Safu, an oleaginous fruit produced in Cameroon, is at the centre of a local, regional and, increasingly, international trade. Based on quantitative and qualitative data, collected through interviews with 40 people involved in the export of safu, this article examines their movement between Cameroon and the European Union. It provides an overview of the growth of the international trade in fresh fruit from Cameroon, starting with the steady increase in exports. This is linked to developments in the upstream and downstream parts of the sector (production, processing, distribution), as well as to institutional changes. Using the safu sector as a case study, this study contributes to a better understanding of the diversification of agricultural exports in Central Africa and the challenges involved in integrating new commercial food products into world trade.
Floods that hit the Valencia region (Spain) on 29 October 2024 took a heavy toll in terms of human lives (229 deaths) and material damage (€22 billion euros). Accumulation and intensity of rains explain the magnitude and severity of hydrological reactions. But the delay in issuing the official public alert therefore raises questions: the first message was broadcast at 8:11pm on the 29th October, while a red warning for heavy rainfall was issued at 7:36 in the morning. To determine if the alert could have been activated earlier in the day, this article replaces the chronology of events established on the basis of various scientific data (the times at which meteorological warnings were issued, rainfall intensities, flow rates measured at certain stations, reports of emergency calls). The temporality of the actions taken by various players (at both local and national level) and the content of alert messages were also studied. The cross-referencing of the data confirms that the alert could have been activated three hours earlier, as several indicators reached between 5:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. show that the danger was already in progress. Finally, the field experiment carried out on this dramatic event support new results with a scientific and operational point of view.
Côte d’Ivoire is the leading African exporter of bananas, primarily destined for the European market, which is highly regulated and dominated by major retail chains. To meet this market’s demands, Ivorian banana producers have adopted a standardised agro-industrial model, concentrated among a few large operators. This article aims to analyse recent reconfigurations in this globalised sector. Our results show that the rise of socio-environmental certifications and increasing market segmentation have added complexity to the sector, leading to a diversification of product references and a shift in production zones towards the centre of the country, where the drier climate requires fewer phytosanitary treatments. West African markets (Senegal, Mali, Niger) and the domestic market remain marginal, mainly serving as outlets for downgraded bananas, although the “Dakar market” demands higher standards and offers attractive prices for producers. The sector therefore faces a dual challenge: adapting to European market constraints while seeking diversification in a regionally uncertain logistical and geopolitical context.
The objective of this article is to document the local effects of avocado expansion on rural societies in East Africa, particularly market access for small producers. It aims to answer the following question: how is the avocado agro-export model being implemented locally in Kenya and Tanzania? The central hypothesis proposes that the adoption of avocado cultivation by small producers is taking place within the context of an “avocado race,” i.e., the establishment of a competitive agro-export market promoted by a variety of private and public actors, offering the prospect of substantial profits, rents, or incomes. The results highlight that market access via contracts or intermediaries is ultimately marked by the porosity of the various channels and by uncertainty. The concept of “globalized fruit” embodies agriculture, rural societies, and territories that are at different speeds, unequal, and even fragmented, which can be seen on a East African scale and within the production territories.
Ecuador is the leading exporter of bananas and stands out for its parcels shipped all over the world and for the large number of players that make up its sector: producers whose plantations are relatively small, export companies, most of which are of national origin and which often include the upstream part. In addition, the sector benefits from a public policy whose effects are limited. While having to deal with the risk of spreading fusarium wilt (RT4) and insecurity, all stakeholders must meet downstream requirements in terms of the quality (conservation) of the fruit and compliance with social and environmental standards, with variations depending on the customer.
The 2023 Sudan conflict ignited a severe humanitarian crisis exacerbating deep-rooted issues related to resource management. Over the years, gold in particular has become a significant factor in militarizing Sudanese politics, driven by conflicting military and civilian interests. Witnessing revenue loss following the secession of South Sudan in 2011, the government pushed to centralize gold production while opening the door for military and political factions. In reality, gold mining, particularly artisanal, expanded dramatically, but with significant social, economic, and environmental costs. Despite efforts for political reforms after the 2019 revolution that ousted Omar al-Bashir, military and political elites continued to dominate the sector. The hybrid model of gold mining, wherein artisanal labor feeds corporate production, reinforced the entanglement of military groups in resource extraction. This dynamic has exacerbated conflicts, fueled by struggles over land ownership and resource control. Centralized policies introduced by the government often clashed with local governance structures, leading to disputes and competition for resource allocation, especially through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) mechanisms. Ultimately, gold mining in Sudan has deepened the country’s political instability, fostering multiple centers of power and triggering the April 2023 conflict. The ongoing militarization of the mining sector highlights the complexity of Sudan’s political economy, where resource control and governance are tightly linked to violence, power struggles, and regional commercial interests.
