correspondence analysis was used to determine the reason supporting their importance. Differences in species composition were assessed using analysis of similarities. A number of potential substitutes were compared among species using generalized linear models. Results: A total of 117 woody species (37 families and 92 genera) were identified. The most prominent families were Fabaceae (19.66%), Combretaceae (12.82%), and Moraceae (10.26%), and the richest genera were Ficus (10 species), Combretum (6), and Terminalia (5). Most threatened species differed across regions (East Atakora, Central Atakora, and West Atakora) and included Afzelia africana, Anogeissus leiocarpa, Borassus aethiopum, Diospyros mespiliformis, Khaya senegalensis, Milicia excelsa,andPterocarpus erinaceus. Most socio-economically important species (K. senegalensis, Parkia biglobosa, Vitellaria paradoxa,andV. doniana) were used mainly for food, timber, and fuelwood purposes. Old and adult people, and Dendi and Fulfulde sociolinguistic groups had greater knowledge of threatened woody plant species. High intercultural differentiations in species composition were detected between Bariba-Berba and Bariba- Natimba. Knowledge of substitutes also differed across regions with P. erinaceus, Isoberlinia spp., and A. africana being the most cited substitutes. (Continued on next page) * Correspondence: [email protected] 2Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimations Forestières (LABEF), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques (FSA), Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525 Cotonou, Bénin Full list of author information is available at the end of the article © The Author(s). 2018 Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated. Agbani et al. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2018) 14:21 Page 2 of 19 (Continued from previous page) Conclusion: Basic data was provided here to inform decision and guide efficient management of woody resources. There was evidence that immediate conservation measures are required for some high economic value woody taxa which were critically threatened. Ex-situ conservation of these species while promoting their integration into agroforestry-based systems were recommended. Besides, community-based management programs and community- led initiatives involving knowledgeable people from different horizons will lead to a long-lasting conservation of these threatened resources. Keywords: Beta-diversity, Atakora mountain chain, Socio-cultural factors, Forest resources, ANOSIM, Background revealed a highly regressive ecosystem in the Atakora Forests represent major intergenerational reservoirs of chain [12]. Thereof, particular attention should be de- resources sustaining local economy, enhancing food se- voted to this area and conservation efforts should target curity, providing non-timber forest products and wood, multiple taxa. conserving biodiversity, and offering multiple ecosystem The traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) is a valu- services [1–4]. However, forest covers are dramatically able component in the sustainable management of declining in West Africa [5, 6], especially in Benin [7, 8], resources and conservation of threatened or rare species critically threatening the species they host and com- and biodiversity, as well as protected areas [18–20]. promising ecosystem services they provide [9]. Located Indeed, it is well established that the knowledge of local in the so-called “Dahomey Gap” which is a low-rainfall people, developed upon the experiences acquired over dry corridor separating Guinean rainforest blocks [10], generations, can complement scientific ecological know- the Republic of Benin does not have as much forest ledge for sustainable management of forest ecosystems zones compared to its neighboring countries such as [21, 22]. Actually, based on ecological knowledge of local Nigeria, Ghana, and Ivory Coast. Nevertheless, more people on the decline or the conservation status of dif- than 22% of forest areas and 30% of savannah have been ferent species, many authors have proposed forest lost in Benin from 1995 to 2006 [8] and according to management strategies [23–25] and developed methods − FAO [11], it was 50,000 ha. year 1 of forest cover that for using that knowledge efficiently [26]. has been destroyed in the period from 2000 to 2010. A As a prerequisite for conservation strategies of the study on land use and land cover change in Central and Atakora chain, the major aim of this study was to pro- Northern Benin revealed that land clearance for agricul- vide the background for efficient management of the ture, wood extraction, and demographic growth are threatened woody species in the Atakora mountain major causes of