Challenges for rural tourism development in Zimbabwe: a case of the Great Zimbabwe Masvingo area
- Authors: Musasa, Gabriel
- Date: 2013
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Soc Sc (Dev)
- Identifier: vital:11442 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1007317
- Description: The main focus of this study is the challenges of rural tourism development in Zimbabwe. The study identified that there is a lack of sustainable interventions in the development of rural tourism which is catalyzed by the absence of rural tourism promotion strategy to support the sustenance of livelihoods through socio-economic transformation. Meaningful socio economic transformation in the African rural areas through tourism remains a major development challenge. Development initiatives through different forms of tourism in the rural communities, has to a less magnitude benefited the rural communities and have negatively impacted the socio–economic environment. A qualitative research methodology and case study design was employed in order to have a deeper understanding of the experiences of the society around this project. Face to face interviews and focus group discussions guides were used to collect primary data. Purposive and convenience sampling techniques was employed to select respondents. Data was analysed using the transformative theory and sustainable livelihoods theory and was organized into categories and themes. The study established that the absence of a strategy is caused by political instability, community conflict, lack of finance, marketing, poor communication, and limited knowledge of tourism. All the aforementioned reasons complement each other and poise a challenge to the sustainability of rural tourism development. For Zimbabwe to effectively transform its economy through tourism, the government needs to plan the process, formulate and implement relevant economic and social development strategies and policies. Although this dissertation is a case study of sustainable rural tourism in Zimbabwe, it can be used to appreciate the role of tourism in bringing about socio-economic transformation and sustaining livelihoods in developing countries.
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- Date Issued: 2013
Participatory development (PD): NGOs and developmental practice in Zimbabwe
- Authors: Hwati, Lucky
- Date: 2013
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Soc Sc (Dev)
- Identifier: vital:11446 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1015315
- Description: The rising to prominence of Non- Governmental Organizations (NGOs) as essential partners to development was as a result of a shift in development authority into decentralized governance. Prior to this, the state was the central player in development. At liberation from political colonial control, most African governments adopted a centralized governance system. This meant that even in their drive to eco-socio development the state was the sole and most important driver. As explained by Allen (1995), in order to keep their grip on power, African leaders invented different solutions. Among them was an amplified centralization of its administrative device, or the creation of a centralized bureaucratic organization. Indeed, from 1960, the majority of African leaders banned political competition and instituted one-party regimes under which an ever-expanding bureaucracy was used to distribute resources to political allies, often under the form of membership in administrative positions (Allen, 1995). It was this need to keep a firm grip on power which saw most governments spearheading their own development, with NGOs playing a peripheral role. In the second instance, the state was instrumental in leading development. Throughout Africa, numerous government boards and ministries were created, each with a specific role to play in development (Willis, 2011; Allen, 1995). In the same way, most governments instituted policies and plans, with specific time frames, where certain development targets were supposed to be met. This system was adopted and became more pronounced in countries such as Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
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- Date Issued: 2013
Sustainable community development programmes and rural poverty eradication in the Eastern Cape: the case study of Buffalo Municipality
- Authors: Muleya, Emmison
- Date: 2013
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Soc Sc (Dev)
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/844 , vital:26502
- Description: Community development programmes as livelihoods strategies have been central to rural poverty eradication, development thinking and practice in the past decade. But where do such perspectives come from, what are their conceptual roots, and what influences have shaped the way they have emerged? This study offers a historical review of key moments in debates about sustainable community development programmes and rural poverty reduction, identifying the tensions, ambiguities and challenges of such approaches. A number of core challenges are identified in this study, centred on the need to inject a more thorough-going analysis into the centre of livelihoods perspectives. The study was done as a first step to identify, at a local level, evidence of the contribution of such programmes designated to tackle poverty in rural areas in Buffalo Municipality and to establish the challenges faced in providing sustainable livelihood outcomes. This will enhance the capacity of livelihoods perspectives to address key gaps in recent discussions, including questions of knowledge, politics, scale and dynamics. It is of utmost importance to note that funds per see cannot bring the rural poor out of their situation, rather as the study posits, continued support, empowering locals with ongoing training on marketing and how to run business, a culture of savings as well as the development of participatory monitoring and evaluation mechanisms can bring about reduction in poverty through sustainable community development programmes and eventually leading to eradication.
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- Date Issued: 2013
The nature of China’s role in development of Africa: the case of Zambia and Zimbabwe
- Authors: Hogwe, Fortune
- Date: 2013
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Soc Sc (Dev)
- Identifier: vital:11445 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1015048
- Description: China’s economic involvement in Africa has increased rapidly over the past decade. China’s involvement in Africa has become one of the controversial topics in the development literature. The background of the study is that Sino-African relations can be grouped into two phases thus: past relations and contemporary relations. The study notes that past relations are different from contemporary relations because while the former are mainly characterised by solidarity, the latter are mainly categorized by economic relations. The study is a historical narrative of China’s economic involvement and the impact in Africa over the past decade. The study draws its arguments from the myths which label Chinese resurgence into Africa as neo-colonialism and that China’s reinvigorated interest in Africa is entirely based upon its own economic pursuits since it has developed into an economic powerhouse over the past decade. Additionally, it has been reported that China disregard good governance in Africa by engaging African governments which are corrupt and which possess poor track human rights. In order to determine if China is pushed into Africa by its economic pursuits and whether China disregards good governance, the study uses two case studies thus: Zimbabwe and Zambia. Zimbabwe one the one hand represents a pariah state, which is viewed as corrupt and a nation which has a poor record of human rights while Zambia, on the other hand represents illiberal regimes and democratic regimes with commodity based economies. The research discovered that China’s economic involvement in Africa presents both opportunities and challenges for African countries. In some instances, China has aided GDP growth in some African countries while in some instances, it has increased unemployment. In conclusion, the study also discovered that China does not involve itself in African domestic affairs hence it has been criticised for encouraging corruption and abusing of human rights.However, the study notes that these issues are mainly domestic hence Africans are entirely to be blamed for such practices, not China.
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- Date Issued: 2013