Informality as agency - negotiating food security in Dhaka
Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: Recent research on the informal economy no longer distinguishes ‘the formal’ and ‘the informal’ as distinct antipodes, but looks at a continuum of interwoven and intertwined socio-economic processes with different degrees of (in)formality. Using empirical evidence from research on the food system of the megacity of Dhaka (Bangladesh) it is argued in this article that in order to understand informality we need to focus on institutions and social practices, rather than on actors, economic entities or an entire sector and their structural characteristics. We take informality as an aspect of agency that is negotiated in contested urban arenas. In order to capture informality, we thus look at institutions at different degrees of (in)formality and at actors’ use of them as the rationale for their actions. . With 3 Figures and 1 Table Informalitat als soziale Praxis – zur Aushandlung von Ernahrungssicherung in Dhaka
Source: OPUS (Augsburg University)
Authors: Etzold, Benjamin, Bohle, Hans-Georg, Keck, Markus, Zingel, Wolfgang-Peter
Language: English
Subfield: Urban Studies
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2397411421