Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe

Terence Darlington Mushore; Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu; Theresa Makovere

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19

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Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe

Terence Darlington Mushore, Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu, Theresa Makovere

Published in International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy (Volume 1, Issue 4)

Received: 21 November 2013 Published: 10 December 2013

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Abstract

Drought induced famine has been the worst disaster from which most rural people experience immense anguish. It still remains a National Policy agenda and a problem in most developing countries like Zimbabwe. Due to climate change, the impacts of droughts are expected to deepen where the capacity to adapt is low. Though it remains a challenge in communities, local people have devised different coping mechanisms based on the resources that are locally available but the effectiveness of these mechanisms are questionable. Therefore, using both qualitative and quantitative research methods this paper aims at identifying the drought mitigation strategies used in the Ward 2 of Bikita District, assess the impacts of these strategies and examine the challenges faced during attempts to implement them. Results indicated that in Ward 2 of Bikita District, people are using drought mitigation strategies which include food aid, food for work, and sale of livestock, remittances and irrigation scheme. It was also revealed that the most effective drought mitigation strategies were provision of food aid and food for work whereas the least effective were remittances and irrigation. The study also revealed that 72% of the community was not satisfied with the effectiveness of all the drought mitigation strategies being used. These strategies are held back by challenges in the Ward which include poor service delivery by NGOs and Government departments in mitigating droughts, poverty, corruption, lack of resources and unclear selection criterion of beneficiaries as well as lack of markets thereby leading to inefficiency of the drought mitigation strategies. The study recommended the construction of more dams and necessary infrastructure for irrigation, adoption of local knowledge into mitigation strategies, improving access to agricultural inputs and enhanced provision of technical assistance to farmers in the area.

Published in	International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy (Volume 1, Issue 4)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19
Page(s)	101-107
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2013. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Drought, Mitigation, Strategies, Adaptation, Vulnerability, Bikita, Irrigation

References

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[3]	Chazovachii, B., Chigwenyu, A., & Mushuku, A. (2010). Adaptation of Climate Resilient Rural Livelihoods Through Growing of Small Grains in Munyardzi Communal Area. Gutu District. African Journal of Agricultural Research, 8, 1335-1345.
[4]	Dercon, S., Haddinolt, J., & Woldehanna, T. (2005). Shocks and Consumption in Ethopia. Journal of African Economies, 14(4 ), 559-585.
[5]	FAO. (2008). Zimbabwe 2008/07 Agricultural Season Update.
[6]	Kaseke, E. (1996). Social Security Systems in Rural Zimbabwe. Weaver press, Harare.
[7]	Maphosa, B., (1994). . (1994). Lessons From the 1992. Drought in Zimbabwe: The Quest for Alternative Food Policies Nodic Journal of Africa Studies, 3(1), 53-58.
[8]	Matthew, B. (2003). The Ownership and Management of Production. Water point Gardens in a time of Drought, Zimbabwe. International Symposium on Water, Poverty and Productive uses of Water at the Household Level, 140-154.
[9]	Ministry of Agriculture Zimbabwe. (2008). Second Round Crop and Livestock Assement Report.
[10]	Ministry of Agriculture Zimbabwe. (2009). First Round Crop and Livestock Assessment Report.
[11]	Ministry of Agriculture Zimbabwe. (2011). Second Round Crop and Livestock Assessment Report.
[12]	Ministry of Agriculture Zimbabwe. (2012). Second Round Crop and Livestock Assessment Report.
[13]	Ministry of Agriculture. (2008). Second Round Crop and Livestock Assessment Report. Harare.
[14]	Mogotsi, K., Nyangito, M. M., & Nyariki, D. M. (2012). The Role of Drought among Agro-Pastoral Communities in Semi-Arid Environment. The Case of Botswana. Journal of Arid Environments, 91, 38-44.
[15]	Munro, L. T., (2006). . (2006). Zimbabwe’s Drought Relief Program in the 1990s. A re-Assessment using the National Household Survey Data. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 14(3), 125-141.
[16]	Mushore, T. D. (2013). Climatic Changes, Erratic Rains and the Necessity of Constructing Water Infrastructure: Post 2000 Land Reform in Zimbabwe. International Journal Of Scientific & Technology Research 2(8).
[17]	Ncube, S. P. (2010). Reservoir Operation under Different Climate Scenarios: Case of Roswa Dam, Bikita District University of Zimbabwe, Faculty of Engineering, Harare.
[18]	Nyamangwe, N. (1995). Famine Mitigation in Kenya: Same practices, impact lessons. Journal of The Middle State Geographer, 28, 37-44.
[19]	Roncoli, C., Ingram, K., & Kirshen, P. (2001). The Costs and Risks of Coping with Drought Livelihood Impacts and Farmers Responses in Burkina Faso. Climate Research, Volume, 19(119-132).
[20]	Sweet, J. (1998). Livestock coping with drought: Namibia a case study. Nerma Livestock Development Project, Tsuneb.
[21]	UNFCC. (1998). Expected Impacts of Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessments in Zimbabwe.
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APA Style