forest depletion [12]. Also, illegal settle- chain region in Benin. Specifically, the study aims to (i) ments and agricultural encroachment on the protected assess the diversity of threatened woody species (TWS) forests [13] and expansion of illegal timber trade are based on locals’ traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), considered as additional threats to the loss of forest re- (ii) assess the relationship of TEK with socio- sources. Yet, the most serious cause of the extinction of demographic factors of informants (age, gender, and many woody species in the wild in Benin is undoubtedly sociolinguistic groups), and (iii) identify their potential the selective logging to which they may be subjected [2, substitutes in the area. 7, 14]. Atakora mountain chain is a region of great eco- logical and species diversity in the country [15]. It har- Methods bors an outstanding flora including three endemic Study area genera (Vitellaria, Pseudocedrela, and Haematostaphis) This study was conducted in 2015, and data presented to the Sudanian zones, two plant species endemics to here were collected over a 6-month period. The study Benin (Cyperus beninensis (Samain, Reynders & Goetgh) was carried out in the Atakora mountain chain region in Huygh and Ipomoea beninensis Akoègninou, Lisowski & Benin (6°–12°50′N and 1°–3°40′E) (Fig. 1). The Atakora Sinsin), and Thunbergia atacorensis Akoègninou & chain region includes East Atakora (EA), Central Lisowski, an endangered species endemic to the insel- Atakora (CA), and West Atakora (WA) zones. The cli- bergs of Benin and Togo [16, 17]. Unfortunately, over-- mate is of Sudanian type and is influenced by the logging, exploitation of granitic rock plates, and Atakora mountain chain in the state district of Atakora agricultural exploitation of the mountain chain lead to and with a tendency toward a Sahelian climate north- the degradation of plant communities and threat the in- ward. The rainfall is irregular and unimodal with one tegrity of this ecosystem. Furthermore, the study of plant rainy season and a dry season which last up to 7 months. community dynamics across phytogeographical districts The annual rainfall varies between 900 and 1300 mm, Agbani et al. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2018) 14:21 Page 3 of 19 Fig. 1 Map showing the study area and indicating the surveyed localities and the mean annual temperature is 27 °C [27]. The re- first to list as much threatened woody species s/he lief is mountainous with poor sandy, rocky, and knows. In assigning a woody species to as threatened encrusted soils and some shallows. Soil is ferruginous. versus not threatened, informants were asked to mainly The main sociolinguistic groups encountered in the area consider the availability of the woody species through (i) are Bariba, Berba, Biali, Dendi, Ditamari, Fulfulde, whether they travel more distances or spent more energy Lamba, Natimba, Otamari, and Waama [28]. to find a particular species that they used to find easily in the past and (ii)
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Decomposing Gender and Ethnic Earnings Gaps in Seven West African Cities
    DOCUMENT DE TRAVAIL DT/2009-07 Decomposing Gender and Ethnic Earnings Gaps in Seven West African Cities Christophe NORDMAN Anne-Sophie ROBILLIARD François ROUBAUD DIAL • 4, rue d’Enghien • 75010 Paris • Téléphone (33) 01 53 24 14 50 • Fax (33) 01 53 24 14 51 E-mail : [email protected] • Site : www.dial.prd.fr DECOMPOSING GENDER AND ETHNIC EARNINGS GAPS IN SEVEN WEST AFRICAN CITIES Christophe Nordman Anne Sophie Robilliard François Roubaud IRD, DIAL, Paris IRD, DIAL, Dakar IRD, DIAL, Hanoï [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Document de travail DIAL Octobre 2009 Abstract In this paper, we analyse the size and determinants of gender and ethnic earnings gaps in seven West African capitals (Abidjan, Bamako, Cotonou, Dakar, Lome, Niamey and Ouagadougou) based on a unique and perfectly comparable dataset coming from the 1-2-3 Surveys conducted in the seven cities from 2001 to 2002. Analysing gender and ethnic earnings gaps in an African context raises a number of important issues that our paper attempts to address, notably by taking into account labour allocation between public, private formal and informal sectors which can be expected to contribute to earnings gaps. Our results show that gender earnings gaps are large in all the cities of our sample and that gender differences in the distribution of characteristics usually explain less than half of the raw gender gap. By contrast, majority ethnic groups do not appear to have a systematic favourable position in the urban labour markets of our sample of countries and observed ethnic gaps are small relative to gender gaps.
