Traditional market economy in south Dahomey

Tardits, Claudine; Tardits, Claude

essay

Traditional market economy in south Dahomey

markets in africa • (9) • Published In 1962 • Pages: 89-102

By: Tardits, Claudine, Tardits, Claude.

Abstract
Originally published as a chapter in an edited volume on “Markets in Africa,” this document provides detailed description of the market economy in South Dahomey. It shows that the region has long established trading centers connecting rural villages with cities and the international economy. When conducting fieldwork in the region in 1954-1955, the authors observed that “one can walk scarcely five or six miles without coming across a market place.” One of these markets, which provided detailed information for this study, was a densely populated rural village that served as an active market place for exchange among farmers inhabiting different agro-ecological zones. Marketing as an economic activity was well-integrated in the gender-based division of labor; men specialized in farming or fishing while women marketed the produce. Women exercised control over income from profits and this gave them significant economic power including the ability to engage in a lucrative deal of lending money to their husbands against their future crops.

Community structure

Internal trade

Exchange transactions

External trade

Division of labor by gender

Gender status

Gender roles and issues

Family relationships

Production and supply

Buying and selling

Wholesale marketing

Retail marketing