ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the changing structure of the Mambwe village and considers the trade in foodstuffs, with its implications for gender. It discusses developments in relation to labour migration and residence for men, paying attention to the position of young men. The chapter describes the notion of a border economy. It discusses women's secondary marriages, their residential preferences, and their involvement in the cash economy. The chapter discusses the nature and scope of this partnership in relation to the border economy. It also describes specialized in trading fish, an activity which requires close cooperation. The mechanism regulating the cross-border flow of foodstuffs worked on the basis of ties of kinship and affinity. A century ago, the European powers had halved Mambwe country, but that arbitrary split had never led to any real separation. The trade avenues that are typical of the Mambwe economy are small-scale, diversified, influenced by seasonal availability, and the privilege of no-one in particular.
