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Youth Agency and Survival Strategies in Sierra Leone’s Postwar Informal Economy

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African Childhoods

Abstract

In postcolonial Africa, thousands of young people have successfully confronted the challenges presented by wars and political violence. Yet, in most cases, the experiences of African youngsters have been framed and analyzed only in relation to their potentially disruptive behaviors (Rashid et al. 2009; McIntyre et al. 2002). Adult skepticism about the younger members of African society has not only placed young people at the margins of society and of the political and economic processes, but it has also limited the focus of analyses. It has prevented a number of scholars from understanding the ability of the youth in handling their agentive possibilities.

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Notes

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Marisa O. Ensor

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© 2012 Marisa O. Ensor

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Lahai, J.I. (2012). Youth Agency and Survival Strategies in Sierra Leone’s Postwar Informal Economy. In: Ensor, M.O. (eds) African Childhoods. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137024701_4

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