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Rose C. Fagbemissi Invitation rose c. fagbemissi For the defense of the PhD thesis Experts from necessity Agricultural knowledge of children orphaned by AIDS in the Couffo region, Benin experts from by Rose Chekoun-Ola Fagbemissi You are cordially invited to attend on Thursday, September 30 2010 at 11.00 hours. Venue: The Aula of Wageningen University, Gen. Foulkesweg 2a, Wageningen Reception will follow after the promotion at the Aula. necessity You are most welcome. experts from Paranimfen Latifou Idrissou latifou.idrissou@wur.nl Gisella Cruz Garcia gisella.cruz@wur.nl necessity Rose Fagbemissi Agricultural knowledge of children orphaned rose.fagbemissi@wur.nl / 0317-484310 by AIDS in the Couffo region, Benin Experts from Necessity Agricultural knowledge of children orphaned by AIDS in the Couffo region, Benin Rose Chekoun-Ola Fagbemissi Thesis committee Thesis supervisor Prof. Dr. Ir. C. Leeuwis, Professor of Communication and Innovation studies, Wageningen University Thesis co-supervisors Dr. L.L.M. Price, Associate professor Sociology of Consumers and Households Group, Wageningen University Dr. R. Lie, Assistant professor Communication and Innovation Studies Group, Wageningen University Other members Prof. Dr. M. Mulder, Wageningen University Prof. Dr. J.W.M. van Dijk, Wageningen University Prof. Dr. A. Pieroni, University of Gastronomic Sciences, Pollenzo (Italy) Dr. G. Rugalema, FAO Headquarters, Rome (Italy) This research was conducted under the auspices of the Graduate School of Research for Resources for development (CERES) Experts from Necessity Agricultural knowledge of children orphaned by AIDS in the Couffo region, Benin Rose Chekoun-Ola Fagbemissi Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of doctor at Wageningen University by the authority of the Rector Magnificus Prof. Dr. M.J. Kropff, in the presence of the Thesis Committee appointed by the Academic Board to be defended in public on Thursday 30 September 2010 at 11 a.m. in the Aula. Rose Chekoun-Ola Fagbemissi Experts from Necessity: Agricultural knowledge of children orphaned by AIDS in the Couffo region, Benin 242 pages Thesis, Wageningen University, Wageningen, NL (2010) With references, with summaries in Dutch and English ISBN 978-90-8585-609-2 Dedicated to my late father Essoun Fagbemissi, to my son Geraud Mensah, and to the children of the Couffo region 7 Acknowledgements This study was conducted as part of the African Women Leaders in Agriculture and the Environment (AWLAE) program. I would like to express my gratitude to the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign affairs, the Sociology of Consumers and Households Group (SCH) and the Communication and Innovation Studies Group (CIS) of Wageningen University for providing funds for the completion of this thesis. I am grateful to the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Cotonou office, for hosting me during my field work and to the staff members who provided me with technical backstopping. I would like to express my gratitude to the ‘Institut de Formation et d’Action pour le Développement des Initiatives Communautaires Durables’ (IFAD- NGO) and its director for the quick grasp of the challenges in conducting on HIV and AIDS and with children in rural area. Without the altruist participation of the staff, it would certainly not have been easy for me to come into contact with my study groups. I am very much grateful to my promoter Professor Cees Leeuwis for having accepted to supervise this work and for having supported me all along until completion of this study. I will not forget your support especially for those long months of unknown illness. I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to my co-promoters Dr. Lisa Price and Dr. Rico Lie. You both were more than co-promoters for me during my stay in Wageningen University. To Dr. Lisa Price, I would like to say a big thank you for introducing me to ethnobiology and ethnoecology, and for your effort to help me enjoy this discipline, which was very new to me. Thank you also for your sisterhood during all these long years of my PhD study. I am very much indebted to Professor Anke Niehof and to the AWLAE management team at the Sociology of Consumers and Households Group for not only giving me the opportunity to do my PhD, but also providing additional funds that made it possible to finalize this thesis. I am grateful to my fellow Benin students, especially to Augustin Kouevi and Clement Gbehi for their support and care especially during my illness. Many thanks. I will not forget to thank Joke Janssen for being almost a mother to me during difficult times. I remember the many trips we had together to the hospital. In spite of your very tight agenda, you were always available for me. Thank you Joke. I would also like to thank Patrick Adegbola