Evaluation of Youth Empowerment Strategies in Rural Zimbabwe

This article evaluates strategies for youth empowerment in rural Zimbabwe. Policies and institutions that are mandated to implement such tasks in Zimbabwe are evaluated. The paper also explores the compatibility of the said policies within a rural context. Through in-depth and key informant interviews with youths, government ministries and non-governmental organisations in Mwenezi (corroborated by secondary data), the paper provides a clearer understanding of youth empowerment policies in rural Zimbabwe. The study notes several shortcomings within the policy framework, such as tokenistic consultation in formulating, designing and implementing policies. Shortage of funds and corruption among public officers often hamper implementation, while poor coordination between actor organisations has negatively impacted youth empowerment outcomes. The paper therefore proposes context-specific policies that meet the real rural challenges as experienced by the youth, and not those imagined by policy makers/enactors. In coming up with such programmes, the paper advocates for youth participation at every stage, while also ensuring that relevant institutions are empowered to enhance the welfare/emancipation of the youth. In contributing to the broader discussion on rural African youth empowerment, this paper advocates for the mainstreaming of youth policies that are suitable for rural contexts as a way of enhancing their socio-economic emancipation.

Collective Memory and Nation-Building in Africa

Based on documentary analysis, this article argues that lessons of violent conflicts are rarely appropriated positively for nation-building in the context of post-conflict African societies. The article further stresses that the reasons often projected as causes of ineffective nation-building, such as multiple ethnicity and neo-colonialism, are unjustifiably projected as causal factors. It argues that diverse ethnicity remains a dormant destructive force until operationalised for political gains through misappropriation and deployment of collective memories. In the African context, post-conflict societies adopt the mixed approach of selective amnesia which emphasises amnesty, reconciliation, rehabilitation and reintegration as necessary for nation-building. Experience, however, suggests that the operationalisation of this approach is always marred by inconsistencies and repression. Consequently, repressive mechanisms suppress violence and achieve relative stability. True reconciliation which is critical for nation-building is never achieved. Among loser ethnic groups (hereafter loser groups), resistance to selective amnesia and simultaneous preoccupation with collective memory of victimisation, discrimination and injustice continue to reinforce sentiments of group exceptionality and separatist impulses rather than national consciousness. Therefore, cautious expression of citizenship among segments of the loser groups continues to attract mutual suspicion and distrust from leadership of post-conflict states. It is concluded that the challenge of social contradictions in post-conflict societies is serious because neither the state nor loser groups positively deploy memory of conflict for nation-building. A new reconciliatory approach drawn largely from lessons of history is recommended for post-conflict nation-building efforts in post-conflict African states. Positive appropriation and deployment of memory for nation-building ensures amnesty and restoration without repercussions; and remembrance without resentment.

Migration Dynamics and the Making of New Diasporic Language and Cultural Communities in South Africa, 2000–2020: An Entrepreneurial Perspective

Migration, enterprise and the related language and culture dynamics are critical to South Africa and Zimbabwe. In the past, some scholars were of the view that the language and cultural communities created by migration pose a threat, and others argued that they are advantageous. This article presents a single-factor analytical approach to issues, which suggests that co-existing modalities should be worked out for the host citizens to accept the migrants without reservations. This acceptance is imperative as its negation results in some contexts to the flaring of ugly xenophobic manifestations. The argument presented in this article is pertinent to African languages and education, the African Union, the United Nations, civic, humanitarian organisations, respective governments, interested stakeholders and language communities, amongst others. It provides insight on how to manage cultures and morals among migrants of diverse categories. The article used a mixed research methodology. It reviews ideas on migration globally and in Africa in particular, analysing how migration contributes towards emerging language and cultural societies or communities. A sample of 100 respondents was used for this study. The paper suggests that there should be unity, deregulation and liberalisation of movement of people across the continent for trade and skills-sharing to improve sustainability. The article intends to guide African leaders to co-exist and to encourage fair competition for continental expansion, poverty alleviation and development of positive international language policies. It is one of the recent attempts to expound on the existing perspectives on migration dynamics and the formation of viable diasporic language communities in Africa and highlight their contribution towards ubuntu.