    [Show full text]
  • WINDOW to the WORLD FAITH BAPTIST MISSION WINDOW to the WORLD Fall 2013 Issue No
    !!! WINDOW TO THE WORLD FAITH BAPTIST MISSION WINDOW TO THE WORLD Fall 2013 Issue No. One faithbaptistwh.org/fbm Eagle POLake, Box FL 866 33839 : Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders FAITH BAPTIST FAITH BAPTIST FAITHamong all peoples. BAPTIST MISSION MISSION MISSION ~Psalm 96:3~ WEST AFRICA NEWS BENINCLINIC “I being in the way the Lord led me,” were the words of Abraham’s servant speaking of God’s sovereign control over the affairs of his master Abraham in the choosing of a wife for his son Isaac. This phrase is instructive to us as believers, reminding us that God even works through the purposed flow of events in our lives to bring glory to Himself. Jesus Christ is magnified when we take the time to reflect on Dental Care how he is working. I was sitting in my living room one day with Joshua, a Beninese brother in Christ who shares our burden for reaching the Dendi people of northern Benin with the gospel. Joshua is a registered nurse with a burden for medical evangelism. Continued on Page 2 FAITH FAITH MALIFAITH CONFLICT UPDATE BAPTIST We BAPTISThave recently been encouraged to learn Existing Medical Clinic BAPTISTOne to One Evangelism that a few pastors and believers"have returned MISSION to NorthMISSION Mali"to evaluate the devastation. After MISSION more than 14 months, the first church service The Pictures above was held in the Timbuktu Baptist Church. are recent photos There were over 150 people, mostly young people. from the Continued on Page 3 BeninClinic Window to the World, Faith Baptist Mission, PO Box 866, Eagle Lake, Florida, 33839 | www.faithbaptistwh.org/fbm WINDOW TO THE WORLD! PAGE2 BENINCLINIC established local church recognized the The Dendi are a predominately Muslim desperate need in his village for medical people group (over 99% by most estimates).
    [Show full text]
  • JBES-Vol-11-No-5-P-3
    J. Bio. Env. Sci. 2017 Journal of Biodiversity and Environmental Sciences (JBES) ISSN: 2220-6663 (Print) 2222-3045 (Online) Vol. 11, No. 5, p. 37-45, 2017 http://www.innspub.net RESEARCH PAPER OPEN ACCESS Assessment of habitat/species management area for Kobs in Kainji Lake National Park, Nigeria Oyeleke*, Olaide Omowumi, Ayesuwa, Abimbola Department of Ecotourism and Wildlife Management, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Article published on November 08, 2017 Key words: Park management, Habitat management, Protected area, Kob courts Abstract Habitat management of spectacular species in protected areas requires some level of active intervention. Kainji Lake National Park, Nigeria designated certain areas for the management of Kobs (Kobus kob) known as Kob courts. The study, carried out in Borgu sector of the Park was aimed at assessing the areas, determine measures towards maintenance and the level of intervention. Data collection included direct and indirect methods of animal survey, plant enumeration and interview. 25m x 25m plots were demarcated in the Kob courts within which plant identification was carried out. Results revealed there are twenty-six (26) designated Kob courts on Gilbert Child, Yankari and Shehu Shagari tracks along the Oli river stretch in the Park Terminalia macroptera was dominant tree species in the Kob courts, followed by Gardenia aqualla, Vitellaria paradoxa, Acacia spp. while Daniella oliveri, Burkea africana and Grewia mollis recorded least occurrence. Active management practices are anti-poaching patrols, creation of waterholes and annual burning to encourage new flush and increase visibility by the tourists. Management interventions were not species-specific but common to all the animals.
