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Why governance constraints are holding back young people in rural Zimbabwe
November 13, 2017 / FAC blog In the last blog I looked at what young people aged 16-18, studying at three schools in land reform areas in Zimbabwe, imagined they would be doing in 20 years. This blog focuses on their perceptions of constraints to getting there. Many
What next for young people in Zimbabwe’s land reform areas?
November 7, 2017 / FAC blog As discussed in the blog series earlier this year, we have been investigating inter-generational questions in land reform areas. 17 years on, young people born after the land reform are leaving school, and thinking about what next? Will this be farming, or
South-South Knowledge Sharing on Agricultural Mechanization
November 2, 2017 / News Lidia Cabral, Research Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies recently presented on Brazil and South-South Cooperation at the conference on “South-South Knowledge Sharing on Agricultural Mechanization” in Ethiopia. The conference was jointly organised by IFPRI, CIMMYT and the Ethiopian Agricultural Mechanization Forum, and took
Confronting authoritarian populism: challenges for agrarian studies
October 24, 2017 / FAC blog Last week I was in Russia at the fascinating fifth BRICS Initiative in Critical Agrarian Studies conference. Throughout the event we heard about the emergence of particular styles of authoritarian populist regimes, including in the BRICS countries, but elsewhere too. Based on
Tractor-powered modernisation for the few
October 16, 2017 / FAC blog Tractors are back in the spotlight as a prime symbol of a modernisation vision for African agriculture. Are they the answer to low productivity and food insecurity? Are they the mark of a rising class of modern farmers, ready to
Working Paper 2: Food Security, Nutrition and Commercialisation in Sub-Saharan Africa – a Synthesis of Afrint Findings
October 16, 2017 / Working Papers Written by Agnes Andersson Djurfeldt The paper uses data from the Afrint database covering roughly 2,100 smallholders in six African countries: Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia, surveyed in 2002, 2008 and 2013. It addresses key aspects of food
Roads, belts and corridors: what is happening along Africa’s eastern seaboard?
October 12, 2017 / FAC blog The eastern seaboard of Africa from Kenya to Tanzania to Mozambique has become a major focus of attention. The ports – from Bagamoyo to Beira – are seen as the gateway to Africa, a place where great riches can be
Interdisciplinary puzzles: some lessons from Zimbabwe
October 4, 2017 / FAC blog Just out in Human Ecology is a new open access paper – People, patches and parasites: the case of trypanosomiasis in Zimbabwe. It presents the results of a project looking at the socio-ecology of disease in Africa – part of the Dynamic Drivers of
Working Paper 1: Agricultural Growth Corridors on the Eastern Seaboard of Africa
October 2, 2017 / Working Papers Written by Rebecca Smalley This Working Paper describes and critically reviews the recent emergence of agricultural growth corridors and other types of corridor with a prominent agricultural component. It offers a descriptive overview and poses some political economy questions. It focuses
Decent work for all? We need to talk about rural informal employment!
September 28, 2017 / FAC blog The idea that there are universal rights in relation to work, and a universal standard that delineates acceptable from unacceptable work, has an impressive pedigree. Rooted in Article 23 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights; solidified in the
APRA at IESE in Mozambique
September 18, 2017 / News Two policy studies for APRA on (i) agricultural development corridors and (ii) agricultural mechanisation in Africa are now underway. The research teams will be in Maputo to present preliminary findings from these studies at the 5th international conference of the
Network & Communications
September 2, 2017 / Policy Engagement FAC’s Communications and Networking team works to ensure that FAC research is strategically communicated to make significant contributions to the agriculture policy (e.g. in Africa). As such, FAC is: Generating awareness of FAC’s existence; Building our presence via outreach/engagement throughout
Land and agriculture in Zimbabwe following land reform
August 17, 2017 / FAC blog In May, I was invited to give a talk on Zimbabwe’s land reform and its aftermath by a great new student initiative at SOAS (School of African and Asia Studies) focused on agriculture and development in Africa. The event was
Land, livelihoods and small towns
August 5, 2017 / FAC blog In early June, I was invited by the Africa Research Institute in London to a panel discussion held to launch a new ARI Counterpoints piece by Beacon Mbiba on ‘missing urbanisation’ in Zimbabwe. Beacon’s piece raised some important questions about
A new land administration system for Zimbabwe
July 29, 2017 / FAC blog The Zimbabwe Land Commission, established as a result of the new national Constitution, has a major task ahead of it. It is vital that an independent Commission looks at the range of land issues in the round. The complexities presented
Getting agriculture moving: finance and credit
July 29, 2017 / FAC blog Getting the agricultural sector financed is a key challenge in Zimbabwe, and links concretely to land administration challenges discussed in previous blogs in this series. Making both places and people bankable is a priority, but responses have to be geared
Beyond the freehold title obsession: generating land tenure security
