Project
- Short Project Description
This research project contributes to the research at the Institute of Asian and African Studies on the Humboldt Universität zu Berlin and earlier to the research section mobilities of the Excellence Cluster “Africa multiple” at the University of Bayreuth with a complex imbroglio surrounding urban land governance in West Africa (Dakar, Bamako and Ouagadougou) from a socio-anthropological and historical perspective. The subtitle of the project „An anthropological perspective on processes of mimicry and hybridization of bureaucratic practices” refers to the analysis of the relationship between legal dispossessions of land by state authorities and civilian collective action against these dispossessions, who use bureaucratic means similar to the ones used by the state. In a timely manner, it links up with recent decolonial discourses as I observe an accommodation of endogenous perceptions of property to changing circumstances, while at the same time commenting on a theme that will remain of central concern, particularly in the urban landscapes of West- and Central Africa.
Furthermore, by analysing the use of bureaucratic technologies and digitalisation, Doumbia establishes a connection to the research profile "Lifeworlds in Crises". That is, in his project, Doumbia considers the urban land issues as part of the management of everyday crises in West Africa. From their diachronic perspective, diverse actors (individuals as well as federations, associations) use bureaucratic practices, official correspondences, social media and other digital technologies as creative forms of crisis management.