Gender and land ownership in Zimbabwean literature : a critical appraisal in selected Shona fiction

The study has been prompted by the gap that exists regarding gender and land in Zimbabwean fiction. The study therefore seeks to interrogate the gender and land ownership discourse in Shona fiction in relation to the current conflict of access to land by race, class and gender. The study therefore examines the following fictional works; Feso (1956), Dzasukwa-Mwana-Asina-Hembe (1967), Pafunge (1972), Kuridza Ngoma Nedemo (1985), Vavariro (1990) and Sekai Minda Tave Nayo (2005). Of significance is the fact that the selected fictional works traverse the different historical periods that Zimbabwe as a nation has evolved through. Apart from analysing the selected fictional works, the study also collected data through open-ended interviews and questionnaires to triangulate findings from the fictional works. The selected fictional writers present the different experiences of black Zimbabweans through land loss and the strategies taken by the indigenous people in trying to regain their lost heritage, the land. The exegesis of the selected fictional works is guided by Afro-centred perspectives of Africana Womanism and Afrocentricity. Findings from most of the selected fictional works reveals the selective exclusion of blacks, both male and female, from accessing land and other vital resources from the colonial right up to post-independence periods in Zimbabwe. The study observes that Shona traditional culture accorded both genders the requisite space in terms of land ownership in the pre-colonial period. The study also establishes that colonialism through its numerous legislations stripped black men and women of the fertile land which they formerly collectively owned. The study also establishes that disillusioned black men and women worked extremely hard to regain their lost land as reflected in the unsanctioned land grabs as well as the government sanctioned Fast Track Land Reform Programme. Recommendations for future research include the expansion of such research to include works of fiction in other languages as well as different genres. Future land policies stand to benefit from the inclusion of women in decision making since women the world over have been confirmed as workers of the land. This is likely to deal with the gender divide regarding land ownership patterns both within and outside Zimbabwe.African LanguagesD. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages

Promoting The Use And Teaching Of African Languages In Zimbabwe

A ZJER article on promoting local languages in education.This paper, is a discussion of the work that has been done by the Zimbabwe Government and The African Languages Research Institute in trying to promote the use and teaching of African languages in the country. It briefly discusses the colonial and post-colonial language policies that resulted in the marginalization of African languages. The discussion also focuses on the challenges and constraints that have been encountered in trying to use an African language as a language of wider communication and medium of instruction. The paper finally gives some practical suggestions on how Zimbabwe and other African Countries can promote indigenous languages

Exploring the practices of leadership in the United Church of Christ Mission Schools in Zimbabwe : a historical case study.

Doctor of Philosophy in Education. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2017.The study explored the practices of leadership enacted by the School Management Teams in the United Church of Christ Mission Schools in Zimbabwe during the period 1995-2010. The research discussed the responses made by the SMTs in regard to the contextual demands in the UCCZ mission schools and identified the factors that enhance or hinder the practices of leadership in the teaching and learning process. The findings revealed that the critical problem of teacher brain drain within the UCCZ Mission Schools weakened the capacity for teachers and the SMTs to produce good results across the respective schools. The problem emanated due to the harsh socio-economic and unstable political climate in Zimbabwe which forced the qualified teachers to leave the country and seek employment in the neighbouring countries and abroad for better salaries and work conditions. The findings showed that teacher brain drain contributes a major constrain to the education sector and resulted in low pass rate and reduced the quality of education in various schools in Zimbabwe. The research is aligned in the field of educational leadership and informed by the theories of distributed leadership, transformational leadership, and context-responsive leadership. Leadership should be viewed as a shared process which involves working with all stakeholders in a collegial and creative way to seek out the untapped leadership potential of people and develop this potential in a supportive environment for the betterment of the school. The study used qualitative approach which assumes that human behaviour can be influenced significantly by the context in which it occurs. Methods of data collection used include interviews, observations, journal entries and document analysis. Participants involved were four School Heads, four Heads of Department and two School Chaplains within the four selected case study schools in the United Church of Christ Mission Schools in Zimbabwe

African Culture

Speaker for Whitworth\u27s Forum program

Having it both ways : dual policy : analysis and evaluation of Zimbabwe government information policy 1980-1998

