Poverty, The “Gray Zone” of Life in Africa and A Perspective from Malawi
by Richard Pitt
Part One:
In the book Behind the Beautiful Flowers: Life, Death and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity, author Katherine Boo describes the quality of life in one of India’s largest slums. Next door to this ravaged slum sits a five star hotel, evidence of the booming real estate in Mumbai. Katherine Boo managed to spend considerable time in Annawadi where she wrote this book, in spite of opposition from local police, and initial suspicion from local inhabitants. In a review of the book by Pankaj Mishra, he begins by quoting from Primo Levi’s book, “The Drowned and the Saved”, in which Levi describes a “gray zone” in the relationships between people who were in Auschwitz concentration camp. The gray zone describes a dehumanized condition where individuals having been treated so savagely, submitted to such horror and depravity, that they then treat their fellow prisoners in a similar way. The debasement becomes so complete, that people forget what they have in common with one another, and resort to instinctual survival impulses. If debasement is curtailed, only then will benevolent impulses reappear. The reviewer makes the analogy of those subjected to gross and impoverished conditions similar to the situation and behaviors of people living in Annawadi. There, the dire living circumstances give license to a callous lack of regard for one’s fellow sufferers; an individual benefitting from the suffering of another is justified. Social solidarity, coming from a shared experience of suffering, is not the primary relationship. Instead, the nature of suffering, at the expense of another, is condoned. The best one can do is avoid the worst of it, which means that if one of your neighbors is going to get it, chances are you’ll be less likely to be subject to suffer the same thing.
The gray zone is evident in the collective story of Africa as a consequence of poverty, and a “perceived” lack; “perceived”, because in fact, there is much potential in Africa, much natural resource and the fact that many Africans are doing quite well; but even those who are succeeding are often still caught in the web of the miasma of poverty. It is a collective condition, not simply an individual matter. However, the experience of hunger on a daily basis for generations of millions of Africans feeds the perception of lack, and paralyzes potential. It inhibits the possibilities to make changes as those who do have money and power are simply concerned at preserving what they have. They don’t want to take the risk to share. They are still caught in the trap of “poverty consciousness”, the “gray zone”.
In Africa, more than in India, for example, there is greater social disintegration. There is little family, or other support systems that provide a basic sense of security, and life feels very tenuous with hunger a constant reality for many millions of people. One in four suffers from a lack of food to some degree and even for many others, there is often no long term security.
So the consequence of living in poverty and the daily struggle for food can often lead to what is witnessed in Indian slums. Instead of coming together in solidarity to help share the burden of poverty, people undermine each other and there is a fragmentation of support and lack of solidarity within families, tribes, and the community at large. In Kibera, the largest slum in Nairobi, Kenya and the second largest in Africa, hunger is a daily reality for many, while the wealthy shop in nearby malls.
What is being described is only one side of the story. There are areas with a strong sense of community, of family, and social harmony. In these communities women are mostly the backbone of society, taking care of the children and the feeding of families. Traditionally, in the villages, there is generally much more communal spirit in discussion and decision-making. Agreement is valued over imposing ones viewpoint on another. It’s when politics assumes a larger and more powerful presence that the temptations of authoritarianism, and the “Big Man” power dynamics take over and corruption becomes the norm. This has been one of the challenges in post-independence Africa, when imposed national boundaries and new and inexperienced national governments have had to take responsibility for a country. It is also the result of a rapid urbanization of African culture, where the predominant village based life has dramatically declined and major cities have rapidly grown, imposing a whole new challenge to survival, where little of the traditional support systems and connections exist.
Africa’s history of colonial oppression, corrupt governments, social disorder, and the generational collective memory of hunger, has shaped the ‘perceived’ lack that affects people’s behavior and attitudes today. A strong hierarchical social structure has fostered insecurity and instability, especially for women, who have little social and economic choice. The dynamics of power often leads to a self-centered value system in which self-preservation becomes the most important thing.
In the African mind, the “perceived” lack justifies corruption because opportunities to gain wealth are so limited, and there is often a large family to support. The corrupt politicians and others in government as well as in businesses are about making the most of the opportunity at hand, as one can never be sure when it will come again. In Africa corruption is an accepted social norm, and to not take advantage when opportunity presents itself, is considered foolish.
Underpinning this feeling of lack is profound insecurity and this perpetuates actions that are very self-serving. Although what has been described as a significant aspect of social behavior is apparent in many African countries, this is no indictment on Africa alone as most people in similar circumstances would act the same way. It is simply a reaction to the crude and limiting circumstances of an impoverished life. The historical and daily experience of poverty often leads to behaviors that have destructive effects on social development.