for his insights and help with advanced data analysis especially for chapter 4 and 5 of this thesis. I am very grateful to Mathias Ahounou who made my inception in IFAD- 7 NGO possible and who connected me to Benoit Dahoundo the HIV and AIDS program coordinator, and my field workers Severin, Henri (who died in 2008) and Eusebe. Without you all, I could not have collected enough data for my study. I would also like to express my gratitude to Dr. Ousmane Coulibaly for his support in many of my professional and academic achievements. The whole book will not suffix to express my deep reconnaissance to your encouragement at very critical times. Thank you. To the support staff of SCH and CIS, in particular Hedy Munro and her colleagues, Mirjam Cevat and later Annette Dijkstra and their colleagues, thank you very much for taking on the administrative part of my coming and stay in Wageningen, and your contribution in finalizing, submitting and preparing the defense of this thesis. To my fellow AWLAE students, I was very happy to meet you all and to share special moments with many of you. It has been very special to be part of this experience. I will not cite names because I learned to like and appreciate you all and each one specially. I hope our friendship and collaboration will continue beyond AWLAE. To my colleagues of the Social Sciences Laboratory at IITA-Benin, thank you for your support and contribution through discussion, advice and warm words during the course of my study. I would like to thank my sister Lucie for her support. My gratitude also goes to Pierre Balaro and his wife for taking care of my son and my house, and for finally hosting him in their home, thus making my stay abroad much easier. To my son: it was not easy to stay far away from each other for so long time. This achievement is also yours. It is not possible to list all the people who contributed in one way or the other to the completion of this thesis. I heartedly thank you all. Rose Chekoun-Ola Fagbemissi Wageningen, September 2010 8 9 Table of Contents Chapter 1 General introduction to the study 11 Chapter 2 Conceptual framework for the study 29 Chapter 3 Research methodology: an overview 49 Chapter 4 Diversity and mobility in households with 77 children orphaned by AIDS in the Couffo, Benin Chapter 5 Uncovering pest knowledge differences through an 113 ethno-biological approach using cultural salience 141 Chapter 6 From novice to expert: The use of form and function in the way farm children orphaned by AIDS talk about agroecology compared to non- orphans 167 Chapter 7 Children and adults’ strategies to mobilize knowledge and resources to solve cowpea pest problems in an AIDS context in the Couffo, Benin 199 Chapter 8 General discussion and conclusions 221 Summary 227 Samenvatting 233 Annexes 9 Chapter 1 General introduction to the study 13 1.1 Research problem and objectives This chapter provides the background to the thesis. The rationale of studying the intergenerational farming knowledge differences in the context of AIDS1 in Benin is provided as well as the research questions. The chapter closes with an articulation of the organization of the thesis and overview of chapters. HIV2 is no longer only a health problem but has become a multi-faceted development issue, particularly on the Africa continent. The pandemic is a leading cause of prime-age adult mortality in African countries (Barnett and Grellier, 2003; Lie, 2008; UNAIDS, 2008). There is also a rise in orphanhood as a consequence of a rise in parental death (Makumbi et al., 2005; Dewagt and Connolly, 2005; UNAIDS, 2008). Subsequently, there is a widespread concern among international agencies about the future of African children made orphans by AIDS. Although important assistance and care are provided through various kinds of interventions, the fate of the children living in farming communities is yet to be informed by systematic and accurate research. Evidence-informed decision makers in agricultural development and food security would be in a better position to make policies for improving the quality of life of orphaned children. (Jayne et al., 2004; Panos, 2008; UNICEF, 2006). One of the areas of growing concern about rural child development is the erosion of agricultural knowledge in relation to the fact that HIV causes the death of adults in their most productive age. Adult death, as the direct impact of the HIV pandemic, is often projected with great concern to potentially cause a break in the intergeneration transmission of traditional/local knowledge from adult farmers to children. Such a loss of farming knowledge could cause further rural disintegration for generations to come. The above are important concerns and yet there is virtually no empirical research on this. Thus, the main objectives of this study are to: 1.

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