Patch-work: The economic and moral complementarity of informal entrepreneurs' multiple projects in Congo-Brazzaville

Abstract

Although there are many studies on informal workers juggling multiple jobs, how workers differentiate their jobs economically and morally is less examined. Based on 18 months of fieldwork among urban middle-class entrepreneurs in Brazzaville, this article argues that entrepreneurs in the informal economy work on multiple projects that complement each other in terms of economic gains and moralities, a pattern I call “patch-work.” Some projects are pitched in entrepreneurial competitions to gain funds, awards, and training and traveling opportunities. Others can generate more stable cash flows to support other projects. Yet others are not for profit but rather to expand one's social network. Despite being unable to generate income quickly, projects deemed entrepreneurial are kept for years, as they have high moral value. Thus, rather than simply maximizing profits, an entrepreneur in the informal economy “patch-works” to pursue economic, social, and moral goals at the same time. Moreover, the moral values are highly diverse and debated among the entrepreneurs, showing that they cannot be reduced to a single logic. Patch-working shows that, rather than passively coping with precarity or following neoliberalism, some working in the informal economy actively construct their working patterns to meet their multifaceted pursuits.