Le journal de l'IRD
n° 52 November-December 2009
Translator: Nicholas Flay
Abstracts for the international issue
p. 8-9 Research
On the trail of migrants
T
he importance of migration flows in
geopolitical, economic and environmental terms in this early XXIth Century represents a renewed field of
investigation for human and social
science research.
The major trends of the past will
continue within the great migratory
systems.
Yet movements of populations
between countries of the South are
increasing and rapid economic
Insecticide-treated mosquito nets
struggle for acceptance
M
osquito nets treated by insecticide impregnation have already proved their effectiveness for reducing contact between humans and the
mosquito Anopheles, the main vector of malaria.
But they must be used assiduously to have a lasting effect. This poses a constraint which
is not always complied with, according to a survey run in Burkina Faso by researchers
from IRD and the country’s Centre Muraz/Institut de Research en Sciences de la Santé.
p. 13: World
growth of emerging countries is prompting new thought on the subject.
The IRD is one of the players in international research on this theme, using a
strongly multidisciplinary approach.
Stigmata of slavery in Kenya
O
n the the national day to celebrate the abolition
of slavery, IRD researcher Marie Pierre Ballarin talks
about the repercussions of slavery in Kenyan society.
This inheritance has a profound impact on social, political and identity issues, especially in the coastal region.
It is the origin of strong social tensions, such as those
which tragically followed the presidential elections at
the beginning of 2008.
“It is essential to know the history of slavery in East Africa and the way it surges up in
current times,” the researcher points out. “It is the sine qua non for integrating management of the cultural heritage and its social, environmental and economic aspects,
in the political approach to this inheritance”.
p. 5 Partners
p. 16: Forum
Earthquake and inequality in Peru
DEET
repellent: Cosmetic or insecticide?
T
he Peruvian earthquake on 15 August 2007 dramatically emphasized and exacerbated social inequalities. The most deprived populations were the most severely hit
by the destruction of their housing, and they meet with a host of difficulties for taking
part in the reconstruction process. This earthquake was extremely violent. It resulted in
relatively few victims, but there was an enormous amount of material damage: 78% of
housing was affected, and 320 000 people suddenly found themselves homeless.
The team of IRD researcher Robert D’Ercole, who investigates the communities’
vulnerability to natural hazards, studied
the consequences of this disaster. The
group, in partnership with Peruvian
researchers and the Italian NGO COOPI, conducted a highly detailed survey in one of
the most severely affected areas, among
households whose housing was damaged
or even completely destroyed.
, discovered in 1953, is an effective repellent against mosquitoes
which in some regions of the world transmit diseases such as chikungunya, dengue, or malaria, but also against ticks.
About 200 million people use it every
year and over 8 billion doses have been
applied since it was brought on to the
market. In spite of a growing usage in
public health services, questions remain
as to the mechanisms by which DEET prevents the insects from biting a vertebrate
host: Does it repel the insect? Does it interfere with the attracting signal emitted by the
host? Although the controversy is still alive, a study published in the American journal
BioMed Central Biology by the IRD and the University of Angers has just brought evidence of the the compound’s toxicity on the insects’ central nervous system – and also
that of mammals.
p. 4 Partners
p. 11 Valorization
D
The African monsoon
stimulating research
ETT
“A new era for our cooperation”
A
Extract from an interview with climatologist Benjamin Sultan at the
end of the Amma programme’s
international conference devoted to
the African monsoon.
Sciences au Sud: What is your assessment of this meeting in scientific
terms?
Benjamin Sultan: In concrete terms,
around 400 scientific articles and communications gave a review of over 8 years of
research within Amma, on the climatic
system and the climate itself, but also on
the socio-economic impacts of climate:
highly multidisciplinary studies.
And some real advances were presented
at Ouagadougou.
We thus know now that the monsoon
onset is linked to the formation of cold
water masses in the Gulf of Guinea. It is a
very useful to understand this mecha-
©/MIRA-CESBIO
p. 3 News
© IRD/JL. Rajot
Robert Boyer : They have every
chance of being considerable.
All the countries which counted
on the input of foreign capital to
sustain their growth have experienced a grave crisis (Ireland, Iceland, Baltic countries).
