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Within the past few years, pandemics like HIV/AIDS, influenza, and SARS-CoV-2 have become common worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic, which broke out recently, profoundly impacted the world. As part of containing this pandemic, lockdowns which put a moratorium on human mobility and associational life became a dominant measure. Yet these mobilities and associational life are the lifeblood of migrants and diaspora belonging. This paper examines the impacts of bans on associational life on migrants and, further, what migrants did to continue living in the absence of these associations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper is based on a case study of Lydiate informal settlement in Zimbabwe, where Malawian migrants have established an ethnic enclave to shield themselves from the precarity and injustices of foreign lands. Through convivial and digital ethnographic fieldwork, the paper revealed that bans on associational life disrupted community engagements and binding religious associational life, increased targeted violence and "othering," and perpetuated stigma and discrimination and loss of ties with family and fictive kin. However, migrants restructured their associational life by adopting agile and new forms of belonging to get by, including relocating religious shrines to more secretive places or conducting religious ceremonies in the dark, drinking beer within the perimeter of the settlement, using of WhatsApp and instant messaging and WhatsApp groups for important community updates, and collective resistance. I termed these strategies "nimble forms of sociality and belonging," meaning there are lithe mechanisms that migrants employ to further their sociality even when they are restricted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

De-migranticization is becoming a core strategy for overcoming the fetishization of migrants in migration studies. However, this shift in perspectives raises questions about what categories to use instead. This paper contributes to these debates by considering the potential of studying immobility as a tool for de-migranticization. It looks at immobility through the lens of liminality: as a transitory phase, as a transformative stage and as one which enables epistemological subversion. In doing so, it goes beyond other border spanning terms to offer methodological insights into using immobility and liminality to de-migranticize. The paper suggests that these qualities of reading immobility through theories of liminality has implications for when, where and how to study migration. The empirical case draws on 165 semi-structured interviews with distance education students from Zimbabwe, Namibia and Nigeria studying at the University of South Africa (UNISA). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zimbabwe implemented the Fast-Track Land Reform Program (FTLRP) in the year 2000. This program has had far-reaching implications on urban development, especially on urban land markets in cities and towns. This paper highlights the implications of the land reform program on urban land markets, using Harare as a case study. The paper is based on document review (policy, academic and development literature) and interviews with key informants with experience and knowledge of the land reform and its associated implications on urban land markets. Our analysis demonstrates that the land reform process in peri-urban spaces was complex and largely driven by political interests. The land reform process distorted the urban planning processes, leading to disparities in the land markets. Such disparities include informal and uncontrolled processes of accessing land and, ultimately, rapid development of informal settlements in the city. Political elites and land barons took advantage of the land reform program extorting money from desperate home-seekers. We conclude that the distortion of urban land markets by politically driven land reform processes negatively affects sustainable urban development. Overall, the paper makes a valuable contribution to the growing literature on land reforms and peri-urban development in Africa, demonstrating the complex and multidimensional implications of land reform programs on peri-urban land markets. Based on the study findings, the paper provides a set of policy recommendations aimed at improving the effectiveness and equity of land reform programs in African peri-urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a qualitative study of Zimbabwean migrants based in South Africa, who regularly remitted goods and money to Zimbabwe between 2010 and 2020, this paper suggests that at a local level, remittances alleviated poverty with very limited if any transformation of the political economy at the national level. Such remittances promoted consumerism without sustainable investment that can structurally transform the economy. In addition, the dependence on remittances entrenches the culture of migration at the local level, which also contributes to or promotes ethno-tribal fissiparity. In rethinking diaspora remittances in the post-Mugabe era, it is advanced that the seemingly intractable economic and political quagmire in Zimbabwe must be resolved to inspire confidence in the diaspora to pull remittances together for a national socio-economic cause and not local-level band-aid accomplishments which remittances currently do. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The management of safety and health hazards associated with construction and demolition waste in Zimbabwe is a critical issue that requires comprehensive attention. Purpose: This review paper provides an in-depth analysis of the current state of safety and health hazards associated with construction and demolition waste management sector in Zimbabwe. Methods: Literature was searched from various databases for example African Journals Online, PubMed, Science Direct, Springer, Sage Publications, Google Scholar and Scopus. Key words such as construction and demolition waste, waste management, safety hazards, health hazards and risk assessment were used to retrieve data from different databases. Results: The paper finds that construction and demolition waste management is associated with physical, chemical, biological and ergonomic hazards. The review posits that there are existing regulatory frameworks and enforcement mechanisms related to safety and health in construction and demolition waste management in Zimbabwe for example Environmental Management Act [Chapter 20:27] and Urban Councils Act [Chapter 29:15]. Risk assessment and use of personal protective equipment were highlighted as strategies to manage safety and health hazards associated with construction and demolition waste in Zimbabwe. Proper handling, storage, transportation and disposal of construction and demolition waste reduce its impacts to the people and the environment. Challenges affecting Zimbabwe in managing safety and health hazards associated with construction and demolition waste include economic constraints, lack of awareness and education as well as limited recycling and waste treatment facilities. Conclusion: Overall, this paper aims to provide valuable insights for policymakers, industry professionals, researchers and other stakeholders to enhance safety and health standards in construction and demolition waste management practices in Zimbabwe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While research into PhD programs and doctoral students' experiences has increased in recent years, fieldwork is overlooked as a source of learning and support. In education, the focus of this paper, fieldwork remains laced with notions of the anthropologist gathering data in a place that is not their own, which narrowly construct the role of the novice and their expectations around 'doing' research. To demonstrate the relevance of these issues and key ethical tensions that they underpin, we explored our recent PhD fieldwork experiences within classrooms in Australian and Zimbabwean schools. By analysing fieldnotes from our lived experiences, we identified similarities between conducting fieldwork 'out there' (in Zimbabwe) and 'at home' (in Australia). These similarities highlighted a multitude of roles and dynamics associated with the researcher presence, as well as the importance of balancing complex needs during fieldwork. Our analyses also revealed how daily in situ interactions with participants—and others—were crucial to the development of our identities and data gathering practices. We argue that ongoing efforts to demystify fieldwork experiences are critical for understanding that 'the field' is not simply 'out there' and offer practical suggestions for current and future doctoral students to consider. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understandings of urban foodways in Zimbabwe and other African countries have been dominated by food security frameworks. The focus on material scarcity and measurable health outcomes within these frameworks has often obscured the socio-cultural dimension of foodways and the historical and political structures that have shaped, and continue to shape, everyday relationships with food among different groups of urban residents in cities. Addressing these often-overlooked aspects, this paper looks at intergenerational contestations over foodways in a midsized high-density Zimbabwean town. Presenting results of 6-months ethnographic fieldwork involving participant observation and semi-structured interviews, the paper explores meanings and practices of food in a postcolonial urban setting using three generational groups as a point of departure. These groups are youth (aged 15 to 25 years old), a post-independence generation (aged 26 to 43) and a pre-independence middle-aged generation (aged 43 to 65). Findings show that foodways of the three generations, each having experienced Zimbabwe's (post-)colonial political economy in different ways, are negotiated through postcolonial socio-ecological relations, urban–rural connections and social hierarchies articulated through urban and rural space. The paper concludes that to understand urban food security in a postcolonial setting, urbanites' generation-specific life experiences and intergenerational negotiations around historically situated spatial and socio-ecological relations should be considered. The findings could inform urban food security policy to make it more targeted towards the needs of different generational groups as well as more attuned to urbanites' dynamic socio-cultural foodways and the socio-ecological relations that shape these. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green tourism, social media branding and technology adoption have recently become the most powerful elements in the tourism world during and post-COVID19 pandemic. This paper aims to investigate the effects of social media branding and technology adoption on green tourism with tourists' behavior as a mediator post-COVID 19 in developing countries such as Zimbabwe. The positivism philosophy was adopted in line with the quantitative nature of the study. The research embraced an explanatory survey research design, and a structured questionnaire was used to gather primary data. The survey's population was drawn from tourists who visited Zimbabwe post-COVID 19 era. This research used (PLS-SEM) on a sample of 408 as guided by the Krejcie and Morgan table for determining sample size. The findings indicate that social media branding and technology adoption have a positive impact on green tourism and that tourists' behavior partially and fully mediates the two indirect relationships. The distinctiveness of the current papers lies on fact that it can be a guideline to policymakers, green tourism supply chain and environmentalists in developing strategies that promote green tourism in Zimbabwe and other developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the temporal, spatial and structural linkages between the informal economic enterprises (IEEs) that have grown and spread in Bulawayo, the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and their formal economic counterparts, as well as the impact of the IEEs on the shaping and restructuring of the urban economy. To achieve this, the paper deployed a mixed methods approach which utilised survey and phenomenological case studies on the formal and informal economic enterprises in Bulawayo. The results of this study highlight the linkages between the informal and formal economic enterprises and the impact of political and economic ideology on such linkages, illustrating the spatial layering and patterning of both formal economic enterprises and IEEs in Bulawayo. The main contribution of this paper is its exposition of the impact of political and economic policies of the Zimbabwean nation-state on urban economic enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the causal effects of mother's and father's education on child-health outcomes in Zimbabwe, exploiting the exogenous variation generated by the 1980 education reform. We use four waves of Demographic and Health Surveys for Zimbabwe and estimate a simultaneous-equation model to take into account possible selection into co-residence between parents and children, endogeneity biases, and parental education sorting. Our results suggest that father's education affects the health outcomes of under-5 children and matters more than that of the mother. These results continue to hold in a number of robustness checks. Moreover, while there is selection into co-residence with the child, this does not affect the causal effect of education on child health. Last, parental educational sorting is also shown to be important. Our findings suggest that not taking the education of both parents into account simultaneously may yield misleading conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As humanity approaches 2030, evidence of human systems vulnerability to climate change is ubiquitous across the planet. However, vulnerability to anthropogenic CO2 emissions that encourage climate change differs from community to community and individual to individual. Nonetheless, there has been little explicit examination of how, when, why, and under what conditions particular adaptations to climate risk actually occur in economic and social systems. This study addresses the above-noted knowledge limitations by giving the rural Zimbabwean perspective of climate risk, adaptation choices and resilience using a case study of three rural districts in Zimbabwe. This paper specifically considers how climate change affects contemporary rural communities in Zimbabwe; the overall household resilience to climate change; relationship between resilience and climate change adaptation practices preferred and adopted and the rationale for adaptation strategies employed by rural households in Zimbabwe. This study employed a mixed research methodology data was collected from rural households using a survey, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Findings show that the adaptation choices made by rural households in Zimbabwe particularly regarding agricultural on-farm livelihood strategies should consider labour expended on production, processing, and consumption; total value of reproductive agricultural assets (incomes and flows) and social perceptions on status related to agricultural production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On a continent where Africans suffered crises of dispossession, it is inaccurate to describe such crises as crises in representations. Drawing on Shona (people of Zimbabwe) proverb kukumirwa semombe dzamavhu (being mooed for as if one is a cow made of clay), this paper argues that colonial anthropology did not only generate crises in representations but anthropologists took it upon themselves to 'moo' for Africans. Similarly, emergent futures herald human minds being nanotechnologically scanned and transferred to clouds and into technological substrates. In this sense, crises of dispossession will worsen when humans are dispossessed of their minds, so scanned and transferred from biological brains to clouds and into technological substrates. Contributing insights to the anthropology of science and technology studies, this paper argues that with minds transferred from the biological brains, in the guise of defying mortality, Africans will be dispossessed of their voices and their minds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the critical emancipatory paradigm grounded on the power elite theory that addresses issues of oppression and power relations, the paper was able to show, among other issues, how African nationalism created leaders who were against societal plurality, which takes diversity into consideration and celebrates it. Also the critical emancipatory paradigm along the power elite theory made it understandable that those who are oppressed would always find a way of expressing themselves and try to shape the world they want to live in. For example, in addressing the decimation of their self-identity by those in power, the minority groups in Zimbabwe and South Africa are seen forming 'dissident' community archives parallel to the so-called mainstream national official archives such as National Archives of Zimbabwe and National Archives and Records Services of South Africa which are presided over by 'ruling political party government bureaucrats' pushing the agenda of their elite leaders who are obsessed with 'only' preserving their history and ignoring the histories of the minority groups, as the paper revealed. This phenomenon in this paper was considered through national mainstream archives and selected community oral history methodologies. The paper concludes that even in critical emancipation, there is elitism as those in power will always push their own agendas. In decolonising the archives through a collection of oral histories, archival institutions in both countries have further perpetuated the marginalisation of minority groups by covering only stories of elite members of society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Underdevelopment and poverty are causes for concern, towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in the Global South. In most developing countries donor-funded projects through non-governmental organisations (NGOs) accompany governments' quest to achieve development through poverty reduction initiatives. However, the sustainability of these donor-funded projects in developing minority communities remains questionable. As such, this research evaluates the sustainability of donor-funded projects in developing remote-minority Tonga communities of Zimbabwe in pursuit of the SDGs. The research adopted a descriptive survey design triangulating quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques. Ten percent (805) of the total households (8053) in four wards of Binga District (Siabuwa Ward 23, Pashu Ward 19, Kabuba Ward 17, and Kani Ward 24) were selected to participate in this study. Findings indicated that there are various projects (food aid, water and sanitation, monetary aid, and climate change resilience) undertaken by NGOs in Binga District. There was a slight change in household socio-economic development since the operation of NGOs in the district and challenges were witnessed after donor-assistance withdrawal. This resulted in the stagnancy or collapse of some projects which affected the development of the Tonga minority community. There is an inadequate understanding of the livelihoods of the poor in Binga District due to a lack of adequate needs assessments, hence the need for participatory grassroots development approaches. Lack of development in Binga District, despite the various donor-funded projects operating in the area, is an indicator that the projects are insufficient and ineffective to deal with underdevelopment in this district. The paper recommends a shift in approaches used by both NGOs and the government to ensure sustainability in donor-funded projects to develop minority communities and help the government in its efforts to attain Vision 2030 and the SDGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes weathering modifications to elephant bones in Zimbabwe, southern Africa, and discusses possible implications about conditions of deposition and the time elapsed since death or skeletonization. The observed patterns of proboscidean bone weathering, the times elapsed since death, and burial times may not be same as for bones of smaller terrestrial mammals typically found in fossil assemblages. A system of weathering stages is proposed for proboscidean long bones, flat bones, mandibles, and ribs. Special attention is given to drying cracks that affect breakage patterns when weathered bones are trampled or impacted. Weathering effects on elephant bones vary for several reasons, such as differences between juvenile and adult cortical bone and frequency of wet/dry cycling. Also briefly discussed are the observed or possible effects of burning, dissolution, organic erosion such as root etching, and inorganic carbonate (calcite) encrustation. Comparable weathering effects are also reported on bones of Mammuthus spp., supporting the probability that (1) bone weathering in fossil proboscidean assemblages can be described in corresponding terms, and (2) implications about assemblage origins may be similar, although this inference must be cautiously drawn. The data reported here will allow analysts to describe assemblage materials in consistent terms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informal Cross Border Trade (ICBT) is a viable economic activity for many people, in Zimbabwe, who have depended on it for survival during economic hardships. Due to climate change, agriculture cannot be depended upon for survival and people are increasingly depending on ICBT for a livelihood. Despite a crucial role in providing for many, ICBT has been negatively affected by changes in the fiscal economy, specifically, the adoption of virtual cash in a time of cash crisis. This paper examines the impact of the virtual cash economy on the livelihood of participants in ICBT in Gweru, Zimbabwe. Qualitative data was collected and subjected to inductive analysis. Results revealed a positive livelihood outcome for traders prior to the virtual cash economy, followed by a negative outcome when virtual cash payments increased. The paper presents a framework that highlights the importance of cash, to ensure the success and sustainability of ICBT in the city of Gweru. The paper concludes with the recommendation that ICBT should be integrated into policy to address identified issues that affect economic benefits of ICBT, to ensure its sustainability in the provision of essential livelihood needs in line with Sustainable Development Goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines histories of postvaccinal breaks in immunity to rabies in domestic dogs between 1950 and the 1960s. It utilizes Veterinary and Native Commissioner's reports and newspapers in arguing that there is a gap in current southern African rabies historiography as it is yet to grapple with narratives about vaccine technologies. Current southern African rabies histories overly focus on white South African urban case studies. Focusing on the histories of postvaccinal breaks in immunity to rabies in Southern Rhodesia helps to explain why rabies became an ineradicable canine disease in southern Africa during this period. The paper focuses on the political economy of the mass vaccination of dogs, the costs attached to the Veterinary Department's decision to ignore other canine diseases in African areas, and how this, combined with other policy measures such as dog taxation, in undermining rabies vaccination campaigns. Overall, it shows that African dog-owners resorted to a myriad of responses to coercive rabies regulations. This complexity ultimately resulted in canine rabies becoming a difficult disease to eradicate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses Web 2.0 facilitated collaborative design among undergraduate engineering students. The study used the actor–network theory as a methodological and analytical framework to study the role of Web 2.0 technology in the collaborative design process. Participants were drawn from fourth-year engineering students at a university of technology in Zimbabwe. Data were constituted by using a questionnaire, comprising closed and open-ended questions, semi-structured interview schedules, observation schedules, and non-participant observation of online activities by student designers. The findings of the study show that Web 2.0 technology stirred the collaborative design process by stimulating unpredictable actions, thus actively contributing to shaping the emerging collaborative design network. The study concludes that Web 2.0 technologies should not be viewed as simple tools for communication, as described in some literature but as non-human actors which can mediate the collaborative design process and shape the way it is constitued and carryed out in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the numerous strides that have been made towards ensuring food security since the launch of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the gap between the rich and poor across and within countries is still worryingly too large. Around 57.7% of the Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) population is food insecure compared to 26.4% of the world population. It is therefore necessary to make concerted efforts to improve food security in Sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the developing world particularly among the poorest and most vulnerable groups. This paper employs propensity score matching analysis to explore gender heterogeneity in the impact of bonding and bridging social capital on household food security on the basis of a nationally representative sample of Zimbabwean households. It offers five major findings. First, female headed households are more likely to have bonding social capital than their male counterparts. Second, there are no gender differences in the household's ability to possess bridging social capital. Third, household spatial proximity to households with social capital improves the probability of the household possessing social capital. Fourth, both bonding and bridging social capital improves household food security. Finally, female headed households are more able to increase food security than those headed by males when they have both bonding and bridging social capital. The study argues that coping strategies should target putting the family at the core of inclusive development agendas such as food and nutrition assistance programmes in order to maximise the likelihood of easing food insecurity within communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New geochemical data demonstrate the similarity between Neoarchaean TTGs found in the middle crust of the Zimbabwe Craton and the lower crust of the Northern Marginal Zone of the Limpopo Belt. Hence the Neoarchaean segment of the Zimbabwe Craton provides a complete crustal section—from lower crustal granulites to the supracrustal rocks of the greenstone belts. Mantle activity recorded in the basalts of the greenstone belts is interpreted as plume volcanism, setting a context for the process of crustal generation. However, published isotopic data and new trace element data reported here show that magma genesis in Zimbabwe Craton in the Neoarchaean incorporated up to 20% of older crust, indicating that not all the granitoids are juvenile. This paper seeks to identify the trace element composition of the parental melts to the TTGs of the Zimbabwe Craton, define the petrological processes by which they were generated and set limits on possible petrological models for the process of crust generation. The least contaminated TTGs have low SiO2 and moderately fractionated trace element patterns. Calculations indicate that they were derived by the partial melting of a garnet amphibolite source at ca 10 kb depth. Rare intrusive diorites represent a low fraction melt of an enriched mantle