Issues such as colonial oppression, and the consequences of imperialism, are major factors for the poverty in Africa. In his book “Blood River”, Tim Butcher describes the complete social decay of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), when retracing the explorer Stanley’s steps along the length of the Congo River. The DRC, more than any other African country, has fallen apart since independence, the situation no doubt compounded by the nefarious influence of greedy western corporate powers mining precious minerals like coltan. Butcher discusses this perspective with a Malaysian U.N. employee who commented that blaming colonialism was “rubbish.” He said that Malaysia suffered similar experiences for hundreds of years, but has since been able to establish itself as a successful nation state. The descriptions in the book about the state of the DRC as a land with no government, no laws, no “social” identity, an utterly fragmented place, exemplifies a complete breakdown of all social order. The one thing not discussed in the book is how many African countries, the DRC included, that were literally carved out of nothing; there’s no intrinsic reason for the shape and size of a country, based on geographical, cultural, or other political motives. At least Malaysia had some cultural and racial identity (even with the large number of Chinese and Indian people there), giving it some natural cohesion. That cannot be said to be the case in the DRC and other countries. Also, in the book, Butcher describes how the jungle simply takes over when the influence of man abates, and swallows up everything in its path. Even though Malaysia has jungles, the overwhelming nature of the jungle in the DRC is unique, being bigger than Western Europe or the Indian subcontinent. How can anybody create political and economic cohesion in such a place?
The experience of hunger has been with Africa a long time, and one can make the argument that what is unique about much of sub-Saharan Africa, is that the struggle for food, and survival, is more difficult than most other places. Factors such as limited rainfall for crop irrigation, barren soils, living in tropical and sub-tropical equatorial regions that pose the constant challenge of disease, all make life intrinsically harder than elsewhere. It only takes one bad rainy season for many to die. There is a fine line between surviving and perishing, and this has always been the case, especially in certain parts of the continent. The memory of hardship is there in the land and passed on through generations creating a miasma of poverty, along with behaviors and actions that perpetuate impoverishment. The “gray zone” contains the immediate sense of despair, where it is hard to see beyond the needs of the moment to a future wellbeing for all. When the stomach is empty, compassion for one’s fellow sufferers is difficult to summon.
Compounding the above mentioned is the lack of social cohesion in many countries. The identity and meaning traditionally seen within tribal families has been eroded through the influence of modernity, urbanization, and the influence of imperialism. The Christian church has played its part too, by dismissing traditional cultural values, and then imposing their own. Perhaps out of the need to find a new form of social cohesion in a society with little other security to offer, many Africans have adopted Christianity, and Islam. Notably, Europe has gone through similar transitions over time.
The history, the hunger, the continual challenge of surviving diseases like malaria, and the absence of social cohesion in the society at large, puts Africa in Levi’s “gray zone.” Instead of instilling common values and a shared experience, the opposite occurs; a self-centered survival mode of ‘get whatever you can get’ at the expense of others if necessary. It is not in any way as extreme as the experience in a concentration camp, although some of the horrors of famines, often induced by civil conflicts and the degree of violence seen for example in the eastern parts of the DRC, come close to that experience. However, the “gray zone” influence still tinges the reality for many in Africa, a pervasive dynamic that inhibits the possibility of change.
How can a country really develop and look after its citizens when there is so little sense of social cohesion? This is the challenge now facing many African countries and the solutions need to come from many quarters; predominately though the need for enlightened political solutions are needed to help create the economic and social stability necessary to give people greater confidence for their very survival.
Primo Levi also observed that when oppression is lifted, compassion comes to the fore, as seen in the concentration camps he described. In spite of the deeply challenging life circumstances, many Africans exhibit hope, optimism and and an amazing capacity to endure. The capacity for a more enlightened relationship to survival is possible, but until the memory of hunger is erased, likely to take a generation or two to accomplish, progress may be slow.
Part Two: Malawi: One Example in Africa.
Malawi is but one example of an African country struggling to feed itself and to develop its economic and political structures. It is one of the poorer countries in Africa. It is situated on Lake Malawi, the third largest lake in Africa which supplies ample fish – although supplies are diminishing – and also a source of water for those living nearby. However, until now, there have not been any serious attempts to create irrigation projects so that more land can be cultivated. There is little industry in the country, very few exports and as such many can’t afford a bicycle, a local bus ticket to travel thirty kilometers or a cell phone and their user fees. One phone call costs around 30 U.S. cents a minute, and is more expensive than in Europe or America. Two phone companies dominate the market and are busy exploiting it while they can.
Generally, people don’t have access to electricity, and work on the land is for basic-bare-minimum-survival.