July 29, 2017 / FAC blog Zimbabwe has a regime of multi-form tenure, with multiple tenure types associated with different areas of land (freehold, lease, permit, communal and state land). This provides a flexibility in tenure arrangements, with each appropriate to different uses. For any form
Agricultural commercialisation – where it’s hot and where it’s not
July 29, 2017 / FAC blog Greater agricultural commercialisation, through engagement with value chains, is seen by many as the only viable way forward for small-scale farmers in Africa. In this view, increased commercialisation has the potential to deliver significant income and livelihoods benefits to rural
Medium-scale farming for Africans: The ‘Native Purchase Areas’ in Zimbabwe
June 29, 2017 / FAC blog The Native Purchase Areas were established as a result of the 1930 Land Apportionment Act, following the recommendations of the 1925 Morris Carter Commission. They were designed as compensation for the fact that Africans were not allowed to purchase land
Land dispute resolution in Zimbabwe
June 29, 2017 / FAC blog The reconfiguring of land use and ownership through land reform has inevitably generated a range of disputes. Having a clear, transparent approach for dispute resolution is essential. This is a key task for the Zimbabwe Land Commission, as this third
The pros and cons of commercial farming models in Africa
June 22, 2017 / FAC blog Colonialism brought large-scale farming to Africa, promising modernisation and jobs – but often dispossessing people and exploiting workers. Now, after several decades of independence, and with investor interest growing, African governments are once again promoting large plantations and estates. But
The pros and cons of commercial farming models in Africa
June 9, 2017 / News Colonialism brought large-scale farming to Africa, promising modernisation and jobs – but often dispossessing people and exploiting workers. Now, after several decades of independence, and with investor interest growing, African governments are once again promoting large plantations and estates. But
Tobacco and contract farming in Zimbabwe
May 29, 2017 / FAC blog How does commercial agriculture – and particularly contract farming – affect agrarian dynamics? We have been looking at this question in work in Mvurwi area in Mazowe district over the last few years. New work under the Agricultural Policy Research
What prospects for the next generation of rural Zimbabweans?
May 2, 2017 / FAC blog After the brief interlude last week, this blog concludes the series of five pieces on youth in the new resettlement areas. Our studies across Zimbabwe have shown how school leavers imagine their futures, but also how in practice these visions
Combating neglected tropical diseases: more than just drugs and vaccines
April 29, 2017 / FAC blog Neglected tropical diseases have been in the news this week. A big meeting at the World Health Organisation in Geneva has resulted in big pledges from the UK aid progamme and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to banish the
Diverse life courses: difficult choices for young people in rural Zimbabwe
April 29, 2017 / FAC blog To get a sense of how livelihoods are composed, we must look over time, and get a picture of emerging life courses. Across the 25 detailed interviews we undertook there is huge variety, just among the 20-31 year olds who
How are the children of Zimbabwe’s land reform beneficiaries making a living?
April 29, 2017 / FAC blog How have young people who grew up on farms allocated to their parents as part of the ‘fast-track’ land reform fared in the period after leaving school? In our studies, we have explored the life courses of those who are
APRA in the news: Ghana Stakeholders brainstorm over new project
April 2, 2017 / APRA blog FAC blog APRA is a five-year research programme that will focus on different pathways to agriculture commercialisation in sub-Saharan Africa. Based at IDS the project also has regional hubs in Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. Recent discussions amongst the Ghana hub and
Imagined futures: what will rural school leavers being doing in 20 years?
March 29, 2017 / FAC blog What do young people imagine they will be doing in the future and what obstacles lie in their way? These were questions we posed to a total of 84 Form IV students in 3 schools in or very near to
Young people and agriculture: implications for post-land reform Zimbabwe
March 29, 2017 / FAC blog ‘Youth’ have recently become the centre of development debates, particularly around African agriculture. A poorly defined category of young people – maybe adults, sometimes children – youth are presented in relation to a dizzying array of policy narratives. To get
The future of medium-scale commercial farms in Africa: lessons from Zimbabwe
March 1, 2017 / FAC blog Important changes are afoot in the size structure of farms in Africa. The rise of ‘medium-scale’ farms is often pointed to. From studies in Kenya, Ghana, Zambia and elsewhere, carried out by Michigan State University, a pattern of consolidation of
World Development Special Issue: China and Brazil in African Agriculture
February 8, 2017 / News Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Aliquam eget diam semper, malesuada nunc sed, convallis ex. Nunc lobortis at magna id cursus. In sodales pellentesque vehicula.
Young people and agriculture in Africa – new report
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Unpacking the Political Economy of Sugar in southern Africa
February 8, 2017 / News Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Aliquam eget diam semper, malesuada nunc sed, convallis ex. Nunc lobortis at magna id cursus. In sodales pellentesque vehicula.
