Resources and Opportunity: The Architecture of Livelihoods in Rural Kenya (Regnum Studies in Mission)

Poor people in most rural areas of developing countries often improvise resources in unique ways in order to make a living. Resources and Oppurtunity takes the view that resources are dynamic and fluid, arguing that villagers co-produce them through redefinition and renaming in everyday practice, and use them in diverse ways. The book focuses on, among other things, ordinary social activities to bring out people's creativity in locating, redesigning, and embracing livelihood opportunities in processes anchored in social relationships that span local, national, regional, and international borders. The book uniquely brings out the respective tensions between agency and structure, locality and globality, in livelihood construction in rural Kenya. Front Cover Resources and Opportunity Series Preface Series Editors Resources and Opportunity Contents List of Figures List of Abbreviations Exchange Rates Preface Acknowledgements Introduction: Moving into Sengeta Introduction Commencing Life: Cattle, Goats and Marriage What is a Village? Sengeta Village in a Wider Context Outline of the Book A Historical Overview of the Nyamira Landscape Introduction Origins of Abagusii: Myths and Realities Colonisation Physical Features Population Education, Communication and Employment Trade Craft Making and Sales Agricultural and Livestock Development Conclusion Resources and Livelihood: A Theoretical Mapping Introduction An Actor-Oriented Perspective Livelihood Approaches Resource – Livelihood Nexus Landscape, Actor and Livelihood: Co-production of Resources Conceptualising Resources Agrarian Change: shifts of emphasis in rural livelihoods Struggles with and within institutions Social security and its analytical relevance Identity and Lifestyle Unit of analysis: the elusive household Conclusion Methodological Approach Introduction Data Collection Extended Case Studies in Context Concluding Remarks Smallholder Tea Farming and Livelihood Introduction The Place of Tea in the Kenyan Economy Tea: Locating a Resource in the Hands of Villagers Villagers’ Assessment of their own Livelihood Outcomes Varied Socio-cultural Dispositions and Livelihood Outcomes Concluding Remarks Everyday Dealings in Smallholder Tea Markets: Soko Huru, Mashabiki and ‘Ghost Farmers’ Introduction Overview of Smallholder Tea Organisation in Kenya Tea farmers and KTDA agents: a fluid intersection of lifeworlds Soko huru livelihood opportunities ‘Ghost farmers’ in invisible livelihood Governance in the Smallholder Tea Sub-Sector Conclusion Does Deagrarianisation Mean Moving Permanently Away from Agriculture? Introduction Debating Deagrarianisation Directions in Deagrarianisation in Nyamira District Concluding Remarks Livelihood Diversification Introduction Issues in Livelihood Diversification Forms of Livelihood Diversification Employment and Remittances Trading: on the open markets, kiosks and road-sides Conclusion Lifestyles and the search for social security in everyday life Introduction Social Security Studies: A Brief Review Styles in the Search of Social Security Summary Conclusion Re-defining Resources in Everyday Practice Introduction An Overview of Resource Studies Directions in villagers’ creation of resources Recapitulation and Discussion Concluding Remarks Resources and Livelihoods: Looking Forward Resource Creation, Livelihood and Lifestyle: Some Reflections Bibliography Glossary Author Index Subject Index Regnum Edinburgh 2010 Series Regnum Studies in Global Christianity Regnum Studies in Mission General Regnum Titles Back Cover