Emigration dynamics from and within South Asia

This review of current knowledge about emigration dynamics from and within South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) opens with a brief history of the three phases of emigration from the area since the 1830s (plantation labor; postindependence to the UK, US, Canada, and Australia; and labor migration to the oil-exporting countries). The influence of the creation of Pakistan and Bangladesh is also covered as are British colonial and commonwealth policies. It is noted that migration data are incomplete and that India exhibits an ambivalence about collecting such information. The discussion then turns to emigration since 1970 and considers permanent migration from South Asia to the traditional receivers; South Asian asylum seekers in Europe; South Asian refugees, illegal migrants, migrant workers (flows and destinations), the stock of contract migrant workers (and their characteristics); returnee migrant workers; and skill levels. Analysis is provided of macro level determinants of emigrations such as gross national product (level and growth), the general demographic and social situation, labor force growth and structure, poverty and inequality, and internal and international migration. Environmental factors causing displacement in Southern Asia include floods, cyclones, river bank erosion, drought, and desertification. Global warming could displace millions of people in the region, and development projects have contributed to displacement. The remainder of the report covers political and ethnic factors, micro-factors influencing migration decision-making, the policies of sending and receiving countries, the consequences of emigration, and the potential for migration in the future.     

Grandmothers' influence on mother and child health

This study is based on interviews with grandmothers during July-September 1992-93 in Sudan. The study shows that grandmothers play a significant role in health education and child care within families in the Sudan. Grandmothers, who are not aware of the changes in knowledge, also promote harmful traditions. The authors recommend that health education be directed to elderly women and grandmothers in order to change beliefs and practices that continue to be harmful to children and mothers. Grandmothers were found to give sound advice on child birth, such as movement during labor, breast feeding immediately after birth, and birth intervals of 2-4 years. Grandmothers also gave sound advice on good nutritional practices during pregnancy and use of fermented cereals as weaning foods. Grandmothers recommended use of fenugreek for lactating mothers and use of mint and haharaib for stomach upsets, remedies that are beneficial. Babul is useful after an episiotomy for its antibacterial effects. Harmful advice includes recircumcision after delivery, short birth intervals, and avoidance of contraception. Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a major practice that exposes girls and mothers to a greater risk of mortality during childbirth and pregnancy. The sample of grandmothers agreed on the importance of sex education for a girl before marriage. Unfortunately, 57% of grandmothers recommended 14 years as a suitable age for marriage. Grandmothers generally believed wrongly that riding bicycles, drinking coffee, and wearing trousers by girls would increase their sexual desires. Grandmothers explained menstruation to granddaughters and offered home-made remedies for cramps. 45% believed that there were no disadvantages to FGM and recommended FGM at ages 2-5 years. Most viewed fevers as a danger that required a doctor's care. Advice varied among grandmothers according to socioeconomic class.     

West and Central Africa

This article reviews scientific and other literature during the 1990s that links migration and mobility with the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including HIV/AIDS. The focus is on key population groups linked to the spread of HIV and STDs in West and Central Africa: migrant laborers, truck drivers, itinerant traders, commercial sex workers (CSWs), and refugees. Countries with high emigration and immigration tend to have high levels of HIV infection, with the exception of Senegal. The main destination of immigrants are Senegal, Nigeria, and Cote d'Ivoire in West Africa and Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, and Congo in Central Africa. The risk of infection and the spread of HIV is variable among migrants. There is little in the literature that substantiates hypotheses about the strong association between migration and HIV-positive status. Information is needed on the duration, frequency of return visits, living conditions, sexual activities with multiple partners, and information before departure, along the routes, at final destination, and at the time of returns. Action-based research in five West African countries (Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, and Senegal) should produce results in late 1998. Comparable studies in Central Africa are unknown. Regional studies should be complemented by local studies. Prevention would benefit from studies on the relative size of these five population groups by geographic location.     

Is There a Forest Transition? Deforestation,Reforestation, and Development1

Abstract Environmental social scientists have recently begun to use the term 'forest transition' to describe how forest cover changes as economic development occurs in nations. The hypothesized transition occurs as follows. An initial surge in economic activity in impoverished societies spurs deforestation, but as economic activity continues to intensify and cities grow larger, a 'turnaround' occurs, and deforestation gives way to reforestation. This paper uses cross-national data from five successive surveys of world forest resources to assess this empirical claim. A turnaround in forest cover trends does occur in a significant number of nations. The paper also evaluates two explanations for the turnaround, a wood scarcity hypothesis derived from microeconomic theory and an industrialization hypothesis linked to central place theory. It finds period specific support for the industrialization hypothesis. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of the implications of these findings for proposals to alleviate the biodiversity crisis through programs of reforestation.     

Power, Politics, and the Framing of Environmental Illness

The medical community, along with other government agencies, has created its own frame of environmental illness. This frame has been generally accepted by the American public. In this paper we discuss framing in general and the factors related to how the environmental illness frame has been constructed and maintained. We offer a brief history of the medical institution and illustrate the frame with its definitions of environmental illness. Qualitative data from a study of Oak Ridge, a contaminated community located in Tennessee, are examined to analyze the consequences of challenging the environmental illness frame. Implications for future research are discussed.     

The majority legal status of women in southern Africa: implications for women and families

Women in many countries of southern Africa do not have majority status or have only recently gained this right. Majority status grants individuals adult legal status and the right to bring matters to court, own and administer property, have legal custody of children, and contract for marriage. This article summarizes the legal status of women in Botswana, Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Lack of majority status contributes to the ongoing risk of poverty for women and makes them overly dependent on men. Compounding the situation in these countries is the presence of a dual legal system. Improving the situation of women and their families involves targeting changes in the legal system, influencing implementation of laws, educating women about their rights, and giving women needed support to seek their legal rights. The legal status of women must be viewed in the context of historical changes in the economic, educational, political, and cultural developments of society.The research for this paper was conducted during her previous faculty affiliation with the University of Michigan, School of Social Work. Her research interests include the impact of social change on women and families, rural mental health services, and health and mental health linkages. She received her Ph.D. from Rutgers University and her M.S.W. from the Columbia University School of Social Work.Her research interests are gender, work and family, culture and power, social transformations in rural and peri-urban communities, critical education, women and community politics, history of women, family and kinship issues, and community-based program development and evaluation. She received her M.S.W. from Dalhousie University, Halifax.