    [Show full text]
  • African Journal of Biotechnology Volume 16 Number 19, 10 May 2017 ISSN 1684-5315
    African Journal of Biotechnology Volume 16 Number 19, 10 May 2017 ISSN 1684-5315 ABOUT AJB The African Journal of Biotechnology (AJB) (ISSN 1684-5315) is published weekly (one volume per year) by Academic Journals. African Journal of Biotechnology (AJB), a new broad-based journal, is an open access journal that was founded on two key tenets: To publish the most exciting research in all areas of applied biochemistry, industrial microbiology, molecular biology, genomics and proteomics, food and agricultural technologies, and metabolic engineering. Secondly, to provide the most rapid turn-around time possible for reviewing and publishing, and to disseminate the articles freely for teaching and reference purposes. All articles published in AJB are peer-reviewed. Contact Us Editorial Office: [email protected] Help Desk: [email protected] Website: http://www.academicjournals.org/journal/AJB Submit manuscript online http://ms.academicjournals.me/ Editor-in-Chief Associate Editors Prof. Dr. AE Aboulata George Nkem Ude, Ph.D Plant Breeder & Molecular Biologist Plant Path. Res. Inst., ARC, POBox 12619, Giza, Egypt 30 D, El-Karama St., Alf Maskan, P.O. Box 1567, Department of Natural Sciences Ain Shams, Cairo, Crawford Building, Rm 003A Bowie State University Egypt 14000 Jericho Park Road Bowie, MD 20715, USA Dr. S.K Das Department of Applied Chemistry and Biotechnology, University of Fukui, Japan Editor Prof. Okoh, A. I. Applied and Environmental Microbiology Research Group (AEMREG), N. John Tonukari, Ph.D Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Department of Biochemistry University of Fort Hare. Delta State University P/Bag X1314 Alice 5700, PMB 1 South Africa Abraka, Nigeria Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Species Accounts
    Species accounts The list of species that follows is a synthesis of all the botanical knowledge currently available on the Nyika Plateau flora. It does not claim to be the final word in taxonomic opinion for every plant group, but will provide a sound basis for future work by botanists, phytogeographers, and reserve managers. It should also serve as a comprehensive plant guide for interested visitors to the two Nyika National Parks. By far the largest body of information was obtained from the following nine publications: • Flora zambesiaca (current ed. G. Pope, 1960 to present) • Flora of Tropical East Africa (current ed. H. Beentje, 1952 to present) • Plants collected by the Vernay Nyasaland Expedition of 1946 (Brenan & collaborators 1953, 1954) • Wye College 1972 Malawi Project Final Report (Brummitt 1973) • Resource inventory and management plan for the Nyika National Park (Mill 1979) • The forest vegetation of the Nyika Plateau: ecological and phenological studies (Dowsett-Lemaire 1985) • Biosearch Nyika Expedition 1997 report (Patel 1999) • Biosearch Nyika Expedition 2001 report (Patel & Overton 2002) • Evergreen forest flora of Malawi (White, Dowsett-Lemaire & Chapman 2001) We also consulted numerous papers dealing with specific families or genera and, finally, included the collections made during the SABONET Nyika Expedition. In addition, botanists from K and PRE provided valuable input in particular plant groups. Much of the descriptive material is taken directly from one or more of the works listed above, including information regarding habitat and distribution. A single illustration accompanies each genus; two illustrations are sometimes included in large genera with a wide morphological variance (for example, Lobelia).
    [Show full text]
  • Jan-Feb 2013 GPD Insides.Indd
    WILLIAM CAREY LIBRARY FEATURED BOOK Peoples on the Move Introducing the Nomads of the World Nomads — they inhabit every continent yet have “no abiding city.” Always on the move, they are often “invisible,” unreached, despised, and easily forgotten by settled citizens. Th is is the most comprehensive source of information on all the nomadic peoples of the world and includes maps, black and white photographs, people profi les, and bibliographic data. ISBN: 978-0-87808-352-7 List Price: $19.95 David J. Phillips Our Price: $15.96 WCL | Pages 490 | Paperback 2001 3 or more: $10.97 www.missionbooks.org 1-800-MISSION Become a Daily World Christian What is the Global Prayer Digest? Loose Change Adds Up! Th e Global Prayer Digest is a unique devotion- In adapting the Burma Plan to our culture, al booklet. Each day it gives a glimpse we have simply substituted loose change of what God is doing around the world for rice and have added this educational and what still remains to be done. Daily and inspirational Global Prayer Digest. One prayer for that still-unfi nished task is at person’s loose change will average about the heart of the Adopt-A-People move- $100 per year exclusively for frontier ment. Condensed missionary stories, missions! When the national goal of one biblical challenges, urgent reports, and million Adopt-A-People Prayer Partners is exciting descriptions of unreached peo- reached, that will mean $100 million more ples provide a digest of rich fuel for your per year for the frontiers! own times of prayer for the world.