Unpacking Climate Change Adaptation Strategies: An Account of Smallholder Farmer Experiences in Chimanimani District, Zimbabwe

This article reports on a study that analysed a myriad of adaptation practices adopted by smallholder farmers in Chimanimani District, Zimbabwe. Using a predominantly qualitative design, some in-depth interviews were conducted with purposefully selected key respondents. Focus group discussions with 8 to 12 smallholder farmers per group were conducted in each of the district’s 22 wards. These were corroborated by the guided observation method. The data was analysed using thematic content analysis, where broad strands of responses were synthesised and condensed into narrow themes that made them easier to interpret. Accordingly, smallholder farmers opted for drought tolerant crop and animal species, indigenous seed preservation techniques, aquaculture and conservation farming. The off-farm practices included craftwork, bee-keeping, artesian mining and trade. The sustainable livelihoods framework (SLF) was used as an analytical lens to appraise the sustainability of smallholder farmers’ choices and practices. Therefore, as farmers switched from one practice to another, many of their adaptive options reflected short-term livelihood benefits with concealed medium- to long-term environmental detriments. Strangely, some malpractices have their roots in short-sighted government policy frameworks mainstreamed to alleviate grass roots poverty. A thorough evaluation of adaptive policies is recommended so as to strengthen the adaptive capacity of smallholder farmers against the background of climate change.

Rural Women as Entrepreneurs in the Context of Patriarchy: Experiences of Female Entrepreneurs in Mudzi District, Zimbabwe

This article reports on a study which aimed to examine the varied experiences of women involved in business across rural spaces in the context of patriarchy through an exploration of their narratives highlighting their challenges, successes, fears and hopes. The assumption of the study was that rural women in Zimbabwe occupy a particularly difficult space because of numerous structural impediments which include patriarchy, unequal access to skills, capital inadequacy and exclusion from formal economic systems. The study sought to provide a nuanced understanding of female entrepreneurship in African spaces with the aim of showing that there are varied stories of agency, challenges, successes and failures that can be documented. The study utilised qualitative methods which sought a nuanced analysis of women’s experiences in Mudzi District, Mashonaland East Province, Zimbabwe. The data was collected through life histories, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. A total of 34 participants were recruited for the study through purposive and snowball sampling techniques. The participants included women involved in a varied number of entrepreneurial activities such as bread making, vending, dress making, poultry and running micro enterprises. The findings showed that whilst women face multiple structural impediments as entrepreneurs, they are active agents questioning and shaping their social spaces through business. Women embarking on entrepreneurial activities is in itself seen as a serious challenge against patriarchal structures.

The Limitations of Legalism and Identity Labels in Post-apartheid South Africa Africa

The roots of identity crisis in post-apartheid South Africa are embedded in systemic failures reflected in the design and content of various legal documents, including application forms for registering a birth, school or university entrance, acquiring an identity document, registering a marriage, employment, and a death. A key requirement in the forms is that individuals identify themselves, based on race, gender, and nationality. Consequently, the information collected through these forms reproduces racial divisions and recreates old identities of the apartheid and colonial past—namely Blackness, Whiteness, Nationalism, or Otherness. Many such identities; including gender, created through these legal documents are distorted, and, therefore, misrepresent the actual descriptions of who the individuals are. As a result, individuals are forced to identify themselves, based on laws passed during apartheid. This article explores the identity crisis in South Africa, where identity labelling seems to be particularly highly racialised and ethnicised as a result of the social classification of humans according to race, ethnicity, gender, and nationality, applied in the colonial and apartheid era. By conducting a meta-analysis of application forms for the registration forms for births, deaths, marriages, school and university entrance, as well as acquiring national identity documents, the article argues that the current legalistic identity imaginings in South Africa are anachronistic to the ways in which individuals might otherwise want to self-identify.

