Resource information
The study presents an analysis of the
situation of the Pygmies in Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC), including their history and relations with the other,
mainly Bantu, populations. It provides a brief description
of their lifestyle, their socioeconomic status, and a
participatory diagnosis of the key factors that lead to
their current impoverishment and marginalization. The study
discusses the rationale for protecting Pygmy culture and
analyzes the results of the field survey and consultations.
Based on this field work, diagnosis and inputs received in
the two country workshops, the study presents a number of
options and recommendations to address constraints faced by
Pygmy communities. The recommendations are not intended as
prescriptive, but as options to be discussed and agreed on
in the process of preparing a Government Pygmy development
program. It develops six priority focal points, or areas of
intervention, around which a Pygmy development program could
be articulated by the Government. The study concludes with
suggestions on institutional arrangements for a long-term
phased implementation of such a program.
