Full Description
Social scientists examining contemporary Africa take considerable pains to resist portraying Africa as nothing more than a land of victims unable to escape historical cycles of war, exploitation and tyranny. However, children are still frequently conceptualised as passive actors, mere extensions of adult societies and receptors of culture. The authors in this volume argue that children are dynamic contributors to the shaping of contemporary Africa. Through novel and unorthodox ethnographic research methods, each chapter provides insights into children's perspectives on kinship, work, caring, health, migration and conflict, shedding light on children's views and the vital roles they play in the emerging Africa of tomorrow.
Contents
Contents
Acknowledgements ........................................................................................ vii
Ethnographies of Children in Africa: Moving beyond Stereotypical Representations and Paradigms ........... 1
Sandra J.T.M. Evers, Catrien Notermans & Erik van Ommering
1 Bending the Generational Rules: Agency of Children and Young People in 'Child-Headed' Households ..... 21
Diana van Dijk
2 Using a "Kids Club Method" to Understand Experiences of Children Orphaned by AIDS in North-Central Namibia ..... 43
Mienke van der Brug
3 Understanding Children's Well-Being and Transitions Through the Life Course: A Case from Ethiopia ...... 69
Yisak Tafere
4 Kinning in the Imagination: Perceptions of Kinship and Family History among Chagossian Children in Mauritius ... 95
Sandra J.T.M. Evers
5 From Home to the Street: Children's Street-ward Migration in Cape Verde ..................................... 125
Lorenzo I. Bordonaro
6 Gendered Work and Schooling in Rural Ethiopia: Exploring Working Children's Perspectives .............. 147
Tatek Abebe
7 In Between the Netherlands and Morocco: 'Home' and Belonging of Dutch Moroccan Return Migrant and Abandoned Children in Northeast Morocco ................................................................................. 173
June de Bree, Oka Storms & Edien Bartels
8 The Learning Experiences of Refugee and Asylum-Seeker Children: A Model for Meaningful Learning ..... 197
Cilel Smith
9 Reconceptualising Child Protection Interventions in Situations of Chronic Conflict: North Kivu, DRC ......... 223
Claudia Seymour
10 Agency, Resilience and the Psychosocial Well-Being of Caregiving Children: Experiences from Western Kenya ..................................... 247
Morten Skovdal
About the Authors .......................................................................................... 269
Index ................................................................................................................ 273