source derived from refertilised depleted mantle. These observations lead to a model in which the source material of the TTGs was basaltic and the thermal energy to melt the basalts came from continued basaltic and komatiitic magmatism. Partial melts of old felsic crust were incorporated into the TTG magmas. The resulting 'enriched' TTGs provided a fertile lower crust from which an extensive suite of late tectonic granites could be generated. These data do not support a modern-style plate tectonic model for the growth of the Zimbabwe Craton in the Neoarchaean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Management of solid waste from rural hospitals is amongst problems affecting Zimbabwe due to diseases, population, and hospital increase. Solid waste from rural hospitals is receiving little attention translating to environmental health problems. Therefore, 101 secondary sources were used to write a paper aiming to proffer a hierarchical model to achieve sustainable solid waste management at rural hospitals. Rural hospitals' solid waste encompasses electronic waste, sharps, pharmaceutical, pathological, radioactive, chemical, infectious, and general waste. General solid waste from rural hospitals is between 77.35 and 79% whilst hazardous waste is between 21 and 22.65%. Solid waste increase add burden to nearly incapacitated rural hospitals. Rural hospital solid waste management processes include storage, transportation, treatment methods like autoclaving and chlorination, waste reduction alternatives, and disposal. Disposal strategies involve open pits, open burning, dumping, and incineration. Rural hospital solid waste management is guided by legislation, policies, guidelines, and conventions. Effectiveness of legal framework is limited by economic and socio-political problems. Rural hospital solid waste management remain inappropriate causing environmental health risks. Developed hierarchical model can narrow the route to attain sustainable management of rural hospitals' solid waste. Proposed hierarchical model consists of five-layered strategies and acted as a guide for identifying and ranking approaches to manage rural hospitals' solid waste. Additionally, Zimbabwean government, Environmental Management Agency and Ministry of Health is recommended to collaborate to provide sufficient resources to rural hospitals whilst enforcing legal framework. Integration of all hierarchical model's elements is essential whereas all-stakeholder involvement and solid waste minimisation approaches are significant at rural hospitals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although floods are well known for promoting the transmission of malaria, not much effort has been put to determine the spatial distribution of this disease at micro-geographical scale in flood prone areas. Therefore, this paper examines the spatial variation of malaria and associated socio-demographic factors in flood-prone areas of Mbire district, Zimbabwe. A cross-sectional household survey was conducted between 2018 and 2019 to collect data on malaria and socio-demographic factors. The study used the Bernoulli model to determine malaria hotspots, i.e. area with high number of cases compared to the surrounding areas. This was followed by a geographically weighted logistic regression model used to explore the spatial variation of malaria cases in relation to socio-demographic factors at household level. Descriptive statistics and chi-square showed that types of house material, water sources and age of the household head had a significant association with malaria cases (p < 0.05). The study has demonstrated that some local communities in flood prone areas experience increased numbers of malaria cases as indicated by one significant cluster (p < 0.05). There was high malaria risk (2.68) in the significant cluster compared to its outside. The GWLM model with water sources and the type of house material as exploratory variables showed the minimum corrected Akaike's Information Criterion compared to other models. Higher level of spatial variability was observed in type of house material (DIFF of criterion = − 5.742) compared to water sources (DIFF of criterion = − 1.064). The coefficients of these two exploratory variables were varying across the study area and significant (t-values ± 1.96) and high in other parts including the identified hotspots. The coefficients of the type of house material ranged from − 1.136 to 1.323. These were higher than those for water sources which were between − 0.781 and 0.605. These results may be used for development and implementation of place-specific malaria intervention strategies in flood prone areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines the unending crises in higher education in Zimbabwe by situating the discussion in neoliberal theories and literature. Authoritarian classic neoliberalism, neopatrimonial neoliberalism, and kleptocratic neoliberalism are the three neoliberal strains utilized to interpret and discuss views from Southern African academics, specifically from Zimbabwe's university community. A recent survey study captured the experiences and perspectives of university teachers. Focusing on research and related academic activities, the paper examines and highlights the academe's challenging experiences. The paper identifies areas of academic research and pedagogy that have deteriorated because of the adoption of authoritarian neoliberalism. The discussion is located within a critical perspective that considers neoliberalism as an authoritarian ideology enforced on peripheral countries by the Global North and adopted in various forms by ruling elites in the non-Western world. The conclusion is that there is a complete failure of Zimbabwe's current economic and political trajectories resulting in the unending circle of crises in university education. Recommendations are suggested that question the logic of deploying neoliberal policies in peripheral countries such as Zimbabwe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small-scale irrigation schemes (SSIS) have been considered a solution to viability challenges in drought-stricken farming areas in developing countries. However, the schemes face severe constraints. In this paper, relevant constraints are identified and ranked in terms of how serious the limitations are from the perspective of stakeholders in drought-prone areas of the Chipinge District in Zimbabwe. Information for the study was gained through a questionnaire and focus group discussions with small-scale irrigation farmers as well as key informant interviews with government irrigation officials, irrigation managers and members of the local community leadership. The information was garnered between August and December in 2017 with the analysis conducted using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis, guided by the Theory of Constraints and classified in the political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal (PESTEL) framework. Results indicated that SSIS are important in the drought-prone areas of the Chipinge District regarding food security and income generation. However, technical issues bedevilling the schemes are considered to be the most challenging limitations. The most important constraints—ranked in descending order of gravity—are technical, economic, social, environmental, legal and political challenges. Based on these findings, the research strongly recommends modernising small-scale irrigation schemes' infrastructure, among other issues, as a priority in Zimbabwe's drought-prone areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the effects of urbanisation in the capital cities of Zimbabwe and Zambia with specific reference to their inherited spatial planning systems. Many cities around the world are faced with urbanisation challenges, owing largely to population growth caused rural-urban migration. Most of this urbanisation occurs as people search for favourable economic opportunities and a better life. The paper analyses the colonial spatial planning legacy of the two countries, highlighting how inherited spatial planning practices in Zimbabwe and Zambia has continued to influence urban development in the rapidly urbanising cities of Harare and Lusaka. Data was obtained from document reviews and the analysis of secondary data. Some data was acquired through interviews from expert planners and observations. The results revealed that urbanisation is an enduring phenomenon in these capital cities, and the growth of slums and informal settlements is very pronounced there. Although efforts have been made to address challenges associated with urbanisation, these have not been sufficient. Moreover, although Harare and Lusaka are experiencing rapid urbanisation, minimal priority is given to deliberately reviewing their spatial planning systems and addressing their urbanisation challenges. Noteworthy attempts have been made to control urbanisation in Harare and Lusaka, but these have largely been inadequate due to the lack of will to review the adopted colonial spatial planning frameworks in Zimbabwe and Zambia. There is need, therefore, for strong spatial planning institutions and sustainable statutory frameworks that address contemporary urbanisation problems in these Third World cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on Bulawayo, the second largest city in Zimbabwe, this paper shows that the