Education and the Development Agenda: An Analysis of Factors Influencing Primary School Learners’ Outcomes in Hwange and Binga Districts, Zimbabwe

This article reports on a study which focused on analysing factors that influence primary school learners’ outcomes in Hwange and Binga districts, Matabeleland North, Zimbabwe. Education policies that have been implemented by the government of Zimbabwe guided the philosophy underpinning the study. The researcher used both qualitative and quantitative approaches in the research methodology. The study participants were selected through purposive sampling of schools with a zero pass rate in the Hwange and Binga districts. School authorities that responded to the semi-structured interview were purposively sampled by focusing on the school heads and the Grade 7 teachers. The learners who participated in the focus group discussions were randomly assigned to the sample making use of the school attendance registers and limiting the focus group discussions to a maximum of six participants per school. The findings revealed that the challenges that affect learners’ academic performance include the shortage of textbooks in the newly introduced learning areas; the poor infrastructure in schools; and the low motivation of teachers. One of the recommendations of the study was that local gatekeepers should engage in community awareness campaigns aimed at educating communities on the importance of education for children and advocating for the legislation of punitive policies that will see parents who unnecessarily absent their children from school being punished.

South Africa’s Journey towards a Democratic Developmental State

This article analyses key policies and documents, which form the basis of democratic South Africa’s desire to becoming a developmental state. In order to understand the notion of a developmental state, I provide a discussion on the theoretical foundations of the concept by drawing on examples from other countries (such as the Asian Tigers) that have embarked on a journey to become developmental states. Through a comparative analysis, and by probing the National Development Plan (NDP), as well as the work of the National Planning Commission (NPC) broadly, I examine South Africa’s prospects of becoming a developmental state. To this effect, I argue that although the foundation that was laid for South Africa to become a democratic developmental state (DDS) was relatively solid, South Africa has veered far away from becoming a developmental state any time soon. But, given the existing institutional architecture, as well as an assessment of developmental outcomes, it would seem that South Africa can still become a viable developmental state—although South Africa has lost many of the salient attributes of developmental states. It is also worth highlighting that it was always going to be difficult for South Africa to become a developmental state because of the political and economic history of the country. The article makes suggestions with regard to what could be done to ensure that South Africa becomes a viable, fully-fledged, democratic developmental state.

Conceptual Model for Financial Inclusion Development through Agency Banking in Competitive Markets

This article reports on a study that aimed to identify the important elements of financial inclusion based on a literature review and a case study of agency banking. The study explored and applied literature review findings and utilised a case study approach, notably of three renowned commercial banks in Zimbabwe, to illustrate the importance of financial inclusion through enhanced agency banking in competitive markets. An instrumental case study (cross-sectional) research protocol was employed for the three selected banks. A mixed methods approach was used to collect responses from the respondents in the field which included 10 agency banking department managers, 70 active agency bankers, and 300 active account holders or customers from the three selected banks. The researcher utilised an instrumental case study protocol which showed that the procedure for a standardised approach in carrying out more than one case study (for the three selected banks). The primary data was analysed and interpreted using SPSS, in line with the themes, devised from the research objectives. Structural equation modelling was applied so as to check the causal relationship between variables. It suggests a framework for building and fostering financial inclusion through agency banking. The findings showed that financial inclusion needs to be aligned to the corporate needs and processes to help deliver customer or depositor promises. The level of consistency along financial inclusion through agency banking, targeted towards the customers or depositors is critical to the success of agency banking by any banking or financial institution.

Monogenesis to Homogenesis: Conversations on Race

Methods abound in academic discourse and the extent to which each is used to investigate unique problems and probably proffer solutions—each method gradually achieves the desired aim for which it is used. I employ conversation here, not in the loose sense of the concept, but in its strict meaning of engaging in critical discourse so that through dialogic, new concepts can be distilled from old ones. Thus, I am motivated by the inclusivity of decomposition and blending, which for me is an arm of scientific methods because of rigorous engagement in self-criticism that has not been explored distinctly. Conversation has its own peculiarity and makes intellectual discourse relevant for each age. I have not examined in detail the idea of conversationalism, but have employed it as a tool to deconstruct and reconstruct race. This does not negate the possible emergence of other concepts that are variations of the scientific method. I have further explored briefly the crisis of leadership, associated with racial reasoning, and the possibility of healing that engenders development.