Nurturing children's sound physical and moral development in (post-)hunter-gatherer society: Preliminary research findings among the G|ui and G||ana in central Botswana

Abstract (English)

Botswana has a history of facing difficulties of the HIV epidemic and the corona disaster and overcoming them. My research team has conducted multidisciplinary studies among the hunter-gatherers G|ui and G||ana (two subgroups of the San), and the neighboring Bantu agro-pastoralists Kalahari and Tswana (e.g., Takada 2016, 2020). The G|ui and G||ana have long lived a nomadic lifestyle based on hunting and gathering in the Kalahari Desert. Due to government resettlement policies since, however, they have experienced rapid sedentarization and agglomeration. These changes have also impacted on their relationship with the Kalahari and Tswana. This study focuses on the process of reorganization of health-related life practices and concepts among the G|ui/G||ana, and will conduct action research on child health promotion (e.g., facilitating the use of toilets, introducing health classes, and promoting health checkups) in New Xade village, central Botswana. The study focuses, among other things, on observing and analyzing the following daily practices. First, theme (1) focuses on the transformation of children's hygiene behavior, especially in the settlements. I thus describe and analyze the attitudes and practices regarding the use of newly introduced toilets in the settlements. Theme (2) will examine the effects of literacy education on health, especially by way of using picture-story shows. Theme (3) aims to clarify the generational differences in the concept of health, especially those arising with the introduction of modernization policies. Furthermore, I will synthesize these data and clarify how activities and morality are organized to nurture children's sound physical and moral development.