Creating Urban Social Capital: Some Evidence from Informal Traders in Nairobi

Abstract

The poverty and dramatic alteration in geographical composition of African cities have been associated with rapid urbanisation, the growth of the informal economy and migration. The latter has separated individuals from long-established social and kinship networks, and from familiar livelihood strategies. The sustainable livelihoods approach views social capital as one of the poor's most important assets in managing their lives. This paper asks four central questions. (1) Does the creation of new, urban forms of social capital, depend upon and deplete inherited forms? (2) Is social capital deliberately created or is it a by-product of sociability? (3) What are its functions in supporting the livelihoods of informal traders? (4) Is there a gender dimension to the strategies adopted? The paper draws on interviews with 124 traders in 2 Nairobi markets, and on key-informant interviews. Principal findings are that, whilst traders initially draw heavily on existing inherited social capital, they deliberately create and adapt their networks, opportunistically building relationships of trust in the marketplace which enable them to survive. The pace of change is different in different economic milieux. Women and men adopt different strategies to achieve similar ends. Conclusions are drawn for social capital theory and policy.

Enabling Factors for the Existence of Waste Pickers: A Systematic Review

“…The increased pace at which populations have grown in the major cities in developing regions has paved the way for rapid growth in the informal economy (De Soto, 1989;Lyons & Snoxell, 2005). Over the last three decades the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and other role players have become more and more aware of the inevitability of informal sector activities, on the one hand, and of their incomegenerating potential, on the other (Lyons & Snoxell, 2005).…”

Displacement in Post-War Southern Sudan: Survival and Accumulation within Urban Perimeters

“…Proponents consider social capital as a key instrument of empowering the poor, based on the assumption that networks can move individuals out of disadvantaged positions (World Bank, 2000). Lyons and Snoxell for instance, who researched the social fabric of informal traders, conclude with identifying social capital as "one of the poor's most important assets in managing their lives" (Lyons & Snoxell, 2005a:1077, capable of "augmenting or substituting for other forms of capital" (Lyons & Snoxell, 2005b:1317. Critics on the other hand point at the structural restrictions of the poor, the marginalised and the unemployed, in exercising their agency and argue that social capital itself is strongly determined by political power and the economy (Fine, 1999;Loizos, 2000;Gonzales de la Rocha, 2007).…”

Observing community-based entrepreneurship and social networking at play in an urban village setting

“…Many also possess what Lyons and Snoxell (2005) refer to as urban social capital. In terms of fiscal capital house ownership in the village has also proven to be a sound investment.…”

“…Cameron (2003) argues that there is often a conflict between the perceived need for a 'critical mass' of affluent incomers and the inclusion of local residents. Lyons and Snoxell (2005) warn of the consequences of separating individuals from long-established social and kinship networks, and from familiar livelihood strategies. In the case of planned urban villages such established social and kinship networks are not in situ.…”