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Pastoral Nomadism and Health in Africa

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Towards a Sociology of Health Discourse in Africa

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Abstract

Pastoral nomads constitute a distinct demographic in Africa, with distinct health characteristics and disease vulnerabilities that set them apart from other nomadic populations around the world. In health discourse, pastoral nomads have been neglected historically, despite their constituting an important public health category and sociological group in Africa. The weaknesses in African healthcare systems are a reality and for a mobile population like nomads, the dearth of healthcare is even more glaring. This chapter examines various health-related issues among the pastoralists, with a special focus on nomadic pastoralists. The chapter starts with some conceptual definitions of pastoralism, nomadism and transhumance and then addresses issues of nomadic life and disease vulnerability. It ends with some guiding principles for effective health coverage of nomadic communities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Usmanu Danfodiyo University Department of Sociology, Sokoto, Nigeria

    Jimoh Amzat

  2. Fak. Gesundheitswissenschaften, Universität Bielefeld Fak. Gesundheitswissenschaften, Bielefeld, Germany

    Oliver Razum

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  1. Jimoh Amzat
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  2. Oliver Razum
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Correspondence to Jimoh Amzat or Oliver Razum .

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Amzat, J., Razum, O. (2018). Pastoral Nomadism and Health in Africa. In: Towards a Sociology of Health Discourse in Africa. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61672-8_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61672-8_9

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-61671-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-61672-8

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