Most people live marginal lives in a country where there is abundant fertile and fairly cheap land, at least in the northern part of the country. The south has greater issues with overpopulation for current land use and even suffered a famine about ten years ago. The possibilities are there for people to own land, but the lack of governmental land reform, and the absence of leadership, keeps most people on the edge of subsistence. Still, it is not the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), or South Sudan, or parts of Ethiopia and Niger that are teetering on the edge of complete social breakdown or with imminent famine due to a lack of rain. But survival is all it can be said to be for many people and in this condition people are often forced to simply fend for themselves, even at the expense of others. It can be argued that it is not evolving and changing but simply standing still, surviving.
In the book Africa, by Richard Dowden, he describes how one man and his family is hounded out of town (in Zambia) simply for being too successful and living too well; standing out beyond the parapet of poverty. Envy is a common and powerful emotion in Africa, one that leads to destructive behavior. A friend in Northern Malawi told me that one of his workers grows coffee and vegetables; this man’s neighbors undermine his efforts by stealing from him, throwing his coffee beans away. In this example, it becomes apparent how those who attempt to improve their standing in life can be dragged down by envy. In the West it is more often jealousy that is seen, people wanting what others have, whereas in Africa, envy wants to take things away.
In describing Africa, the usual litany that’s often been written about is the lack of work ethic, corruption, and graft; a ‘living in the moment’ philosophy. Disheartening in a continent with so much potential, yet where minimal headway is made toward improvement. In fact, the opposite is true in some countries, where devolution is happening. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is one example of the deterioration, mimicking how things were fifty years ago at the time of independence. No doubt the political problems of these countries have a lot to do with this. Malawi, for example, only became democratic in 1994, after thirty years of the Hastings Banda dictatorship, the first president after independence in 1964. While not as violently authoritarian as many other leaders, Banda ruled the country absolutely, and in many ways was a product of colonial Britain. Newly independent socialist leaders in Mozambique, Zambia, and Tanzania surrounded him, yet he remained resolutely anti-socialist. A traditionalist in both his political and social values that even linger today, the ban against women wearing trousers is still apparent in places. Banda maintained social cohesion in the country, but never allowed a mature democracy to develop. His successor was not much better, always appearing in villages before elections, and dolling out money to ensure the local chief’s support. The country was thrown into a constitutional crisis when President Bingu, another very authoritarian figure, suddenly died in April 2012, but fortunately a constitutional crisis was avoided when his party accepted the Vice President as his successor, even though she had been evicted from Bingu’s own party. Foreign donors had pulled their money out during Bingu’s tenure because of his increasing authoritarianism, thrusting the country into economic crisis. In a country with no real exports, and a large dependence on foreign donors, the challenge to stabilize the economy, while creating effective policies to ensure growth, have been enormous.
This is most clearly seen in the agricultural sector where there’s been no long-term vision and implemented policy to ensure adequate food for all. Bingu had a short-term policy that subsidized fertilizer for maize production, and though it afforded some positive results, the government didn’t have money to continue subsidizing the people. The IMF and World Bank encouraged President Bingu, despite the obvious long-term unsustainability of this policy. The underdeveloped political structure, plus dependence on foreign donors who then impose political policy (e.g. IMF), and the on-going impoverished conditions, makes it difficult for Malawi to step out of the culture of subsistence life.
As with other African countries foreign interests inhibit real change. Malawi has one of the most inequitable distributions of land in the world, second in Africa to Namibia. For several years a land reform law has been in the works, but has yet to be ratified, and this is mainly due to political conflicts of interest. Wealthy individuals and large corporations buy up vast tracts of land leaving the poor people to work on the land with no legal rights whatsoever.
Monsanto, the American agribusiness biotechnology firm, has infiltrated many African countries, working quietly behind the scenes to get its products used. To further their interests, Monsanto’s been giving money to the Malawian government, to farmer’s unions, NGO’s, and distributing hybrid maize seeds to farmers. Farmers normally reuse their seeds, and hybrid seeds cannot be reused which the government forgets to tell people. What happens when the subsidy program stops? Another point to consider is the amount of fertilizer hybrid seeds require, and the fact that laborers rely on government subsidies for this. Before, when people used local varieties of seeds, they did not necessarily need fertilizer, this being beyond financial means of most people anyway. As the soil quality varies, the amount of fertilizer needed also varies. A small French NGO is working to develop sustainable agriculture practices and disease prevention in rural parts of the country, encouraging the use of open pollination variety (OPV) seeds. Of course the temptation for local people is the immediate benefit of free hybrid seeds and fertilizers that (initially) produce a greater yield; more grain to use and to sell. Certainly this short-term strategy will not last, and in the meantime encourages continued dependency on government subsidies.
Another factor compounding agricultural endeavors is distribution. Local chiefs are in charge of the distribution of subsidized fertilizer, so depending on the honesty and integrity of the chiefs, people may, or may not, get fertilizer. A lack of fertilizer compounded by a lack of rain can see yields decline up to 70%.
