Resistance and Counter-Zones of Indistinction

Agamben's concept, zone of indistinction, defines politically constructed, ambiguous time-space settings that are built by the sovereign, declaring the state of emergency, transforming the subjects into homo sacer. In this sense, a zone of indistinction is the space reproducing dominance and hierarchy. However, Agamben's analysis developed around this concept skips the reality of resistance zones which can be constructed by micro agents suspending the quasi-objective time-and-space settings organized in everyday-life practices. From this point of critical view, the article proposes a new concept, counter-zones of indistinction, which follows Agamben's analytical agenda from the side of non-dominant power relations. Thus, the article explains counter-zones of indistinction while it also analyzes the differences among counter-public spaces, heterotopias to make clear the conceptual boundaries. Hence, the article aims to contribute to Agamben's well-known study on the zone of indistinction.

Strategies to Mitigate COVID-19's Impact on Indian SMEs

SMEs are small firms with small budgets, workforces, and scales of operations compared to large enterprises, and their risk-bearing ability is low. The recent outbreak of COVID-19 paralyzed these SMEs creating severe financial crises and threats to survival. Small firms already face a variety of challenges in their normal course of business while the spread of the virus has suddenly turned down the situation into an emergency for them. COVID-19 stalled the movement of the employees owing to the evolution of severe public health issues, and many SMEs shut down due to fear of the pandemic. Due to this scenario, all SME owners are keen to know more about the measures and strategies that could be implemented to mitigate the negative impact. Hence, adopting an exploratory approach with systematic literature review, this paper deliberates on how these issues can be addressed through a robust and well-drawn policy and discusses the mitigation strategies that will aid in softening the blow due to this pandemic and also helps in the resurgence of SMEs at a faster rate.

Monitoring and Evaluation of Housing Service Delivery in Zimbabwean Local Authorities

This study investigates the effectiveness of monitoring and evaluation systems for housing service delivery in local authorities in the Midlands Province of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe has been experiencing poor housing service delivery and the Midlands province is characterized by housing backlog, poor quality housing projects, lack of housing finance, lack of technical capacity, and no new partnerships. Despite the Government of Zimbabwe introducing monitoring and evaluation tools in all public institutions to achieve good governance and effective housing service delivery, this did not fully address the housing problems experienced in the province. The research utilized the mixed-methods approach with a case study research design using urban and rural local authorities in the Midlands Province. The article recommended that the three tiers of government should work collaboratively with the aid of a monitoring and evaluation system to solve housing delivery problems. This study is critical for local government housing delivery performance management.

In the Midst of Digital Economy

The financial literacy of urban Indians has been a cause of concern for Reserve Bank, commercial banks, and numerous NGOs and self-help groups. Extant literature has proven that financial illiteracy and poor financial skills lead to evils such as indebtedness leading to bankruptcy filings, poverty, divorce, and depression. Keeping in mind the importance of being able to understand and handle personal finance well by millennials, the authors examined 213 Indian students pursuing a PG course in management in Delhi city. To ascertain the students' level of financial knowledge and examine whether factors like gender, education level, undergraduate area of study, income level, etc., factor analysis is conducted and five independent factors are extracted, explaining 80% of variance. Through the study, five factors determining financial literacy were found—borrowing behavior, investment behavior, financial prudence, transaction behavior, and spending behavior—in Delhi from 2014-2018.

Exploring the Political Dynamics of Non-Governmental Organizations and the State in Trinidad and Tobago From a Postinternational Framework

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the state contribute considerably to the unique state of Caribbean politics, yet their relationship is turbulent, which prevents effective policymaking. Specifically, the problem this study addressed is the turbulent relationship between NGOs and the state in Trinidad and Tobago from a postinternational framework. The purpose of this research was to provide an explanation of the NGO-state relationship through the postinternational concepts of turbulence and distant proximities using a qualitative research approach.

Stakeholder Approach for Land Reform Programme to Enhance Access and Equity

Globally, the land is a valuable resource. Many years of colonialism resulted in the majority of the population having no access to agricultural land especially in many African countries, and Namibia is no exception. Today, land access and equity are burning issues. Hence, adopting a qualitative research approach and data collection with a non-random purposive sample of 60 respondents' through questionnaires, interviews, and secondary data to investigate how the stakeholder approach can facilitate the effective implementation of the land reform program to enhance access and equity in Namibia. The paper examines challenges faced in implementing the land reform program, determine the level of stakeholder participation, and develop strategies based on the stakeholder approach for improved implementation of the land reform program. Findings reflect that stakeholders felt that the government is not consulting them enough and that is the reason why the land reform process has failed to enhance access and equity and is lacks the pace to the detriment of the landless majority.

Citizen Participation in Community-Based Planning

The purpose of this study was to understand the role of citizen participation in community-based planning with specific reference to the Borrowdale Ratepayers and Residents Association (BRRA) in Harare, Zimbabwe. Qualitative methodology was employed in the study and data was collected through key informant interviews. The key findings of the study were that there is little awareness on the role and importance of citizen participation in community-based planning. This is despite the fact that Borrowdale Community often experiences poor public service delivery and resource management where citizen participation would contribute meaningfully. The study concluded that citizens need to be aware of their role in community-based planning as this has a direct effect on service delivery. Local governance practices need to be transformed to reflect the needs and problems of residents and ratepayers.

Manual Scavenging in India

Manual scavenging is an occupation which has been in existence since the human society. The inhuman practice of manually take out night soil which comprises removal of human waste from dry toilets with their bare hands, brooms, or metal scrappers; transporting excrements and bags to dumping sites for disposal is not only diabolic but perhaps the top degree of human rights violation. Manual scavenging is a sort of enforced labour in some places. It passes on from generation to generation. Culture of getting prevailing amongst them is also depriving them of their rights. Regardless of several arrangements, laws, and policy, the state has been unsuccessful in its endeavours, but the conditions of the scavenging societies have remained unacceptable; the inhuman and shameful practice of manual scavenging is continuing. Researcher will critically observe the management of the manual scavenging with reference to actions of the state in safeguarding the due rights of the scavenging community in Indian scenario for better condition of manual scavenging occupation.

Masculinity and Gender

The purpose of this study is to provide interventions to end gender-based violence (GBV). Most of the GBV interventions that have been used are mainly reactive and focused on survivors of GBV. It therefore argues that there is a need to also focus on masculinity-focused interventions as an alternative to the traditional GBV interventions in order to reduce GBV cases. The study firstly provides definitions of GBV and masculinity. Secondly, it provides a critique of the various types of masculinity. Thirdly, it focuses on traditional GBV interventions, and masculinity-focused interventions.

Decentralization and District-Level Decentralization in Amhara Region

This paper examines the process of decentralization and district level decentralization programs in the Amhara region. It addresses the decentralization processes in Imperial, Derg, and EPRDF regimes. The depth and degree of decentralization in the three consecutive regimes were different as the process of decentralization in the current government meant to be deeper and extensive and pushed powers, functions, and roles into the local government. The process of decentralization in the current government has transferred powers and functions to the districts. However, the district level decentralization process has faced many challenges. The paper revealed that unclear assignments of powers and functions, executive dominations, upward accountabilities, top-down planning, lack of skilled manpower, lack participatory systems, failure of the councils in holding the executive accountable, lack of adequate budget, lack of revenue mobilization capacity, lack of responsiveness, and accountability among councils were the main challenges that impede in the process of the DLD process.