Idioms of accumulation: corporate accumulation by dispossession in urban Zimbabwe

​David Harvey’s accumulation by dispossession has inspired a wide range of studies in different places. But it has hardly registered in the area of urban land grabbing in Africa and the role of local capital in these processes. Using archival data, field observations and insights from key informant interviews in Harare, this paper examines how the 1990s neo-liberalism and post 1999 Zimbabwe crisis created new opportunities for accumulation of wealth through irregular and fraudulent transfer of public urban land into private hands including those of reputable corporate institutions. It speaks to the literature on contemporary land grabbing and raises questions and new insights for comparative understanding of the transformative role and nature of the state, postcolonial African cities, anti-capitalist struggles, the status and meaning of planning in different settings

Protocol for collaboration between the National Genebank and Community Seed Banks

In recent years, national genebanks of some countries (e.g. Bhutan, Mexico, Nepal, South Africa and Uganda) have started to collaborate with community seed banks on the important task of conservation of crop (and tree) varieties. This collaboration has taken place in informal ways, in the form of participation in meetings and gatherings, seed and food fairs and through a number of joint activities, including the establishment of community seed banks and related (capacity development) activities. As far as is known, no formal agreements have been made/signed to structure, monitor and evaluate the collaboration in a more rigorous manner. Based on interactions among professionals from various countries who support community seed banks, it was decided to develop a generic collaboration protocol that could help shape the collaboration process in countries where this has not yet taken place or to solidify the process in countries where this is already happening. The protocol document includes chapters (articles) on the roles of the national genebank; the roles of community seed banks; principles of collaboration; activities that can be done together and rules and regulations for the collaboration. It benefitted from the inputs of many partners in Kenya, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe and from the long community seed bank working experience of staff of Bioversity International, now the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT

Barriers and incentives to orphan care in a time of AIDS and economic crisis: a cross-sectional survey of caregivers in rural Zimbabwe

BACKGROUND: Africa is in an orphan-care crisis. In Zimbabwe, where one-fourth of adults are HIV-positive and one-fifth of children are orphans, AIDS and economic decline are straining society's ability to care for orphans within their extended families. Lack of stable care is putting thousands of children at heightened risk of malnourishment, emotional underdevelopment, illiteracy, poverty, sexual exploitation, and HIV infection, endangering the future health of the society they are expected to sustain. METHODS: To explore barriers and possible incentives to orphan care, a quantitative cross-sectional survey in rural eastern Zimbabwe asked 371 adults caring for children, including 212 caring for double orphans, about their well-being, needs, resources, and perceptions and experiences of orphan care. RESULTS: Survey responses indicate that: 1) foster caregivers are disproportionately female, older, poor, and without a spouse; 2) 98% of non-foster caregivers are willing to foster orphans, many from outside their kinship network; 3) poverty is the primary barrier to fostering; 4) financial, physical, and emotional stress levels are high among current and potential fosterers; 5) financial need may be greatest in single-orphan AIDS-impoverished households; and 6) struggling families lack external support. CONCLUSION: Incentives for sustainable orphan care should focus on financial assistance, starting with free schooling, and development of community mechanisms to identify and support children in need, to evaluate and strengthen families' capacity to provide orphan care, and to initiate and support placement outside the family when necessary

Human immunodeficiency virus prevalence, incidence, and residual transmission risk in first-time and repeat blood donations in Zimbabwe:implications on blood safety

<p>BackgroundNational Blood Service Zimbabwe human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) risk management strategy includes screening and discarding of first-time donations, which are collected in blood packs without an anticoagulant (dry pack). To evaluate the impact of discarding first-time donations on blood safety the HIV prevalence, incidence, and residual risk in first-time and repeat donations (wet packs) were compared.</p><p>Study Design and MethodsDonor data from 2002 to 2010 were retrieved from a centralized national electronic donor database and retrospectively analyzed. Chi-square test was used to compare HIV prevalence with relative risk (RR), and the RR point estimates and 95% confidence interval (CI) are reported. Trend analysis was done using Cochran-Armitage trend test. HIV residual risk estimates were determined using published residual risk estimation models.</p><p>ResultsOver the 9years the overall HIV prevalence estimates are 1.29% (n=116,058) and 0.42% (n=434,695) for first-time and repeat donations, respectively. The overall RR was 3.1 (95% CI, 2.9-3.3; p</p><p>ConclusionThe significantly high HIV prevalence estimates recorded in first-time over repeat donations is indicative of the effectiveness of the HIV risk management strategy. However, comparable residual transmission risk estimates in first-time and repeat donors point to the need to further review the risk management strategies. Given the potential wastage of valuable resources, future studies should focus on the cost-effectiveness and utility of screening and discarding first-time donations.</p>