World Food Policy
pian and unattainable, since there are so Sahelian contexts and programs. Since
it naturally places an emphasis on local
many conditions to be met.
If the responsibility for resilience capacities, resilience provides an oppor-
is not simply incumbent on local com- tunity to take proper account of these
munities, where does the onus fall? This capacities, in all their complexity and
historical depth. In this way, it can be
leads us to a vital debate, in both West
considered as an extension, in terms of
Africa and elsewhere: the governance
risks, of the capabilities approach (Lal-
of pro-resilience actions. Yet, this gov-
lau 2008). As such, Gondard-Delcroix
ernance is often highly paradoxical. The
and Rousseau (2004) consider it to be
first paradox is that a large number of
a synthesis capability, to the extent that
current initiatives are poorly coordi-
it is the consequence of people’s over-
nated, and primarily designed to meet
all capabilities. Based on the active and
the priorities imposed by each funding
reactive behavior of people in relation
body, whereas the notion assumes, by to their environment, resilience is ex-
definition, better integrated actions. pressed through strategic choices. From
The second paradox is that national a capability point of view, resilient per-
public authorities (particularly local au- sons are those who are not only aware
thorities) and civil society organizations of the risks they run and of their agency
often feel deprived of the ability to take but also capable of concrete action in
decisions, or at least the ability to pro- response to these risks.
vide guidance on these issues, whereas
In agriculture, resilience also al-
resilience programs are supposed to be
lows for the extension of risk analysis
based on endogenous dynamics and
beyond that usually practiced by econo-
local leadership. In this regard, there is
mists, that is, beyond the technical and
obviously a lack of a clearly identified
commercial risks. The scale at which
and legitimate leader for “resilience”
the resilience analysis is applied is more
programs in the sub-region.
that of the household than the holding,
Of course, the injunction of good which would also include life risks. In
practices, the tendency to circumvent addition, the resilience approach re-
local authorities and the segmentation quires perceptions to be taken into ac-
of programs are constant features of aid count, since what matters is less the risk
sector history. But, since the resilience as probabilized by the economist than
approach is supposed to be about tack- the risk as perceived by the farmer, and
ling these errors, this leaves them all the the way in which, as a result, it influ-
ences this farmer’s practices. Rather
more open to criticism.
than risks, what is at stake is adversity,
a notion that refers to all events, more
Potentialities of Resilience
or less sudden, with the potential to sig-
espite the seriousness of these nificantly impact a person’s livelihood
criticisms, resilience does offer and living conditions, even though they
advantages for the analysis of do not occur. These events could just
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