Terence Darlington Mushore, Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu, Theresa Makovere. (2013). Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe. International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy, 1(4), 101-107. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19

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ACS Style

Terence Darlington Mushore; Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu; Theresa Makovere. Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe. Int. J. Environ. Prot. Policy 2013, 1(4), 101-107. doi: 10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19

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AMA Style

Terence Darlington Mushore, Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu, Theresa Makovere. Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe. Int J Environ Prot Policy. 2013;1(4):101-107. doi: 10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19

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@article{10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19,
  author = {Terence Darlington Mushore and Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu and Theresa Makovere},
  title = {Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe},
  journal = {International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy},
  volume = {1},
  number = {4},
  pages = {101-107},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijepp.20130104.19},
  abstract = {Drought induced famine has been the worst disaster from which most rural people experience immense anguish. It still remains a National Policy agenda and a problem in most developing countries like Zimbabwe. Due to climate change, the impacts of droughts are expected to deepen where the capacity to adapt is low. Though it remains a challenge in communities, local people have devised different coping mechanisms based on the resources that are locally available but the effectiveness of these mechanisms are questionable. Therefore, using both qualitative and quantitative research methods this paper aims at identifying the drought mitigation strategies used in the Ward 2 of Bikita District, assess the impacts of these strategies and examine the challenges faced during attempts to implement them. Results indicated that in Ward 2 of Bikita District, people are using drought mitigation strategies which include food aid, food for work, and sale of livestock, remittances and irrigation scheme. It was also revealed that the most effective drought mitigation strategies were provision of food aid and food for work whereas the least effective were remittances and irrigation. The study also revealed that 72% of the community was not satisfied with the effectiveness of all the drought mitigation strategies being used. These strategies are held back by challenges in the Ward which include poor service delivery by NGOs and Government departments in mitigating droughts, poverty, corruption, lack of resources and unclear selection criterion of beneficiaries as well as lack of markets thereby leading to inefficiency of the drought mitigation strategies. The study recommended the construction of more dams and necessary infrastructure for irrigation, adoption of local knowledge into mitigation strategies, improving access to agricultural inputs and enhanced provision of technical assistance to farmers in the area.},
 year = {2013}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe
AU  - Terence Darlington Mushore
AU  - Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu
AU  - Theresa Makovere
Y1  - 2013/12/10
PY  - 2013
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19
T2  - International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy
JF  - International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy
JO  - International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy
SP  - 101
EP  - 107
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7536
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19
AB  - Drought induced famine has been the worst disaster from which most rural people experience immense anguish. It still remains a National Policy agenda and a problem in most developing countries like Zimbabwe. Due to climate change, the impacts of droughts are expected to deepen where the capacity to adapt is low. Though it remains a challenge in communities, local people have devised different coping mechanisms based on the resources that are locally available but the effectiveness of these mechanisms are questionable. Therefore, using both qualitative and quantitative research methods this paper aims at identifying the drought mitigation strategies used in the Ward 2 of Bikita District, assess the impacts of these strategies and examine the challenges faced during attempts to implement them. Results indicated that in Ward 2 of Bikita District, people are using drought mitigation strategies which include food aid, food for work, and sale of livestock, remittances and irrigation scheme. It was also revealed that the most effective drought mitigation strategies were provision of food aid and food for work whereas the least effective were remittances and irrigation. The study also revealed that 72% of the community was not satisfied with the effectiveness of all the drought mitigation strategies being used. These strategies are held back by challenges in the Ward which include poor service delivery by NGOs and Government departments in mitigating droughts, poverty, corruption, lack of resources and unclear selection criterion of beneficiaries as well as lack of markets thereby leading to inefficiency of the drought mitigation strategies. The study recommended the construction of more dams and necessary infrastructure for irrigation, adoption of local knowledge into mitigation strategies, improving access to agricultural inputs and enhanced provision of technical assistance to farmers in the area.
VL  - 1
IS  - 4
ER  -

