Agricultural finance: 1990-2004

A research paper on how agriculture was financed between 1990 up to 2004 in Zimbabwe.The first and second agricultural revolutions in Zimbabwe were made possible by a vibrant agricultural financing sector (Chimedza, 1994). In chapter 14, Chimedza reviewed the historical aspects of agricultural financing. Agricultural formal lending peaked in 1986 when the Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC) extended roughly 100,000 loans to smallholders but after that the number of loans fell sharply. This coincided with an increase in maize, cotton and sunflower production and an improvement in beef marketing in the smallholder sector. However, the slump in the provision of finance called for a number of reforms in the Agricultural Finance Corporation and the broadening of agricultural finance to include rural savings mobilization. Such policy proposals are now even more relevant given the escalation in the demand for agricultural finance following the land reform programme. In the period between the 2000 and 2003, the government was still focusing on the land redistribution exercise and so little attention was given to the financing of the agricultural sector except for some intermittent and unstructured grants channelled by government through the Grain Marketing Board and Agricultural and Rural Development Authority for these institutions to secure some agricultural inputs for farmers in the years 2001, 2002 and 2003

A review of environmental assessments undertaken for phases 1A and 1B of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project.

Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.The construction of large dams has become a contentious issue throughout the world. Environmentalists, human rights activists, NGOs, academics and local communities have all contributed to the debate. On the one hand, proponents have highlighted the role of dams in alleviating poverty, improving the quality of life of communities, and their positive impact on local and national economies. Opponents of large dams have argued that the negative impacts on the environment and local communities outweigh any perceived benefits. Methods for assessing the environmental impact of large projects have been used since the 1970's. By 1988 most of Europe had adopted methods such as environmental impact assessment for evaluating the impact of proposed projects. These procedures aim to inform decision makers and authorities of the potential impact that a proposed project may have. World financial institutions, such as the World Bank, have also adopted the use of these assessment methods as part of their evaluation of projects that are seeking funding. This research establishes the environmental standards and requirements that were in place internationally, nationally and regionally, during the planning, design and implementation of Phase 1A and Phase 1B of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project. The products of the environmental investigations during successive phases of the project (1986-1999) are assessed to establish whether the parties involved conform to these standards. In addition, the research highlights affected communities' experience of the project implementation, as well as the impact of the project on their lives. The research suggests that in the early phases of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (feasibility and Phase 1A), studies failed to meet environmental assessment standards and requirements, Studies undertaken during Phase 1B represent a considerable improvement and conform more closely to World Bank standards. Although the participation of interested and affected parties has improved, there still appear to be areas of major concern to affected communities. The study highlights the need for greater transparency during the assessment phase of projects, and in particular, more effective involvement of the local communities. Future environmental assessments of this nature are likely to be subject to more stringent requirements including the systematic assessment and quantification of downstream impacts and the incorporation of the costs of all impacts in the project costs. Further phases of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project, will therefore need to demonstrate environmental sustainability in the long term

A legal analysis of the appointment of caretakers to act as council in terms of Zimbabwe's section 80 of the Urban councils Act

Magister Legum - LLMThe monitoring and supervision of local government is usually done by central governments. However in some countries like South Africa where there three spheres of government the provincial executive is charged with the supervision of the local sphere of government. In Zimbabwe the monitoring and supervision of local government is done by the central government through the relevant Minister. This study will look at the appointment of a caretaker to act as council in terms of section 80 of the UCA. Although a similar provision exists in section 158 of the RDCA, it is section 80 that has been vigorously applied by the Minister in recent times and which has caused an outcry from urban local authorities.South Afric

Community participation and project sustainability in rural Zimbabwe: the case of Sangwe communal lands

