Microsoft Word - CattellBRfNOV.docx Book  Review   Growing  Old  in  Cameroon:  Gender,  Vulnerability,  and  Social  Capital.  Charles  Che  Fonchingong.  Lanham   MD:  University  Press  of  America.  2013.  ISBN  978-­‐‑0-­‐‑7618-­‐‑6125.  247  pp.  $32.99  (Paperback)   Maria  G.  Cattell   Research  Associate  in  Anthropology     The  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History                                                             Anthropology & Aging, Vol 37, No 1 (2016), pp.46-47 ISSN 2374-2267 (online) DOI 10.5195/aa.2016.145 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 United States License. This journal is published by the University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh as part of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program, and is cosponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press. Anthropology  &  Aging   Vol  37,  No  1  (2016)        ISSN  2374-­‐‑2267  (online)        DOI  10.5195/aa.2016.145      http://anthro-­‐‑age.pitt.edu       Cattell  |  Book  Review  46     Book  Review   Growing  Old  in  Cameroon:  Gender,  Vulnerability,  and  Social  Capital.  Charles  Che  Fonchingong.  Lanham  MD:   University  Press  of  America.  2013.  ISBN  978-­‐‑0-­‐‑7618-­‐‑6125.  247  pp.  $32.99  (Paperback)     Maria  G.  Cattell   Research  Associate  in  Anthropology     The  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History     This  book  delineates  the  lives  of  older  people  in  two  Anglophone  regions  of  Cameroon,  where   poverty   and   changes   in   family   life   have   made   older   people‒and   their   families‒more   vulnerable   to   the   vicissitudes  of  modern  living.  The  author  gives  detailed  material  from  his  research  on  the  daily  activities   and  social  support  systems  of  these  older  Cameroonians  (defined  as  age  60  and  over)  and  the  contributions   of  older  people  to  their  families  and  communities.  As  the  title  suggests,  the  information  is  presented  through   three  lenses:  the  vulnerabilities  of  older  people,  the  effects  of  gender  on  experiences  in  old  age,  and  social   capital  as  theory  and  practice.   The   first   chapter   presents   background   material   on   life   for   aging   Africans   in   today'ʹs   world   of   urbanization,   migration   and   globalization   and   states   the   research   problem:   "ʺHow   are   the   elderly   [in   Cameroon]   coping,   and   what   policies   could   increase   their   well-­‐‑being?"ʺ   In   the   next   chapter   the   author   discusses   theoretical   considerations,   specifically,   social   capital   theory.   Chapters   3   and   4   deal   with   two   meanings  of  social  security:  formal  pensions  and  informal  family-­‐‑  and  village-­‐‑based  arrangements  or  "ʺsocial   protection."ʺ   In   Chapter   5   he   discusses   the   gender   dynamics   of   aging   in   Africa.   Not   surprisingly,   Fonchingong,  like  others  before  him‒in  Africa  and  globally‒found  women  to  be  more  vulnerable  than  men,   detailing  their  lifetime  cumulative  disadvantage  (though  he  doesn'ʹt  use  that  term)  in  employment,  access   to  pensions  and  home  ownership,  widowhood  and  other  factors.     In  the  next  chapter  the  author  describes  his  research  methods,  which  included  in-­‐‑depth  interviews,   participant   observation   and   focus   group   discussions.   Chapters   7   and   8   report   his   findings.   Sociodemographic  variables  for  his  sample  of  80  men  and  50  women  are  presented  in  frequency  tables  in   Chapter  7.  This  is  followed  with  a  chapter  discussing  various  topics  such  as  coping  mechanisms,  forms  of   reciprocity,  levels  of  care  and  others,  along  with  extensive  quotations  from  his  subjects,  which  bring  the   whole   thing   to   life.   The   details   concern   both   formal   help   (pensions)   and   family   support   and   include   consideration  of  the  many  ways  older  people  are  assets  to  their  families  and  communities  through  activities   such   as   child   care,   income   generation,   advising,   and   leadership   in   community   building   and   economic   development.  Chapter  9  details  various  ways  older  people  are  proactive,  building  social  capital  and  social   protection   through   non-­‐‑family   village-­‐‑based   associations   such   as   rotating   credit   societies   and   mutual   support  groups.     Finally,   Chapter   10   discusses   social   policy   implications   of   the   research   and   makes   policy   recommendations  such  as  government  allowances  for  older  persons  who  do  not  qualify  for  pensions  on  the   basis   of   employment   and   improved   health   care   delivery.   Fonchingong   expresses   frustration   at   the   Cameroon  government'ʹs  shortcomings  which  will  make  needed  reforms  difficult,  if  not  impossible.  The   state,  he  says,  "ʺis  not  in  tune  with  the  labyrinth  of  problems  plaguing  the  social  security  sector"ʺ  (214),  here   meaning  social  security  in  the  broadest  sense  (not  just  formal  pension  programs).  He  sees  the  need  for  more   "ʺsemi-­‐‑formal"ʺ  support,  involving  NGOs  of  all  kinds,  faith-­‐‑based  organizations  and  village-­‐‑based  mutual   societies   and   development   associations.   He   views   these   organizations   as   pivotal   to   providing   services   needed   by   older   Cameroonians   as   families'ʹ   abilities   to   provide   for   their   older   members   becomes   increasingly  difficult  and  the  government  fails  to  provide  needed  assistance.               Anthropology  &  Aging   Vol  37,  No  1  (2016)        ISSN  2374-­‐‑2267  (online)        DOI  10.5195/aa.2016.145      http://anthro-­‐‑age.pitt.edu                           Cattell  |  Book  Review  47       Fonchingong,   whose   background   is   in   social   policy   and   social   work,   situates   his   work   solidly   in   the   literature  on  formal  social  security  systems,  in  Africa  and  globally.  That  is  appropriate  given  that  his     recommendations   are   aimed   at   policy   reform.   However,   he   ignores   ethnographic   research   on   older   Africans.   That   is   curious,   since   his   research   has   a   strong   ethnographic   turn   and   he   could   find   in   that   literature  information  on  some  of  the  things  he  laments,  such  as  a  lack  of  consideration  of  older  Africans  as   assets  to  their  families  and  communities.  Unfortunately,  the  book  is  sometimes  hard  to  read  because  the   writing  is  at  times  awkward  and  even  ungrammatical.  Also,  there  is  no  index,  unusual  for  a  scholarly  work.   Nevertheless,  despite  these  flaws,  Fonchingong'ʹs  research  and  data  analysis  seem  both  sound  and  culturally   grounded,  making  this  book  a  useful  addition  to  contemporary  research  on  aging  in  sub-­‐‑Saharan  Africa.