growth of urban informality can be explained by shifts in the Zimbabwean economy. These shifts include the corporatist socialist ideology phase (1980-1989), the era of neoliberal economic policies (1990-1997) and the return to restrictionism and reign of predatory politics (1998-present). Instead of triggering economic growth, these changes led to falling industrial production and declining levels of growth, leading to unemployment. This provided a fertile ground for the growth of the informal sector, such as informal street traders (informal traders). Utilising a qualitative study of 200 informal street traders in Bulawayo, who were purposively sampled between June and December 2013, the paper argues that the presence of such traders in Bulawayo is a form of both covert and overt resistance to the local and central government. Such a response by the informal traders highlights resistance and resilience, first to the economic crisis and secondly to the local and central government, which failed to meet their employment needs. This resistance has taken surreptitious forms, such as dodging municipality police patrols or staying hidden from the regulatory regimes (weapons of the weak), but has also graduated beyond this, taking the form of open defiance of and resorting to legal means to fight the regulatory regimes (beyond weapons of the weak). In this way, the paper offers a nuanced analysis of the enduring presence of street traders in a setting where there is a vibrant and repressive regulatory regime. Further, because urban informality is an integral part of urbanisation in the Global South, there is need for strategies that progressively integrate these economic actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sorghum has been promoted in arid and semi-arid areas due to its drought tolerance which makes it survive under harsh environmental conditions, but grain yields are very low, e.g., averaging 514 kg ha−1. The use of field edge rainwater harvesting techniques of tied contours and infiltration pits can be suitable options to capture rainfall and reduce runoff on the soils. Furthermore, integration of field edge rainwater harvesting with appropriate soil fertility management practices can potentially increase sorghum yields. The use of biomass transfer of nitrogen fixing trees such as Leucaena leucocephala is an agroforestry practice which can improve soil fertility through increasing mineral nitrogen, cation exchange capacity and porosity, water retention, and reduce soil bulk density. Other appropriate soil fertility management include integrated nutrient management (INM) where organic fertilisers such as cattle manure are mixed with inorganic fertilisers. These technologies are examples of climate smart agricultural practices that have the potential to increase sorghum yields. The integration of rainwater harvesting techniques and INM show improved sorghum yields ranging from 750 to 2100 kg ha−1 with potential of increasing yields in clay soils. However, currently there is little data available on the implementation of these technologies in semi-arid areas. This paper reviews and analyses the potential effect of integration rainwater harvesting, biomass transfer and INM on sorghum yields in semi-arid areas of Zimbabwe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourism is a crucial development sector that employs thousands of people and contributes to addressing the triple challenge of poverty, inequality and unemployment in previously disadvantaged communities. In Zimbabwe, tourism is a fundamental tool for development that depends on the rich natural resource base to attract international tourists. This paper assesses the evidence of climate variability and change and its potential impact on the global tourist resort of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. The research made use of over 40 years of meteorological and hydrography data that were supplemented by an online tourist survey that got 369 responses from across the world. Data analysis was conducted using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences and Microsoft Excel Analysis ToolPak. Overall, it emerged that, indeed, climate variability and change is taking place. There has been an increase in the maximum and minimum temperature. The largest temperature increase was recorded in October. A slight increase in rainfall was observed, albeit increased incidence of extreme rainfall and drought events. Delays in the onset of the rainfall season were noticeable with a shift from October to November. Extreme hydrological variations were evident in the flow regime of the falls. The paper concludes that the observed climate variability and change trends have potential effects on the tourism industry, particularly as expressed by the responses from the online survey, which favoured high water flow regimes as providing the best view of the falls. The paper recommends improved communication with tourists including a new climate and hydrological calendar for the resort to manage tourists' expectations in the light of the noted change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is empirical evidence to show that global water resources management paradigm shifts, guided by neo-liberal principles, have played a significant role in the emergence of the integrated water resources management school of thought. In turn, this school of thought has guided most water sector reforms in Southern Africa. Using case studies from South Africa and Zimbabwe, the paper explores the structural influence of integrated water resources management discourses and mainstream development theories promoted at the global level on developing economies. It further explores the utility of the integrated water resources management framework at the local levels. The paper goes beyond theory and articulates some of the key processes that took place in the Mazowe catchment in Zimbabwe and the Inkomati catchment in South Africa where the water reform programmes were piloted. Some insights on the application of neo-liberal principles in the water sectors of Southern African countries begin to emerge from the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lack of low-cost phosphorus fertilizers is a major limitation for food production on Zimbabwe's many smallholdings. A thermally fused magnesium phosphate could be manufactured from the local Dorowa phosphate rock (PR) but would be expensive because of the high cost of required additives and energy. This paper investigates the phosphorus solubility of mixtures of igneous Dorowa PR with either recycled glass or magnesium silicates, before and after thermal alteration at sub-fusion temperatures. The thermal behavior and chemical transformation of Dorowa PR and various additives were investigated by thermo-gravimetric and differential scanning calorimetric analysis and X-ray powder diffraction. Thermal transformation of Dorowa PR + serpentine and Dorowa PR + dunite mixtures resulted in decomposition of calcite, kellyite, lizardite, and chrysotile present in the original mixtures and recrystallization of dehydroxylated metachrysotile to forsterite. The final products of air-cooled Dorowa PR + glass mixtures sintered at 1173 K contained ahrensite (Fe2(SiO4)), wollastonite (CaSiO3), quartz (SiO2), and hydroxy-fluorapatite. Compared to the unamended Dorowa PR, thermal alteration of Dorowa PR + glass mixtures at 1173 K led to a 62%, 73%, and 44% increase in citric soluble phosphorus when mixed at 1:2, 1:1, and 2:1 (Dorowa PR:glass), respectively. This increase in the citric soluble phosphorus content increases the agronomic value of Dorowa PR and is likely the result of substitution of PO43− in hydroxy-fluorapatite by SiO44− and or Mg2+/Na+ for Ca2+ and Fe2+. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Previous studies using the WHOQOL measures have demonstrated that the relationship between individual items and the underlying quality of life (QoL) construct may differ between cultures. If unaccounted for, these differing relationships can lead to measurement bias which, in turn, can undermine the reliability of results.Methods: We used item response theory (IRT) to assess differential item functioning (DIF) in WHOQOL data from diverse language versions collected in UK, Zimbabwe, Russia, and India (total N = 1332). Data were fitted to the partial credit 'Rasch' model. We used four item banks previously derived from the WHOQOL-100 measure, which provided excellent measurement for physical, psychological, social, and environmental quality of life domains (40 items overall). Cross-cultural differential item functioning was assessed using analysis of variance for item residuals and post hoc Tukey tests. Simulated computer-adaptive tests (CATs) were conducted to assess the efficiency and precision of the four items banks.Results: Splitting item parameters by DIF results in four linked item banks without DIF or other breaches of IRT model assumptions. Simulated CATs were more precise and efficient than longer paper-based alternatives.Discussion: Assessing differential item functioning using item response theory can identify measurement invariance between cultures which, if uncontrolled, may undermine accurate comparisons in computer-adaptive testing assessments of QoL. We demonstrate how compensating for DIF using item anchoring allowed data from all four countries to be compared on