Intergenerational Relations with a History

This paper shows that Gban social organization of intergenerational relationships is embedded in the profound changes that have occurred since the Colonial period. It argues that youth involvement in the current conflict must be interpreted in this historical perspective with regard to the specific Côte d’Ivoire context. Far from being an exception, the activism of Gban youth in the conflict has been a recurring feature of economic, political and social change since the advent of the Colonial order and forced labor in 1907 until the collapse of the PDCI leadership in the 1990s. Today, as before, the activism of Gban youth is motivated not only by difficulties in accessing land resources but also by grievances related to their life plans and to the form of local governance.