PhD thesis Title Page Final _Richard Juma - Victoria University ...

The sustainable livelihood model has been of much use to this study as it
helped to formulate testable hypotheses which guided the study. But,
academically, the study shows that an improved sustainable livelihood
model is a viable theoretical framework for the study and analysis of
adaptation among pastoralists. In applying the sustainable livelihood
approach to this study, an issue became apparent. This is a suggestion
for, rather than a criticism of, the framework. It might help to modify the
framework to be used more effectively in analysing pastoralists’ livelihoods.
It has been observed that Turkana pastoralists apply a perceptual filter to
the crisis before choosing any strategy, and the decisions regarding
pastoral strategies during crises are based on their past experience and
cultural interpretation of the crisis. However, the existing livelihoods
framework does not draw attention to this factor. As such, it is suggested
that this be explicitly recognised in the framework through the addition of
a separate component (broadly entitled ‘definitions and perceptions’ as
shown in Figure 4). This category may include how pastoralists define and
perceive their situation in light of the crises affecting them. It may also
include their attitudes towards the crises. Therefore, the framework has
been designed specifically for the study of effects of drought and famine
and local peoples’ responses in the Turkana District, Kenya. But it should
also be useful for more general studies of livelihood adaptation in response
to food crises.
The findings have also helped to improve our theoretical understanding of
adaptability for they have revealed that the Turkana pastoralists’, like
other pastoralists’ elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa, possess a repertoire of
adaptive mechanisms which they call into action in times of economic
hardship. They are not passive recipients of famine relief food from outside
the district. They actively manipulate their social environment to maximize
gain, which helps them to weather the negative effects of drought and
famine. Thus, the findings of this study help to enrich the literature on
pastoralists’ social responses to drought and famine. They are particularly
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