After independence, African countries of experimented with a philosophy which emphasised the harnessing of information for national development, to the exclusion of democracy. By the end of the 1980´s, the continent had achieved little national development. It faced, instead, an economic, social and political crisis. In the 1990´s, the continent is under pressure to combine the three, information, democracy and development as possible solutions to its crisis. A debate is going in Zimbabwe and the rest of Africa on government information policy, democracy and development. Information is considered to be vital for the democratic and development processes. Government information policy determines the nature and availability of that information. This research project analyses the Zimbabwe government´s information policy of the 1980´s and the policy emerging in the 1990´s. The policy is evaluated to determine whether or not it is democratic. The research project is, in effect, an analysis of the relationship between government information policy, democracy and development. The conclusion reached is that the Zimbabwe government operates a dual information policy in pursuit of two apparently incompatible objectives, democracy and national development

Physical distancing – Necessity or Luxury? : Culture, population density and COVID-19 in Zimbabwean Society

The period of COVID-19 has seen the proliferation of the pandemic the world over. Among mitigatory measures was physical distancing, initially named social distancing. However, in urban areas where population density is high in Zimbabwe, physical distancing becomes a luxury. Most Zimbabweans, particularly in urban areas live in high-density areas, almost squalid conditions. Zimbabweans are a hospitable lot whose familial ties are binding and this means the extended family (a significant number of people) can stay in one household. The economy does not help matters either with people being forced by circumstances to converge in large numbers in the community at any given time to irk out a living. This therefore presents a challenge where the World Health Organisation COVID-19 protocol of physical distancing appears to be offside. The protocol of physical distancing does not take into consideration population density of given areas, let alone the socio-economic and religio-cultural dimensions of any given society. This chapter is thus an exploration of the circumstances under which the average Zimbabwean must operate to survive. It also examines the traditional indigenous/ religious beliefs that uphold the spirit of ubuntu fostering communal existence vis-à-vis the COVID-19 pandemic. Informal interviews were conducted on how the average Zimbabwean fares on an average day and targeted informal traders ordinary Zimbabweans. A convenience sample of selected research participants was drawn from Harare’s CBD area to examine the applicability of physical distancing in Zimbabwean society. The study revealed that for many living in the high-density areas, physical distancing is a luxury, as people tend to prioritise survival in a harsh economic climate ahead of the COVID-19 protocol of physical distancing first. This research is informed by Ubuntu theory where Shona religious beliefs frown at individualism and uphold teamwork despite the raging COVID-19 pandemic

Who is fooling who? : Masking up and its implications on Zimbabwean society

The world has witnessed the high infection and fatality rates of the corona virus which has resulted in the World Health Organisation declaring it a pandemic on 11 March 2020. As of 13 March 2022, there were over 455 million confirmed cases and over 6 million deaths that had been reported globally (WHO, 2022). In order to curb the spread of this pandemic and its spiral effects, countries have come up with mitigatory measures; among them is the wearing of face masks. This paper has been prompted by the failure to comply by the majority of Zimbabweans to the wearing of face masks, thus making it a criminal offence not to wear one. Thus, most Zimbabweans tend to wear face masks as a ritual – for fear of prosecution by the police or when the masks allow them to access certain benefits but not as a COVID-19 mitigation strategy. The chapter also further interrogates why even among those who police the wearing of face masks seem to be at liberty to remove their masks as and when they choose. In the midst of a pandemic, the question, which remains, is -who is fooling who? The chapter thus endevours to investigate why Zimbabweans in general appear to have rejected the wearing of face masks. The research is largely qualitative in nature and a sample of purposively selected people from Harare’s CBD area were interviewed. Furthermore, the observations of Zimbabweans as they go about their daily business and their understanding of face masks were used. It is hoped that the people’s perceptions about the face mask are brought to the fore and put under the spotlight for the benefit of the general populace. The chapter also accounts for the socio-economic and religious reasons behind non-compliance of wearing masks, hoping that this mitigation strategy is taken seriously. The study is informed by Ubuntu/Unhu philosophy, which calls for people of African cultural descent to protect and act in harmony with their communities as well as avoid hypocritical tendencies that are self-harming or which harm others