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The need to travel: Malian women shuttle traders, autonomy and (mis)trust in neoliberal Dakar

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2019

Gunvor Jónsson
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Abstract

Recent infrastructural developments in Senegal have severely impacted on the livelihoods of female bana-banas from Mali, a group of mobile traders operating in the Mali–Dakar corridor: transportation costs have significantly increased, travelling has become a more exhausting experience, and fatal accidents have become more frequent during journeys. Why did the bana-banas continue these arduous journeys? Why was their physical presence required in Dakar, and why did they not rely more extensively on social networks to facilitate their transnational trade? This article examines the conditions of autonomy, flexibility and limited trust that characterized the bana-banas’ livelihoods and necessitated their continued mobility from Mali. The recent infrastructural transformations have led to an increased commercialization and disarticulation of Malian trade networks in the Senegalese capital, and, due to personal circumstances, the women have often been cut off from networks. However, unlike general expectations of the ways in which networks evolve under conditions of neoliberalism, the bana-banas have not turned to personalized relationships of trust in Dakar, which might have facilitated their trade from a distance. The article contributes to the growing literature on social networks and trust by exploring how transnational trade does and does not work at this historical moment and in the context of gendered constraints.

Résumé

Des projets infrastructurels récents au Sénégal ont eu un impact considérable sur les moyens de subsistance des bana-banas, un groupe de marchandes ambulantes du Mali qui évolue dans le corridor Mali-Dakar : le coût des transports a sensiblement augmenté, les déplacements sont bien plus fatigants et les accidents mortels sont devenus plus fréquents lorsqu'elles voyagent. Pourquoi les bana-banas ont-elles continué ces voyages pénibles ? Pourquoi leur présence physique était-elle requise à Dakar, et pourquoi n'ont-elles pas utilisé davantage leurs réseaux sociaux pour faciliter leur commerce transnational ? Cet article examine les conditions d'autonomie, de flexibilité et de confiance limitée qui caractérisaient les moyens de subsistance des bana-banas et nécessitaient leur mobilité continue du Mali. Les transformations infrastructurelles récentes ont conduit à une commercialisation et une désarticulation accrues des réseaux commerciaux maliens dans la capitale sénégalaise et, en raison de leur situation personnelle, les femmes ont souvent été coupées des réseaux. Néanmoins, contrairement à ce que l'on pourrait attendre généralement des modes d’évolution des réseaux dans des conditions néolibérales, les bana-banas ne se sont pas tournées vers des relations personnalisées de confiance à Dakar qui auraient pu faciliter leur commerce à distance. Cet article contribue à la littérature croissante consacrée aux réseaux sociaux et à la confiance en explorant en quoi le commerce transnational fonctionne et ne fonctionne pas à ce moment historique et dans le contexte de contraintes genrées.

Type
Malian women traders in Dakar
Information
Africa , Volume 89 , Issue 4 , November 2019 , pp. 739 - 758
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 2019 

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