a common metric, thus facilitating assessments which were both sensitive to cultural nuance and comparable between countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data from the Violence Against Children Surveys reveal alarming rates of child sexual abuse (CSA) in sub-Saharan Africa, highlighting the critical need for public health programming to prevent and respond to this issue. This paper describes the results of the Families Matter! Program (FMP) pilot evaluation study conducted in two urban suburbs of Harare, Zimbabwe to measure the effect of a new FMP session about preventing and responding to CSA. FMP is an evidence-based intervention for parents of adolescents designed to promote positive parenting practices and effective parent–child communication about sexual risk reduction and HIV prevention. We applied a pre/post-prospective study design to assess changes in CSA-related indicators such as parental monitoring, parent–child communication about CSA, and ability to respond to instances of CSA. Parents and their children (ages 9–12) enrolled in the study as dyads and participated in two assessments administered via ACASI prior to and three months following the intervention, with 248 dyads completing both assessments. Parents and children reported significantly higher levels of parental monitoring (p < 1.001) and communication about CSA after the intervention (p < 0.001). Significantly more parents also reported conversations with people in their community about CSA (p < 0.001) and knowledge of where to access services if their child was abused (p < 0.001). The pilot evaluation suggests that FMP equipped parents with skills and knowledge to prevent and respond to CSA, and increased communication regarding CSA within communities, further normalizing the need to address and talk about child abuse, CSA in particular. Highlights: Child sexual abuse can have long-term health and developmental impacts and may be associated with risk behaviors related to HIV. Parents and caregivers play a key role in preventing and responding to child sexual abuse. Families Matter! Program (FMP) provides a unique platform to help parents/caregivers develop knowledge and skills to prevent and respond to CSA in Zimbabwe. Youth HIV programming needs to incorporate messaging and interventions to address child sexual abuse prevention and response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper illuminates the experiences of sexuality of disabled women in Zimbabwe, from a standpoint where the women challenge the myth that they are asexual beings. Sixteen women with disabilities participated in this study and a number of themes emerged from an analysis of their narratives. A discussion of all the themes that emerged in the broad study is beyond the scope of this article; hence, in this paper, we focus on four themes that illuminate the active sexuality of participants: (1) dynamic engagement in intimate partner relationships, (2) drawing feminine strategic power from cultural practices of sexual initiation, (3) enhancing eroticism through vaginal modification, and (4) reproduction and motherhood. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that while disabled women may acknowledge the oppression they perceive as being characteristic of their experiences of sexuality, they are not passive recipients of disability and sexuality stereotypes. Disabled women construct their own understanding of what it means to be sexual and they assert their sexuality in ways that challenge the dominant, restrictive, and ableist constructions of sexuality. The themes that we discuss in this article highlight the intersectional nature of the experiences of sexuality of participants within a critical feminist disability studies theoretical framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional medicine utilisation during antenatal care has been on the increase in several countries. Therefore, addressing and reinforcing the Sustainable Development Goal of maternal mortality reduction, there is a need to take traditional medicine utilisation during pregnancy into consideration. This paper explores traditional medicine utilisation during antenatal care among women in Bulilima District of Plumtree in Zimbabwe. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on 177 randomly selected women using a semi-structured questionnaire. Fisher's Exact Test, Odds Ratios, and Multiple Logistic Regression were utilised to determine any associations between different demographic characteristics and traditional medicine utilisation patterns using STATA SE Version 13. The prevalence of Traditional Medicine utilisation among pregnant women was estimated to be 28%. Most traditional remedies were used in the third trimester to quicken delivery. The majority of women used holy water and unknown Traditional Medicine during pregnancy. There was a strong association between age and Traditional Medicine utilisation as older women are 13 times more likely to use Traditional Medicine than younger ones. Women use traditional medicine for different purposes during pregnancy, and older women's likelihood to use Traditional Medicine is higher than their counterparts. The traditional system plays an essential role in antenatal care; therefore, there is a need to conduct further studies on the efficacy and safety of utilising Traditional Medicines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In view of increasing cyclonic activity in the Indian Ocean, nations in southern Africa should prepare well for flood-related disasters. This paper critically examined the level of preparedness of the government of Zimbabwe to cyclonic disasters using the country's three most disastrous cyclones during the past two decades: (a) Cyclone Eline of 2000, (b) Cyclone Dineo of 2017 and (c) Cyclone Idai of 2019. In-depth qualitative interviews, post-disaster lessons learned workshops and a review of disaster policies provided data on five key preparedness measures: (a) prepositioning of resources, (b) early warnings, (c) evacuation, (d) citizen participation and (e) effective response. The findings demonstrate that the government of Zimbabwe remains in the disaster-response-disaster cycle instead of a proactive preventive approach to cyclones. Limited financial and material resources constrain effective preparedness to disasters. These problems stem from a weak legislation governing disaster risk reduction. This study therefore proposes five-policy implications for effective disaster preparedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender based violence is reportedly a 'thorn' in the experiences of sexuality of women with disabilities in Zimbabwe. Complex intersections of disability, culture, religion and normative gender roles and power relations within heteronormative relationships facilitate the vulnerability of women with disabilities to various forms of gender based violence, thereby perpetuating inequitable, unsafe and coercive sexual practices to the detriment of the women's health and well-being. Whilst some women with disabilities may be unable to defend themselves, others are not passive recipients of gender based violence, but they claim their agency and seek to 'protect' themselves in diverse ways. Nevertheless, some participants who may be at risk of experiencing gender based violence and acquiring HIV maybe unwilling to defy or to 'flee' from such challenges, alongside a traditional belief that the ability of a woman to bear hardships earns her respect and good repute, within a framework of the lower status of women in an African patriarchal context. These findings arise from a broad qualitative narrative pilot study which explored the experiences of sexuality of women with disabilities in Zimbabwe. Sixteen women with physical, mental and sensory disabilities were selected through snowball sampling techniques to participate in the study. The three sub-sessions of the biographic narrative interpretive method were used to generate data and such data was analysed through both the narrative analysis and the analysis of narratives approaches. This paper is located within a critical feminist disability studies theoretical framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores stakeholders' perceptions of the efficacy of the current policies and legislation meant to conserve wetlands in the communal areas of Zimbabwe. A questionnaire was administered to one hundred and twenty three households adjacent to six wetlands studied including key informants who were interviewed. The existing laws were analysed to determine their appropriateness in light of peoples' livelihood aspirations and principles of wetland protection. Zimbabwe has no national wetland policy per se but only wetland legislation, however inimitable policies shaped by indigenous tradition and practice were present at each wetland site. The majority of the people were not aware of the existence and rationale of laws governing the conservation of wetlands due to limited awareness education and enforcement by responsible institutions. Therefore, there was a disjuncture between legal provisions and the practical implementation resulting in less impact. Poor implementation of legislation was due to inadequate resources for regulatory agencies, political interference, social conflicts and high incidences of poverty among other factors. The results of the study highlighted that even