    [Show full text]
  • Mallocybe Africana (Inocybaceae, Fungi), the First Species of Mallocybe Described from Africa
    Phytotaxa 478 (1): 049–060 ISSN 1179-3155 (print edition) https://www.mapress.com/j/pt/ PHYTOTAXA Copyright © 2021 Magnolia Press Article ISSN 1179-3163 (online edition) https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.478.1.3 Mallocybe africana (Inocybaceae, Fungi), the first species of Mallocybe described from Africa HYPPOLITE L. AIGNON1,5*, AROOJ NASEER2,6, BRANDON P. MATHENY3,7, NOUROU S. YOROU1,8 & MARTIN RYBERG4,9 1 Research Unit Tropical Mycology and Plant-Soil Fungi Interactions, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Parakou, 03 BP 125, Parakou, Benin. 2 Department of Botany, University of the Punjab, Quaid-e-Azam Campus-54590, Lahore, Pakistan. 3 Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA. 4 Systematic Biology program, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 17D, 752 36 Uppsala, Sweden. 5 �[email protected]; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3014-9194 6 �[email protected]; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4458-9043 7 �[email protected]; https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3857-2189 8 �[email protected]; https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6997-811X 9 �[email protected]; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6795-4349 *Corresponding author: �[email protected] Abstract The family Inocybaceae has been poorly studied in Africa. Here we describe the first species of the genus Mallocybe from West African and Zambian woodlands dominated by ectomycorrhizal trees of Fabaceae and Phyllanthaceae. The new species M. africana is characterized by orange-brown fruitbodies, a fibrillose pileus, a stipe tapered towards the base and large ellipsoid basidiospores. It resembles many north and south temperate species of Mallocybe but is most closely related to the southeast Asian tropical species, M.
    [Show full text]
  • Nupe Plants and Trees Their Names And
    NUPE PLANTS AND TREES THEIR NAMES AND USES [DRAFT -PREPARED FOR COMMENT ONLY] Roger Blench Mallam Dendo 8, Guest Road Cambridge CB1 2AL United Kingdom Voice/ Fax. 0044-(0)1223-560687 Mobile worldwide (00-44)-(0)7967-696804 E-mail [email protected] http://www.rogerblench.info/RBOP.htm This printout: January 10, 2008 Roger Blench Nupe plant names – Nupe-Latin Circulation version TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS................................................................................................................................ 1 TABLES........................................................................................................................................................... 1 1. INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................................... 1 2. THE NUPE PEOPLE AND THEIR ENVIRONMENT .......................................................................... 2 2.1 Nupe society ........................................................................................................................................... 2 2.2 The environment of Nupeland ............................................................................................................. 3 3. THE NUPE LANGUAGE .......................................................................................................................... 4 3.1 General ..................................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Dagomba Plant Names
    DAGOMBA PLANT NAMES [PRELIMINARY CIRCULATION DRAFT FOR COMMENT] 1. DAGBANI-LATIN 2. LATIN-DAGBANI [NOT READY] 3. LATIN-ENGLISH COMMON NAMES [NOT READY] Roger Blench Mallam Dendo 8, Guest Road Cambridge CB1 2AL United Kingdom Voice/ Fax. 0044-(0)1223-560687 Mobile worldwide (00-44)-(0)7967-696804 E-mail [email protected] http://www.rogerblench.info/RBOP.htm Cambridge, 19 May, 2006 Roger Blench Dagomba plant names and uses Circulation version TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................................................................I 1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................. II 2. TRANSCRIPTION ............................................................................................................................... II Vowels ....................................................................................................................................................iii Consonants.............................................................................................................................................. iv Tones....................................................................................................................................................... iv Plurals and other forms ............................................................................................................................ v 3. BOTANICAL SOURCES....................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Habitat Preference of Roan Antelope (Hippotragus Equinus, Desmarest 1804) in Kainji Lake National Park, Nigeria
