Families in movement : transformation of the family in urban Mali, with a focus on intercontinental mobility

This Masters Thesis is the winner of the ASC's Africa Thesis Award 2008. It deals with changing family relations in African society in the context of intercontinental mobility. Based on many stories of migrants in both Mali and the Netherlands, the book reveals some of the negative sides of close family relations and the resulting everyday dilemmas for migrants. In doing so, the concept of family as used in social sciences is criticised, stressing the dynamics of global family practices and an upcoming individualism in Africa.
Janneke Barten graduated in International Development Studies at Wageningen University in 2008. She is currently working at IDA Foundation, a non-profit organisation selling medicines in developing countries.
Free online at http://hdl.handle.net/1887/13976

Year of publication: 2009
Series: African Studies Collection
Volume: 18