Development thinkers and practitioners have been pondering over community participation for the last decades. Some even called the 1980s a decade of participation in development discourse while others also view the current decade of social movements, Non-Governmental Organizations, and Community-Based Organizations as a manifestation of organized community participation. The Sangwe Communal Lands is one such area that researchers in the last decades have been pondering over the role of community participation in project sustainability. Likewise this study evaluates the effectiveness of community participation in Sangwe where it has been hypothesized that the current participation discourse has not lived up to its billing of ensuring sustainable projects. The research therefore explores some of the politics surrounding community participation in Sangwe and Zimbabwe at large. From one angle to the other, the research overviews some of the different theoretical orientations, goals, processes and practices that are commonly used but not always recognized to constitute genuine community participation. The research is intended to clarify some of the differences that emerge when projects are designed, and to stimulate discussion about community participation more generally. This study shows that the local communities who in this case are the reason for being of NGOs and their programmes are quite critical in development projects undertaken in their own areas. This to a larger extent determines the success of development initiatives at all levels. Such a scenario calls for a proper sustainable and pro-rural community legal and policy framework as a pre-requisite for sustainable projects. The study further highlights the need for development workers and agents to change their attitude towards communities and their indigenous knowledge systems. They need to co-opt community indigenous knowledge as a system that has a unique contribution to sustainable development. Above all, attitude change is the pillar for the New World System and 21st century development paradigm that respects local values, concerns, culture, and aspirations and that these should be taken on board in the management of development programmes

World Bank, International Monetary Fund and United Nations Led Democratic Governance and Economic Development Campaign: Can Africa Speak One Voice?

The subject of democratic governance and economic development is currently of critical importance in various fora of debate in Africa. This paper discusses the subject with respect to the voices of Africa’s academia. The paper discusses the subject in the context of Western world-Africa interaction since the early 1960s when the fight for political independence by African countries was at its peak. The paper also discusses the subject around modern economic development thought, defined as that which emerged in the mid 1940s when the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were created by the United Nations Organisation (UN). The paper observes that while there has been consensus in the Western academia on critical subjects like the one under discussion in this paper, in the African academia such consensus is missing, making it difficult for the later to give policy guidance on such critical issues. The paper calls for consensus in the African academia on issues critical to the economic development of Africa. To this effect, the paper makes a proposal of how consensus can be reached with particular reference to the World Bank, IMF and UN-led democratic governance and economic development. From this example consensus on other critical issues can be reached. Keywords: Good Governance, Democracy, Economic Developmen

Local government reform in Zimbabwe: A policy dialogue

On 3-4 November 2009 the Community Law Centre hosted a seminar entitled “Policy Dialogue on the Future of Local Government in Zimbabwe”. A diverse spectrum of local government practitioners was assembled to discuss issues related to local government in Zimbabwe. The seminar was structured around six critical themes relating to local government, namely socio-economic transformation, local government institutions and elections, local government financing, traditional authorities, local government functions and supervision of local government. Six authors from Zimbabwe prepared and delivered position papers on the above subject matters against the background of comparative comments from South African academics

Ühe kooli 5.–9. klassi õpilaste hinnangud kiusamise viiside, ulatuse ja õpetajate sekkumise kohta

http://www.ester.ee/record=b4495998*es

Community participation and project sustainability in rural Zimbabwe: the case of Sangwe communal lands

Development thinkers and practitioners have been pondering over community participation for the last decades. Some even called the 1980s a decade of participation in development discourse while others also view the current decade of social movements, Non-Governmental Organizations, and Community-Based Organizations as a manifestation of organized community participation. The Sangwe Communal Lands is one such area that researchers in the last decades have been pondering over the role of community participation in project sustainability. Likewise this study evaluates the effectiveness of community participation in Sangwe where it has been hypothesized that the current participation discourse has not lived up to its billing of ensuring sustainable projects. The research therefore explores some of the politics surrounding community participation in Sangwe and Zimbabwe at large. From one angle to the other, the research overviews some of the different theoretical orientations, goals, processes and practices that are commonly used but not always recognized to constitute genuine community participation. The research is intended to clarify some of the differences that emerge when projects are designed, and to stimulate discussion about community participation more generally. This study shows that the local communities who in this case are the reason for being of NGOs and their programmes are quite critical in development projects undertaken in their own areas. This to a larger extent determines the success of development initiatives at all levels. Such a scenario calls for a proper sustainable and pro-rural community legal and policy framework as a pre-requisite for sustainable projects. The study further highlights the need for development workers and agents to change their attitude towards communities and their indigenous knowledge systems. They need to co-opt community indigenous knowledge as a system that has a unique contribution to sustainable development. Above all, attitude change is the pillar for the New World System and 21st century development paradigm that respects local values, concerns, culture, and aspirations and that these should be taken on board in the management of development programmes