Also, the government tries to ensure supply while it facilitates speculative grain prices. The government initially fixes grain prices at a certain rate, large amounts of grain are then bought at this fixed price, but then the government will change the fixed price, and as a result those who have purchased grain make a lot of money. So, if the poor farmers, who sold their grain at the previously price, need to buy extra grain, they will have to purchase it at a higher price, and they’ve already spent their money. Having bought the grain at a lower price, those with money get richer, and the poor suffer. Similarly, on a world wide scale there is legal speculation with regard to a variety of food commodities, grains included, and with devastating effects on the local economies of many countries. Widespread speculation of foodstuffs continues with banks like Barclays and Goldman Sachs both very involved in this type of international food speculation. This has been widely criticized as destabilizing food supplies and directly contributing to hunger and inadequate food distribution, but it is part of the global banking system.
The current drought conditions in the United States, seriously affecting grain production, will also lessen availability of grain to many developing countries, and likely spike the price of grain. The threat to basic food staples creates an even greater need for people everywhere to strive for self-sufficiency. Although some forms of larger scale farming in Malawi and elsewhere may be necessary to increase mass production, the fair practice of working with local farmers and guaranteeing prices, plus purchasing excess production of grain, is also needed to be implemented by the government. Ultimately, educating farmers about how to maximize their yields through natural organic methods must be planned and implemented at governmental policy level.
Apparently, Monsanto has been attempting to influence NGO’s that purport to be encouraging sustainable farming practices, to include the use of their herbicide “Roundup”, as part of sustainable practices. Curbing weeds is the least of people’s problems. There is generally ample labor to clear and work the land, but working on the land day in and day out can be grueling, and farmers may use a recommended herbicide like Roundup to make life a little easier. However, this will only happen if the government subsidizes the purchase of Roundup as farmers have no money. Financially, for a country like Malawi, this makes no sense.
Malawi has one of the largest and most beautiful lakes on the continent. The land is generally fertile, and with a sustainable agricultural policy that would include increasing irrigation of the land and more diversity of crops and general land use, people’s lives could be much improved. There is a need to move away from growing the two staple crops, cassava and maize. Cassava in particular is an amazing crop, but it is protein and vitamin deficient, and many of the poorest people are living on cassava alone. Organic methods of farming like permaculture could be easily learned and practiced by local farmers. Structuring a water catchment system to preserve and contain the water supply and limit the leeching of land, tree planting to help stabilize the soil, crop rotation with diversification and natural pest control, utilizing natural fertilizers, and many other innovations could be applied on a local level by farmers. The small French NGO in Malawi is trying to reintroduce the use of sorghum as a food supply, affording less reliance on maize and cassava. Maize has only taken over in the last 40 years or so, sorghum and millet were used as staples in the past. Both of these have a much higher protein level than cassava, or maize. Unfortunately sorghum is seen a “poor man’s food”, and stigmatized as such. Most people are desperately poor and rely on cassava for their survival.
As long as the food supply remains limited, dependency on one crop (cassava) will continue. Changing the attitude of poor people, to believe that something different is possible, is a real challenge. The struggle to simply survive through inefficient subsistence methods that only perpetuate the current situation is what people find themselves doing. In the two great civilizations of Mesopotamia, and Egypt in the Nile Delta, when food became more plentiful, and production reliable, cultures could reasonably evolve. In Africa, the focus on survival doesn’t allow the freedom of time to explore and enjoy the rich diversity cultural development offers. So much of Africa is stuck in the mental and physical predicament that breeds insecurity and fear. Without the intervention of enlightened government policies, and supported by NGO’s who may have the technology and vision to help, things are not likely to change. Furthermore, as long as governments succumb to the dubious practices of companies like Monsanto, policies of the IMF and World Bank, and the neo-liberal capitalist agenda, the people will suffer, and disintegration will prevail. Africa must move away from a subsistence mentality, where the “gray zone” blankets the continent, obscuring possibilities, and holding Africa in a state of socio-economic fragmentation.
But given the huge changes happening in the world, including Africa with massive investment from China and a large, growing population, the need for an agricultural policy that can guarantee access to sufficient food, along with the basics of clean water and other hygiene measures, is essential. This will only happen through enlightened policies of both governments and NGO’s. Advanced countries, including China now, have to ensure that they do not simply exploit the resources of the continent, but enact policies to help create sustainability on all levels. The most important first step is clean water, disease control and a guaranteed access to good food for the vast majority of the people. If this can be achieved, many other social, economic and political advances will take place as there will be greater confidence that there is “enough” to go around, as opposed to the “gray zone” of poverty. Then Africa will really come into its own.