Paper short abstract:

This paper examines the different ways migrants from West Africa and the Horn of Africa seek to establish their position in the Zambian capital, Lusaka. It argues that their attempts keep links with their homeland reflect their concerns about securing their livelihoods as much as any affective bond.

Paper long abstract:

This paper examines the different approaches adopted by people from West Africa and the Horn of Africa as they establish themselves in the Zambian capital, Lusaka. It will highlight the way their various efforts to belong are received by the Zambian population, whose responses reflect the different historical, social and economic contexts of the first arrival of these 'stranger' populations and their subsequent settlement. It will argue that people's attempts to sustain and reproduce links with their homeland, and the people of the homeland, can be seen as reflecting concerns with securing their livelihoods as much as any affective bond. It will also show how the particular history and socio-economic landscape of the city affects the diasporic relationships that these African migrant are inclined to form. The paper concludes by suggesting that the findings from this and similar African cases provide valuable counterpoints to the common assumptions made about diasporas of African origin outside the continent.