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Author Information

Terence Darlington Mushore

Geography Department, Bindura University of Science Education, Bindura, Zimbabwe
Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu

Geography Department, Bindura University of Science Education, Bindura, Zimbabwe
Theresa Makovere

Geography Department, Bindura University of Science Education, Bindura, Zimbabwe

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APA Style

Terence Darlington Mushore, Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu, Theresa Makovere. (2013). Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe. International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy, 1(4), 101-107. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19

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ACS Style

Terence Darlington Mushore; Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu; Theresa Makovere. Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe. Int. J. Environ. Prot. Policy 2013, 1(4), 101-107. doi: 10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19

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AMA Style

Terence Darlington Mushore, Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu, Theresa Makovere. Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe. Int J Environ Prot Policy. 2013;1(4):101-107. doi: 10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19,
  author = {Terence Darlington Mushore and Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu and Theresa Makovere},
  title = {Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe},
  journal = {International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy},
  volume = {1},
  number = {4},
  pages = {101-107},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijepp.20130104.19},
  abstract = {Drought induced famine has been the worst disaster from which most rural people experience immense anguish. It still remains a National Policy agenda and a problem in most developing countries like Zimbabwe. Due to climate change, the impacts of droughts are expected to deepen where the capacity to adapt is low. Though it remains a challenge in communities, local people have devised different coping mechanisms based on the resources that are locally available but the effectiveness of these mechanisms are questionable. Therefore, using both qualitative and quantitative research methods this paper aims at identifying the drought mitigation strategies used in the Ward 2 of Bikita District, assess the impacts of these strategies and examine the challenges faced during attempts to implement them. Results indicated that in Ward 2 of Bikita District, people are using drought mitigation strategies which include food aid, food for work, and sale of livestock, remittances and irrigation scheme. It was also revealed that the most effective drought mitigation strategies were provision of food aid and food for work whereas the least effective were remittances and irrigation. The study also revealed that 72% of the community was not satisfied with the effectiveness of all the drought mitigation strategies being used. These strategies are held back by challenges in the Ward which include poor service delivery by NGOs and Government departments in mitigating droughts, poverty, corruption, lack of resources and unclear selection criterion of beneficiaries as well as lack of markets thereby leading to inefficiency of the drought mitigation strategies. The study recommended the construction of more dams and necessary infrastructure for irrigation, adoption of local knowledge into mitigation strategies, improving access to agricultural inputs and enhanced provision of technical assistance to farmers in the area.},
 year = {2013}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Effectiveness of Drought Mitigation Strategies in Bikita District, Zimbabwe
AU  - Terence Darlington Mushore
AU  - Chipo Muzenda/Mudavanhu
AU  - Theresa Makovere
Y1  - 2013/12/10
PY  - 2013
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19
T2  - International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy
JF  - International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy
JO  - International Journal of Environmental Protection and Policy
SP  - 101
EP  - 107
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7536
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepp.20130104.19
AB  - Drought induced famine has been the worst disaster from which most rural people experience immense anguish. It still remains a National Policy agenda and a problem in most developing countries like Zimbabwe. Due to climate change, the impacts of droughts are expected to deepen where the capacity to adapt is low. Though it remains a challenge in communities, local people have devised different coping mechanisms based on the resources that are locally available but the effectiveness of these mechanisms are questionable. Therefore, using both qualitative and quantitative research methods this paper aims at identifying the drought mitigation strategies used in the Ward 2 of Bikita District, assess the impacts of these strategies and examine the challenges faced during attempts to implement them. Results indicated that in Ward 2 of Bikita District, people are using drought mitigation strategies which include food aid, food for work, and sale of livestock, remittances and irrigation scheme. It was also revealed that the most effective drought mitigation strategies were provision of food aid and food for work whereas the least effective were remittances and irrigation. The study also revealed that 72% of the community was not satisfied with the effectiveness of all the drought mitigation strategies being used. These strategies are held back by challenges in the Ward which include poor service delivery by NGOs and Government departments in mitigating droughts, poverty, corruption, lack of resources and unclear selection criterion of beneficiaries as well as lack of markets thereby leading to inefficiency of the drought mitigation strategies. The study recommended the construction of more dams and necessary infrastructure for irrigation, adoption of local knowledge into mitigation strategies, improving access to agricultural inputs and enhanced provision of technical assistance to farmers in the area.
VL  - 1
IS  - 4
ER  -

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