Berceau historique de la production d’avocats en Europe, la comarca de l’Axarquía en est devenue aujourd’hui la première région productrice grâce notamment à des conditions climatiques propices et à la construction d’une filière reposant sur de puissants opérateurs de marché profondément ancrés dans son territoire. Toutefois, la région est aujourd’hui confrontée à des problématiques environnementales qui interrogent la durabilité de son modèle productif fondé sur le recours systématique à l’irrigation dans un contexte de sévère sécheresse. La crise hydrique suscite des stratégies adaptatives plurielles des acteurs de la filière, engendrant des recompositions spatiales de la production et de la commercialisation de l’avocat. Celles- ci s’observent aussi bien à l’échelle locale par les innovations en termes de gestion de l’eau, qu’à l’échelle nationale avec un glissement spatial de la production vers des régions émergentes, ou internationale par l’affirmation de l’Axarquía comme hub mondial de redistribution de l’avocat importé.
Even if national contexts remain over-determining, an analysis of the results of the European elections shows converging trends on a European scale: the rise of the extreme right and the stabilisation of the left as a whole, but with a recomposition within the left, characterised by a decline of the social democratic parties. This trend accelerated after the 2009 elections. This article examines the structural causes and their spatial translation. The results of the extreme right reveal new patterns of the centre-periphery divide, while the left performed best in the metropolitan regions, but more to the benefit of the extreme left and the ecologists than the social democrats. The former red strongholds of old industrialised regions may swing partly to the extreme right when the traditional framework structures are weakened, but on the whole the social democratic left maintains good scores there.
Toamasina, on Madagascar’s east coast, is a central hub for agricultural exports due to its deep-water port. Since the 1990s, Malagasy lychees have become a key export product, structured under the Groupement des Exportateurs de Litchis (GEL). This cartel tightly controls prices and negotiates with European importers, reinforcing its dominance. The article examines the cartelization of fresh lychee exports and its impact on capital-labor relations. It highlights how exporters focus not on improving labor efficiency but on securing value retention. The study relies on theoretical analyses of agricultural value chains and economic concentration. It also explores the relationship between small producers and exporters through the Marxist concept of economic exploitation.
The documentary film Soy dominicano (Helena Erin, 2024) seeks to show the effects of statelessness in the Dominican Republic through life stories, field footage and testimonies gathered during research work carried out in 2024. It proposes a reading of racism and the social and spatial consequences of Sentence 168-13 on people of Haitian origin. This article explores the role that documentary film can play in geography: how it provides a better understanding of certain forms of exclusion by showing subjective experiences, and how it also raises questions about how to represent others and produce knowledge.
L’orpaillage est une ancienne pratique des populations du Sud-ouest du Burkina Faso, mais la reprise contemporaine de cette activité par des artisans « exogènes », au début des années 2000, ne s’est pas faite sans difficulté. Les artisans miniers ont pu cependant s’intégrer dans les anciens territoires où l’orpaillage était une activité féminine, à travers la région du Sud-ouest du pays. L’objectif de cette recherche est d’analyser les actions de ces artisans miniers « exogènes » vis-à-vis des populations riveraines qui ont permis leur intégration territoriale. L’approche méthodologique est qualitative, basée sur des entretiens groupés et individuels auprès de 64 personnes dans les sites et villages miniers de Fofora et de Dindoura dans la commune de Kampti. Cette collecte a été complétée par des observations du milieu. Il ressort que les artisans miniers « exogènes », en plus de louer des espaces pour leurs activités, impliquent les populations locales dans l’orpaillage, en les associant ou en les embauchant. De plus, ils font des réalisations en faveur des riverains, assimilables à la Responsabilité Sociale des Entreprises (RSE) observée dans le milieu formel de la mine industrielle. Ces actions concourent ainsi à leur ancrage et leur légitimation dans les territoires villageois jadis hostiles à l’orpaillage filonien.
