Rural women and the land question in Zimbabwe: the case of Mutasa District
- Authors: Toro, Bigboy
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Land tenure -- Zimbabwe , Land reform -- Zimbabwe , Women in development -- Zimbabwe , Women farmers -- Zimbabwe , Inheritance and succession -- Zimbabwe , Rural development -- Zimbabwe , Rural women -- Zimbabwe , Women in agriculture -- Zimbabwe , Sex discrimination -- Zimbabwe
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Soc Sc (Dev)
- Identifier: vital:11431 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1006945 , Land tenure -- Zimbabwe , Land reform -- Zimbabwe , Women in development -- Zimbabwe , Women farmers -- Zimbabwe , Inheritance and succession -- Zimbabwe , Rural development -- Zimbabwe , Rural women -- Zimbabwe , Women in agriculture -- Zimbabwe , Sex discrimination -- Zimbabwe
- Description: Zimbabwean rural women make significant contribution to agriculture and are the mainstay of the farm labour. Although women do the majority of agricultural work, men, for the most part continue to own the land, control women‟s labour and make agricultural decisions supported by patriarchal social systems. Thus, rural women faced difficulties than men in gaining access to land under Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP). Women‟s relationship with land is therefore through husbands, fathers, brothers or sons. Therefore, this study has undertaken with the objective of assessing the impact of land distribution programme with respect to its contribution to women‟s empowerment in the study area. The Gender and Development approach was employed to assess women access to land under the FTLRP. Such an approach to rural development can help in reducing the gender gap between women and men in order to achieve gender-balanced development. The study used qualitative research methodology where semi-structured interviews gather data from women in Mutasa District. Findings indicate that there are a number of challenges and constraints that are experienced by rural women under the Fast Track Land Reform Programme which include male land registration, no access to credit, inadequate government input support, lack of government laws and policies awareness on women land rights, shortage of farm implements and irrigation water supply and lack of agriculture training. On the other hand, culture and traditional practices still affect women in other cases, disadvantaging them in favour of men, as in inheritance of land and property in the household. It was generally assumed that the programme did not improve women access to land. To improve women access to land, in future, the study recommends that a serious intervention by the state should occur coupled with the revitalization of the programme and a paradigm shift towards an effective food security programme which emphasizes women and their important role in agriculture.
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The experiences of women of their HIV/AIDS status disclosure to sexual partners: an exploratory study of Magunje township, Zimbabwe
- Authors: Kambarami, Maureen Cresencia
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: Rural women -- Zimbabwe , Promiscuity -- Zimbabwe , HIV-positive women -- Zimbabwe , AIDS (Disease) in women -- Zimbabwe
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M SW
- Identifier: vital:11757 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/231 , Rural women -- Zimbabwe , Promiscuity -- Zimbabwe , HIV-positive women -- Zimbabwe , AIDS (Disease) in women -- Zimbabwe
- Description: The African continent has been hit the hardest by the HIV/AIDS epidemic which has seen more women becoming infected than men (Hunter, 2003; UNAIDS, 2004). This has been attributed to the permissible nature of the African culture which is lenient on male promiscuity (Foreman, 1999; Colvin 2000; Leclerc-Madlala 2001; Dube 2003). African women are not only vulnerable to infection but are also vulnerable to negative disclosure experiences when they disclose their status to sexual partners. This double impact of culture has not been addressed by past researches (UNAIDS 2004). The present research thus attempts to fill that gap. It explores the interplay between culture and HIV transmission as well as the interplay between culture and disclosure experiences. The study’s setting is Magunje Township, a rural village in Mashonaland Central province in Zimbabwe. Taking into consideration the limitations of the present analysis, data gathered indicates that African women are vulnerable to both HIV infection and negative disclosure experiences. Their vulnerability also hampers prevention and treatment efforts as it makes them decide to keep their status a secret from sexual partners for fear of losing the financial income tied to sexual partners. The present researcher concludes with some suggestions for policy makers and programme implementers, highlighting the importance of focusing on HIV/AIDS status disclosure as a prevention and treatment method in the absence of a cure for HIV.
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