What is the future for medium-sized commercial farms in Zimbabwe?
February 2, 2017 / FAC blog Zimbabwe’s land reform created two ‘models’ for resettlement farms – one relatively small-scale, the A1 schemes, and one medium to large-scale, the A2 farms. A1 farms now cover (very) approximately 4.2 m ha including around 150,000 farms and A2 farms
“No condition is permanent”: small-scale commercial farming in Zimbabwe
January 15, 2017 / FAC blog In this week’s blog, I want to present two cross-generational case studies of Purchase Area (now small-scale farming area) farms, based on interviews carried out earlier this year in Mushagashe and Dewure SSCFAs in Masvingo Province. They are not in
The changing fortunes of former farm workers in Zimbabwe
November 17, 2016 / FAC blog A recurrent theme is the sense of new freedoms, but also extreme challenges and precarity. Reflections on the past focus on control, ordering and disciplining, but also stability and the certainty of a wage. As the testimonies show, farmers were
Beyond ‘family farming versus agribusiness’ dualism: unpacking the complexity of Brazil’s agricultural model
November 14, 2016 / Working Papers Future Agricultures Working Paper 138 By Arilson Favareto November 2016 Agriculture has played a hugely important role in the recent history of Brazil’s economy. The country had a food production deficit until as late as the 1970s, but since the
Social movements, agrarian change and the contestation of ProSAVANA in Mozambique and Brazil
November 11, 2016 / Working Papers Future Agricultures Working 137 By Alex Shankland, Euclides Gonçalves and Arilson Favareto November 2016 ProSAVANA, the Mozambique-Brazil-Japan Cooperation Programme for the Agricultural Development of the Savannah of Mozambique, is the most visible of Brazil’s international agricultural cooperation projects. In
The New Alliance on Food Security and Nutrition: What are the Implications for Africa’s Youth?
October 20, 2016 / Policy Briefs Policy Brief 86 by Cyriaque Hakizimana July 2016 The ‘New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition’ (hereafter the ‘New Alliance’) is a partnership which was established between selected African countries, G8 members, and the private sector to ‘work together to
Research Findings: Models of Commercial Agriculture in Kenya
October 20, 2016 / Policy Briefs Policy Brief 85 by Paul Goldsmith July 2016 Kenya provides a compelling case study of market driven agricultural evolution over the past century. Agriculture played a singular role in the development of the modern Kenyan economy, and while Kenyan agriculture
Agricultural Commercialisation in Meru County, Kenya: What are the Policy Implications?
October 20, 2016 / Policy Briefs Policy Brief 84 by Cyriaque Hakizimana July 2016 Contemporary processes of agrarian change tend to favour larger-scale, more consolidated farms over smallholders, while Kenya’s agricultural policy tends to promote export oriented commercial farming. These tensions, evident in different ways over
China & Brazil in African Agriculture: Two New Working Papers
October 17, 2016 / China and Brazil in African Agriculture Two new working papers published in November 2016 concluded our Working Paper Series on the China & Brazil in African Agriculture project. Beyond 'Family Farming Versus Agribusiness' Dualism: Unpacking the Complexity of Brazil's Agricultural Model examines the multifaceted relationship between
Unpacking the Political Economy of Sugar in southern Africa
October 17, 2016 / Pathways to Commercialisation A new open journal special issue of the Journal of Southern African sheds light on the political economy of sugar in southern Africa. The past decade has witnessed an upsurge in interest in the relationship between corporate capital and agricultural
The Future of Farming in Zimbabwe
October 17, 2016 / Political Economy of Agricultural Policy in Africa The divisive land reform in Zimbabwe in 2000, caused wide-spread controversy and chaos throughout the country, affecting people’s livelihoods. The aftermath of the land reforms and the impacts it has had on small and medium-scaled farming are examined in a
Debating Open Data and Land Governance – 6-20 September
September 1, 2016 / FAC blog In land governance, a sector ripe for abuse and corruption, transparency is critical in ensuring land use and allocation is fair and accountable and that tenure rights can be defended and protected. The opaque nature of land administration systems and
Young people and agriculture in Africa – new report
August 26, 2016 / Young People & Agrifood A new report assesses the available research on African young people’s engagement with agriculture, and analyses how this evidence is reflected in current European Union (EU) policy and programming in Malawi, Ethiopia and Kenya. Young People and Agriculture in Africa:
Evidence from three models of land and agricultural commercialisation: Impacts on local livelihoods in Zambia
July 11, 2016 / Policy Briefs Policy Brief 83 by Chrispin Radoka Matenga and Munguzwe Hichaambwa May 2016 Zambia needs to undergo structural transformation triggered by increased agricultural and rural labour productivity if it is to achieve improved growth and broad-based poverty reduction. The current experience,