Residents of many African cities face economic uncertainty due to high rates of under‐ and unemployment and lack of government support. In response, many urban Africans have fortified their links to rural areas as a strategy to weather uncertainty and reduce vulnerability. Scholars have documented high rates of ownership of rural resources (e.g., land, housing, and livestock) by people living in cities as proof of the strength of rural–urban linkages in Africa. In this article, I argue that the use of rural resources to reduce urban expenditures or increase income cannot be assumed and depends on the social relationships between city and village residents. I draw on twenty‐four months of ethnographic fieldwork with rural–urban migrants in northeastern Madagascar. I focus on the clove season of 2011–12, a spectacular moment in which high yields and prices created a market boom for this agricultural commodity. While many urban migrants had claimed access to clove trees, not all of these individuals were successful in actually accessing the clove crop or the income generated from its sale during the 2011–12 season. Exploring the winners and losers in this commodity boom reveals that investing in social relationships with rural family and friends has important economic consequences for urban migrants.

中文翻译：

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Matoy Jirofo，马萨卡·拉瓦尼（Masaka lavany）：从马达加斯加丁香商品周期的视角看农村人口的谋生策略

许多非洲城市的居民由于低失业率和高失业率以及缺乏政府支持而面临经济不确定性。作为回应，许多城市非洲人加强了与农村地区的联系，以此作为应对不确定性和减少脆弱性的战略。学者们已经证明，居住在城市中的人们对农村资源（例如土地，住房和牲畜）拥有很高的所有权，这证明了非洲城乡联系的力量。在本文中，我认为不能假定利用农村资源来减少城市支出或增加收入，而这取决于城市和乡村居民之间的社会关系。我将对马达加斯加东北部的农村－城市移民进行24个月的人种志田野调查。我专注于2011-12年度的丁香季节，一个惊人的时刻，高收益和高价格为这种农产品创造了市场繁荣。尽管许多城市移民声称可以食用丁香树，但并非所有这些人都能成功获得丁香作物或2011-12年度销售丁香作物产生的收入。探索这种商品繁荣的赢家和输家表明，与农村家庭和朋友建立社会关系投资对城市移民具有重要的经济影响。