if awareness was improved, enforcement was likely to remain a challenge unless adequate resources for regulatory institutions and alternative livelihood strategies for communities were availed. The paper thus recommends that development planners should therefore initiate other rural survival options such as restoration of dryland agricultural productivity by introducing water harvesting and conservation farming techniques. This would help to reduce community dependency on already vulnerable wetland ecosystems. Overall, a national wetland policy should be developed through a participatory process, if the legislation is to be used as an effective tool in wetland management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper formulates a bio-economic model to analyze community incentives for wildlife management under benefit-sharing programs like the Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) in Zimbabwe. Three agents influence the wildlife stock: a parks agency determines hunting quotas, outside poachers hunt illegally, and a local community may choose to protect wildlife by discouraging poaching. Wildlife generates revenues from hunting licenses and tourism; it also intrudes on local agriculture. We consider two benefit-sharing regimes: shares of wildlife tourism rents and shares of hunting licenses. Resource sharing does not necessarily improve community welfare or incentives for wildlife conservation. Results depend on the exact design of the benefit shares, the size of the benefits compared with agricultural losses, and the way in which the parks agency manages hunting quotas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the second half of the 1890s, south-eastern Africa was hit by a drought-driven ecological crisis. Using records previously unexploited for climate and climate impact research, and which cover the area from modern-day Zimbabwe and Botswana to eastern South Africa, this study explores the complexity of this crisis through an analysis of the spatial extent, duration and severity of the regional drought and its associated socio-economic and environmental repercussions. This interdisciplinary study stands at the nexus of environmental, economic and social history. The records used include (a) British administrative sources, (b) reports and letters by members of various Protestant missionary societies from diverse environments across the study area, together with (c) local newspapers. Analysis of these materials reveals that generally the period was marked by a sequence of considerably delayed rainy seasons, which in turn negatively impacted upon the rain-fed agriculture. Below-average levels of summer rainfall also adversely affected the development of young crops. The drought was more severe and continuous in the interior of the region than towards the Indian Ocean coast. The prolonged dry conditions were accompanied by, and likely exacerbated, locust outbreaks and the spread of cattle plague (Rinderpest). We demonstrate in this paper that drought, as the original driver of the crisis, triggered a cascade of responses from harvest failure to famine and ultimately led to profound socio-economic change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urbanization is an essential determinant of social change. For social change to take place, the process of urbanization requires extensive management (through urban governance). This paper outlines the context of Zimbabwe's urban governance system by focusing on the historical and recent trends in urban governance and urbanization. In particular, our emphasis is placed on how pre- and post-colonial governments advanced social change through urban governance. In both pre- and post-independence Zimbabwe, local government is a political reality that ruling regimes manipulates, associates with and advance political interests. Politics continue to shape and destabilize a functioning, independent, and autonomous form of urban governance in Zimbabwe. Urban governance remains under incessant threat from central government. Central-local government contestations are leading to poor service delivery; a development that is affecting social change. The article argues that the politics, governance, and institutional behaviors in urban centers of Zimbabwe deteriorated severely calling for a restructuring of urban governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glass beads first appear in the archaeological record of southern Africa around the mid-first millennium CE, marking the earliest signatures of extensive connections between the southern African region, the East African coast, and the broader Indian Ocean rim. Key research focused on glass beads, particularly from notable southern African polities, like the renowned Mapungubwe and Great Zimbabwe sites, has laid the groundwork for a regional taxonomic series of these beads, emphasizing their role as indicators of wealth and social status. This paper introduces new data on 59 glass beads from a recently excavated and lesser-known Zimbabwe culture site in the Mberengwa region of south-central Zimbabwe. The analysis employs non-invasive techniques, including typological classification and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The investigation identifies six glass bead series from Chumnungwa, composed of plant ash-lime (v-Na-Ca), vegetable soda-high alumina (v-Na-Al), and soda-based glasses with high-alumina concentrations (m-Na-Al). These beads, widely distributed in Asia and Africa between the eight and seventeenth centuries, shed new light on the geochemistry, provenance, and circulation patterns of glass beads in southern Africa, particularly within a community situated beyond the well-known Iron Age polities. Notably, Chumnungwa emerges as the first known Zimbabwe culture site in southern Africa to yield m-Na-Al 6 glass beads. However, as recently demonstrated at the Toutswe sites in Botswana, it is probable that other Zimbabwe culture sites in the region also possessed m-Na-Al 6 glass beads. These beads may have been misclassified as m-Na-Al 2 glass since this group was only recently unveiled on the East African coast, after the bulk of the currently available literature had been published. Insights drawn from contextual recovery data and Shona anthropology form the basis for an extended discussion on the consumption and sociality of glass beads in Iron Age southern Africa. Ultimately, the study underscores the challenge of typologically categorizing beads into established series without the application of LA-ICP-MS and other scientific approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study documents how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the livelihoods of women with disabilities in three low-income urban areas of Zimbabwe's Harare Metropolitan Province. A mixed-method approach was used to gather data through structured interviews, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions with 104 women with disabilities and service providers working with women with disabilities in Caledonia, Hatcliffe, and Epworth. The study utilises the sustainable livelihood approach to analyse the dynamics ensuing during the pandemic and how they impinged on women with disabilities' livelihoods. Findings reveal that the pandemic, particularly the lockdowns, greatly and negatively impacted the livelihoods of women with disabilities, who mainly depend on the informal sector through vending, begging, and handouts. The study recommends the provision of targeted sustainable social safety nets for women with disabilities in times of shocks and stresses such as pandemics to cushion them from the devastating effects brought about by such eventualities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces issues associated with the practice of participatory research (PR) in a Third World context by describing the experience of carrying out a study of urban housing cooperatives in Zimbabwe. A contrast is presented between the PR model, derived from the literature, and the implementation of this model. Five explanations for the discrepancy are proposed, including: differences between the rural and urban context, the questionable suitability of PR for multiple and concurrent case studies, and the need for early intervention. The paper concludes that a methodology is needed for assessing whether a given research context is appropriate for application of a PR model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local communities' perceptions of protected areas are important determinants of the success of conservation efforts in Southern Africa, as these perceptions affect people's attitudes and behaviour with respect to conservation. As a result, the involvement of local communities in transboundary wildlife conservation is now viewed as an integral part of regional development initiatives. Building on unique survey data and applying regression analysis, this paper investigates the determinants of the perceptions of local communities around the Great Limpopo Trans-frontier Conservation Area in Zimbabwe and South Africa. Our results illustrate that people perceiving the park as well-managed tend to have more positive perceptions regarding the benefits from the park, rules governing the park, and wildlife conservation in general. Household expertise on resource extraction, in turn, tends to make people more likely to perceive environmental crime