We can hope that the governments will favour building up
national savings.
Taxation on short-term capital
could prove to be necessary. A
second warning: beware of risks
associated with development
founded on exports.
When this dependence on the
world market becomes excessive,
it is essential that the nation-state
regains its autonomy and legitimacy by favouring strong growth
of the domestic market.
Social inclusion can be a powerful
driving force for development (the
Brazil of President Lula).
Thus, in Latin America a new
catchword “growth and equity”
seems to be in the air.
The passage from G8 to G20 is a
sign of taking into account of the
interests of developing countries
in the slow process of negotiation
of a new international order.
The reform of international institutions should necessarily take
into account then upsurge of
country-continents such as China,
India and Brazil.
The emergence of a world government is not on the agenda.
Therefore regional integration
zones are going to be strengthened and sector-based and partial
governance agreements will be
negotiated.
It could be that the Copenhagen
climate summit will initiate this
slow process of reconstruction of
a viable world economy.
© IRD/R. D’Ercole
Sciences au Sud : What are and
will be the predictable consequences of the economic crisis
on the developing and emerging countries?
whole succession of satellites for observation of the Earth’s environment is now into orbit. The latest Smos will circulate in a polar orbit
to measure the humidity of the upper soil layer and the salinity of the
oceans. However, these remote-sensing tools can in no way make people
forget the important scientific endeavour of field work whose task is to
calibrate and validate the on-board equipment. Indeed, without the persistence of the world-wide array of vital ground-based measurements, our
satellites would have very limited vision.
nism, because the start of the rains determines that of the growing season, and it
is important to be able to forecast the
exact time when farmers can profitably
do their sowing.
By the same token, research work has
shown that the weather conditions in the
Mediterranean and above the Indian
Ocean are involved in the variability of the
[Indian] monsoon. New results concerning the variability of water inputs even
within the season were also presented at
the conference.
fter the inauguration of the first business incubator in West Africa, Michel Laurent, IRD director general, comments on this initiative:
“With the creation of this first incubator in West Africa, Senegal is living through an
amazing acceleration in its capacity for valorizing its research.
Our partners’ laboratories and our own are producing technology, computer software
and know-how which remain under-exploited, but offer strong potential for economic development for the South. The aim of this facility is to transform the results of this
Research – undertaken by students, engineers and research scientists – into wealth by
means of the creation of innovatory enterprises and qualified employment in the
South.
A new era in our cooperation
with the universities research
organizations of Senegal, which
is built on a historic partnership,
is therefore seeing the light of
day. It is now playing a full part
as a means agency that IRD promotes alongside its role as operator. We expect numerous projects which mobilize players in
the countries of the South and of
the North on this instrument
which is intended to become a
regional incubator platform.”
© IRD/S. Nguyen
© IRD/B. Osès
DR
Extract from an interview
with economist Robert Boyer
at the end of the conference
“Sociopolitical and economic
dimensions of the crisis in the
emerging countries”, coorganized in Mexico by the
IRD, El Colegio de México, the
Ciesas and the Unam.
A
© Fort-Jesus Museum,
Mombasa/ O.Ashikoye
E
l Niño’s cousin Modoki will increasingly be the subject for conversation
in the family. El Niño is the cyclic system
Head in space and feet on the ground …
© IRD/JM. Hougard
El Niño
and his cousin Modoki
Emerging
economies
in the crisis
p. 7 Research
of events which regulate exchanges
between the climate and the Pacific
Ocean.
A classic El Niño episode consists of a
movement of warm waters inside the West
tropical Pacific towards the centre and eastwards whereas Modoki shows up as a
warming of the central
zone. Recent work published in the journal Nature
shows that the Modoki
events have become more
frequent over the past few
decades. The research team
used climate change simulation models incorporating
the hypothesis of global
warming.
The proportion of the number of Modoki episodes
compared with that of the
usual El Niño is thus predicted to increase five-fold by
2050.
© IRD/J. Brachet
p. 1 News
p. 12 World
Consult the articles in full on the IRD Internet site: http://www.ird.fr
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