Moving forward in Zimbabwe - Brooks World Poverty Institute - The ...

Moving forward in Zimbabwe
Reducing poverty and promoting growth
Masoka had dropped from over US$100,000 in 2000 to less than
US$25,000 in 2005. Then, influenced by the direct payment system,
revenues shot up to over US$130,000 in 2006 (Murphree and
Taylor, 2008). The direct payment system has now been formally
adopted by the CAMPFIRE Association.
Generally, cash income from CAMPFIRE is not significant at
household level, but can be substantial at community level. However,
community infrastructure development and social services are
principally a responsibility of governments. In an attempt to benefit
individuals or groups, the revolving fund mechanism has been
developed. This adds value to the direct payment system of wildlife
revenue by allowing for provision of loans for the purpose of
establishing viable income-generating projects. The revolving fund
mechanism has been adopted in Masoka Ward and roll-out began
in June 2008 (Jonga, 2008). Up to 2000, Mahenye CAMPFIRE
project in Chipinge District was frequently cited as a successful
model, both from its stable and participatory governing institutions
and its diversification of revenue sources. However, research by
Balint (2006) found that by 2004 the project performance had
deteriorated sharply from previously reported conditions. Villagers
were receiving annual income from the project of less than US$1,
community infrastructure improvements had stalled and leadership
institutions were no longer accountable. Community confidence in
the project had collapsed and residents were bitter and disillusioned.
This situation was attributed to the cessation of major international
funding and the ongoing political crisis since 2000 (Balint, 2006).
Further research by Rihoy et al (2007) found a different story, where
the local traditional leadership now monopolised CAMPFIRE
benefits, sidelining the rural district council. Rihoy et al (2007) also
found that despite the problems within Mahenye, CAMPFIRE
had a positive impact in terms of empowering local residents,
providing them with incentives, knowledge and organisational
abilities to identify and address problems and identify when
external interventions are required. Rihoy et al (2007) concluded
that community-based natural resource management is a process
of applied and incremental experiments in democracy, which is of
particular value because of the interaction of tiers of governance
over time in an adaptive process. More recent investigations indicate
that governance issues in Mahenye have improved and benefits to
the community have increased. The Mahenye story illustrates the
dynamic and multivariable nature of local development initiatives.
Natural products enterprises
Community-based natural product enterprises are commercial
ventures which seek to supply markets with value-added natural
products in order to bring greater benefits to communities that
manage and use natural resources. The Southern Alliance for
Indigenous Resources (SAFIRE), an NGO, develops businesses
that use natural resources, mainly from plants, the rationale being
that these plants will be conserved since they are essential to
income generation. These community-based enterprises include a
wide range of products, such as honey, oils, tea and pulp. Trade
in natural products has shown the potential to be more profitable
than agriculture in southern Africa, and Zimbabwe in particular
(see Table 5.2). In ten southern African countries, current trade in
baobab products is over US$11 million a year, while potential trade
has been projected at over US$961 million a year (Bennett, 2006).
5.4 The crisis and environmental issues in
Zimbabwe
It can be said that the collapse of the economy drove most
Zimbabweans to rely more on nature and natural goods than ever
before. We know globally that poverty normally drives those that
can access nature to ‘mine’ resources with little regard to what may
prove to be a non-existent future. The decline in visibility of state
institutions also creates spaces for other private interests to take
advantage and seek to exploit natural products for individual gain.
In the case of Zimbabwe both situations occurred. Environmental
management efforts were affected in several ways. Firstly, we know
that staff attrition made environmental regulation ineffective due to
a collapse in enforcement capacity (forest encroachment and gold
panning seem to be two clear examples of this failure). This means
that central government policy on environment had little meaning
in the context of a collapsed economy. Absence of the recognised
faces of enforcement created a vacuum that was exploited both by
those acting out of desperation and some acting out of greed.
Secondly, the rural restructuring occurring as a result of Fast
Track Land Reform presented new opportunities to utilise natural
resources products in ways that had not been possible before when
the farms were considered private property. Once the farms became
state property, this changed the dynamics of stewardship, and,
resource-use attitudes and patterns as well. This change affected
both wildlife and forestry products more directly. Deforestation
has significantly risen due to increased demand for fuel wood as
paraffin and electricity become less available. While the exact figure
for the rate of deforestation in Zimbabwe is unknown, estimates
suggest that deforestation ranges between 100,000 and 320,000
hectares per year (GoZ, 2004).
Thirdly, violence and insecurity, especially in the countryside,
made enforcement of environmental legislation tenuous. Wellmeaning
civil servants that remained in post found it impossible,
especially in rural areas, to enforce the law, as often the political
environment created insecurity to person and property. In fact few
civil servants remained in post and those that remained found it
difficult to work in the highly charged environment. For example
enforcement on deforestation legislation became inconsistent across
districts depending on the political risks involved. Perhaps the most
alarming evidence of inconsistencies is illustrated by artisanal gold
and diamond mining which is widespread throughout most river
Table 5.2: Potential natural products trade compared with agriculture exports from Zimbabwe (US$).
Tobacco exports
(2004)
Meat (frozen and fresh)
exports (2004)
Total agricultural
exports (2004)
Current trade in
natural products
Potential trade in
natural products
438,915,000 106,000 845,783,000 2,824,492 1,061,412,403
Source: Adapted from Bennett, 2006.
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