    International Research Journal of Agricultural Science and Soil Science (ISSN: 2251-0044) Vol. 2(9) pp. 421-425, September 2012 Available online http://www.interesjournals.org/IRJAS Copyright ©2012 International Research Journals Full Length Research Paper Habitat Preference of Roan Antelope ( Hippotragus equinus , Desmarest 1804) in Kainji Lake National Park, Nigeria B.T. Tyowua*1, J.T. Orsar 1 and E.A. Agbelusi 2 *1Department of Wildlife and Range Management, Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Nigeria 2Department of Ecotourism and Wildlife, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria Abstract The habitat preference of Roan Antelope was assessed during wet and dry seasons in Kainji Lake National Park from May 2007 to April 2009. In each of the habitat type Roans were sighted and counted. Total enumerations of woody plants above one meter in height were carried out taking records of plant species in three (10m x 10m) plots. The collected data were pooled together. The result showed a total of Thirty five plant species and their distribution. The following plant species; Combretum spp , Detarium microcarpum, Grewia mollis and Gardenia spp .occurred in the six habitats of Roan. Burkea africana , Kigelia africana , Lannea acida, Maytenus senegalensis occurred in five habitat types. In the wet season, 37 Roans were counted in Burkea – Detarium habitat. In the dry seasons, 34 Roans were counted in Burkea – Detarium habitat.The most preferred habitat for Roan Antelope was Burkea – Detarium with 36 Roan Antelope as the highest average
    [Show full text]
  • Expanded PDF Profile
    Who are the Shanga? 1.0 The Shanga language The official classification is Niger-Congo, Mande, Eastern, Eastern, Busa. In other words Shanga belongs to the Niger- Congo branch of languages which includes most of the indigenous languages of Sub-Saharan Africa and is classified with the Mande family of languages. Most of these languages are in the centre or west of West Africa, but Shanga is towards the east, so belongs to the Eastern sub-group. Within that sub-grouping there are two clusters of languages, each cluster having some intelligibility between speakers. The Boko/Busa cluster includes Boko, Bokobaru, Bisã and Busa Illo, and the Kyanga cluster which includes Kyanga and Shanga. Shanga is not mutually intelligible with the Boko/Busa language speakers and there is only partial intelligibility with Kyanga. Lexical similarity is 81% with Kyanga, and an average of 65% with the Boko/Busa cluster. The Shanga are called Shanga or Shangawa (plural) by the Hausa and they call themselves Sã ngã̃̀, while the Kyanga at Bakinrua call them Sɛ̃ nga. It is probable that the original name was Sɛ̃ nga and the original name of the Kyanga was Kɛ̃ nga. In francophone countries the Kyanga are known as Tienga, while in Boko they are known as Kɛ̃ a. Page | 1 The distribution of Mande family languages with Boko/Busa/Kyanga on the far right This map shows that the Kyanga people are indigenous to West Africa and did not originate in the Middle East. Eastern Mande languages Bissa Samo Busa Kyanga | | | | Barka Toma Busa Kyanga Lebir Tougan Busa Illo Shanga Boko Bokobaru The results of this research show that there are about 5,000 Shanga speakers living on the banks of the Niger River just north of Yauri in the Shanga Local Government Area of Kebbi State, with another 15,000 ethnic Shanga who have assimilated to Hausa living nearby.
    [Show full text]
  • A Case Study of Mothers' Associations in Benin Leva
    Promoting Women’s Empowerment Through Grassroots Solidarity: A Case Study of Mothers’ Associations in Benin Leva Rouhani Thesis submitted to the University of Ottawa in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctorate in Philosophy Faculty of Education University of Ottawa © Leva Rouhani, Ottawa, Canada, 2021 ii Abstract In Benin, women in general and rural women in particular are central to the development and sustenance of the household, community, and society at large. Yet, often, they lack the agency, as a result of limited education, life skills, and resources, to contribute to community development, or the structures in place (laws, religious beliefs, policies, and institutions) limit women’s ability to participate in community development. As a result of their limited agency and the unequal structures in society, women in Benin have often been denied participation in decisions around education, health, economy, and agriculture. While women are key actors in all these sectors, they are often not represented sufficiently in the discussions that shape their lives. Women in Benin have collectively organized into associations to address these issues. Associations such as Mothers Associations (MAs) in Benin, have emerged with the specific purpose of improving the education of their daughters. MAs function under the umbrella of Parent Associations (PAs) to address issues of particular concern to girl students. While PAs have helped to improve basic education by putting pressure on school administrators and political leaders to address the quality of schools, these associations have been primarily male dominated, rarely identifying the specific barriers to education for girls. My dissertation has three main objectives: to assess how MAs in Benin have collectively mobilized to enhance the quality of education for schoolgirls; to determine whether MA activities and mobilization efforts have led to women’s empowerment and influence within their respective communities; and to examine whether MAs have had an impact on changing harmful social norms.
    [Show full text]