as morally acceptable. Furthermore, the results indicate that if people perceive the rules of the park in a negative way, then they are less likely to conserve wildlife. Receiving benefits from the park has a positive impact on people's perceptions of the rules governing the park, as well as on their perception of wildlife conservation in general, but not on perceptions about environmental crime. Surprisingly, perceived high levels of corruption is positively associated with people's perception of wildlife benefits and with perceptions of that environmental crime is morally justified. There is also evidence of the role of socioeconomic variables on people's perceptions towards wildlife. However, unobservable contextual factors could be responsible for explaining part of the variation in people's perceptions. Our results speak to the literature on large-scale collective action since perceptions of wildlife benefits, corruption, environmental crime, park management and rules governing the parks, all affect local communities' ability and willingness to self organize. These variables are interesting because they can be influenced by policy through training and awareness campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a long-standing debate about the roles of San in the militaries of southern Africa and the prevalence of violence among the Ju/'hoansi and other San people. The evolutionary anthropology and social anthropological debates over the contexts in which violence and warfare occurs among hunters and gatherers are considered, as is the "tribal zone theory" of warfare between states and indigenous people. This paper assesses the issues that arise from these discussions, drawing on data from San in Angola, Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. Utilizing cases of how San have been affected by military forces and wildlife conservation agencies in what became protected areas in southern Africa, this article shows that indigenous peoples have been treated differentially by state and nongovernmental organizations involved in anti-poaching, shoot-to-kill, and forced resettlement policies. Particular emphasis is placed on the !Xun and Khwe San of southern Angola and northern Namibia and the Tshwa San of western Zimbabwe and northern Botswana, who have been impacted by militarization and coercive conservation efforts since the late nineteenth century. Principal conclusions are that conservation and militarization efforts have led to a reduction in land and resources available to indigenous people, higher levels of poverty, increased socioeconomic stratification, and lower levels of physical well-being. San have responded to these trends by engaging in social activism, forming community-based institutions, and pursuing legal actions aimed at obtaining human rights and equitable treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between 1943 and 1956, government archivists in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) collaborated with the publisher Chatto & Windus to produce a series of nine books. The collection was known as the 'Oppenheimer Series'. The volumes were published by the Central African Archives and offered in print, for the first time, the primary sources-diaries, correspondence, notes and maps-that chronicled the first English-speaking Europeans to visit south-central Africa. This paper explores the role of this publication event in building a settled identity for Europeans in Southern Rhodesia. The publication of the Series coincided with efforts by the Rhodesian archivists to bring manuscripts from the UK to their collection in Salisbury (Harare). These activities reveal a strategy not only to publish the history of European exploration and settlement in central Africa but to reify it through the physical presence of these books and the archival institution itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small- and large-scale mining land acquisitions and mining establishments continue to grow in Zimbabwe, but the question about the development of sustainability remains problematic. While mining establishments can be regarded as vehicles for development, the evidence of positive effects in terms of sustainability in this case is weak. The mining-sustainability nexus is characterized by conflicts regarding livelihoods, the environment, culture, and social relations. The paper argues that local sustainability challenges generated by mining activities cannot be resolved as long as there is institutionalized exclusion of local communities, hence, aspects such as revision of the current Mines and Minerals Act, involvement of communities affected by the extraction of granite, opportunities for skills development and training involving traditional leaders, children, youth, and women, extending community driven share-ownership schemes to granite mining and enforcing site remediation should be considered as crucial steps toward the development of sustainability in the mining sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Health service providers play a crucial role in providing post abortion care in countries where abortion legislation is restrictive and abortion is stigmatised. Research in countries where these factors apply has shown that health service providers can be barriers to women accessing post abortion services. Much of this research draws from attitude theory. In this paper, we utilise positioning theory to show how the ways in which Zimbabwean health service providers' position women and themselves are rooted in cultural and social power relations. In light of recent efforts by the Zimbabwean Ministry of Health and foreign organisations to improve post abortion care, we explore the implications that these positionings have for post abortion care. Method: As part of a larger study on abortion decision-making, the data featured in this article were collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews with six health service providers working in different facilities in Harare, Zimbabwe. Discursive and positioning thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Results: Our analysis points to women who have abortions being positioned in negative terms, as transgressors of acceptable norms; irresponsible and manipulative; and ignorant. The health service providers drew from cultural, religious, gender and trauma discourses that portray abortion as evil and socially unacceptable. Reflexive positions taken up by the health service providers include positions as being experts, helpers and protectors of culture/religion, sympathisers and professional positions as health care providers. Conclusion: The continued strengthening of post abortion services should be conducted in conjunction with dialogical interventions that challenge health service providers to reflect on the power relations within which women who terminate pregnancies are located, that contest their negative positionings of these women and that present alternative narratives and subject positionings for both the women who have abortions and the health service providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how urban male youth in Zimbabwe have created economies of hustle and waithood through soccer betting to ensure alternative means of survival in a country facing rapid urban growth and endless economic challenges. Data were collected using a combination of ethnographic methods, including participant and non-participant observations, betting experimentation, and informal conversations. The findings show that urban male youth in Zimbabwean cities use a variety of skills in soccer betting to increase their chances of winning and earning a living through informal economic activities while waiting for employment opportunities. The findings also demonstrate the intellectual genius and streetwise resourcefulness of young people, as they incorporate research, digital, and networking competencies to decide and place their bets. The article concludes that soccer betting is not only part of Zimbabwe's economies of hustle, leisure, and waithood but also central in influencing the adoption of ICT products and digital skills among male youths in Zimbabwe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Zimbabwe, like in most African countries, sexuality is strongly tied with national identities. Previous studies show that queer sexualities are associated with Western values. While this narrative is contested, it has, nevertheless, been promoted by the mainstream media. However, this article focuses on social media, Twitter to be specific, to examine how users discuss sexuality and national identities. The focus is on social media platforms as they enable users to bypass traditional gatekeepers and use reason and emotions to argue about different issues. The article uses the case studies of a Zimbabwean school teacher, Neal Hovelmeier, and a South African gay celebrity, Somizi Mhlongo, who became subjects of Twitter discussions in Zimbabwe because of their homosexual orientation. The article established that Twitter reflects a wide range of reactions and formulations of queerness within what is imagined to be normative identities in Zimbabwe. It further noted that queer struggles are tied to contemporary political and social struggles and Twitter users frame their responses in ways that show these intersections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]