Zimbabwe’s Land Reform Myths and Realities (African Issues)

Zimbabwe’s Land Reform: Myths and Realities (African Issues) By Ian Scoones et al.
2010 | 304 Pages | ISBN: 1847010245 | PDF | 16 MB
Ten years after the land invasions of 2000, this book provides the first full account of the consequences of these dramatic events. This land reform overturned a century-old pattern of land use, one dominated by a small group of large-scale commercial farmers, many of whom were white. But what replaced it?This book challenges five myths through the examination of the field data from Masvingo province:Myth 1 Zimbabwean land reform has been a total failureMyth 2 The beneficiaries of Zimbabwean land reform have been largely political ‘cronies’Myth 3 There is no investment in the new resettlementsMyth 4 Agriculture is in complete ruins creating chronic food insecurityMyth 5 The rural economy has collapsedBy challenging these myths, and suggesting alternative policy narratives, this book presents the story as it has been observed on the ground: warts and all. What comes through very strongly is the complexity, the differences, almost farm by farm: there is no single, simple story of the Zimbabwe land reform as sometimes assumed by press reports, political commentators, or indeedmuch academic study.Ian Scoones, Professorial Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, with co-authors Nelson Marongwe, Blasio Mavedzenge, Jacob Mahenehene, Felix Murimbarimba and Chrispen Sukume.Zimbabwe: Weaver PressSouthern Africa (South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland and Botswana): JacanaTable of ContentsPreface & AcknowledgementsLivelihoods & land reform in ZimbabweLand reform in Masvingo provinceNew land, new people, new livelihoodsInvesting in the landThe new farmers: agricultural & livestock productionLabour: the new farm workersReal markets: the changing political economy of agricultural commoditiesLivelihoods beyond the farm: off-farm income & migrationTerritory, authority & social dynamicsLivelihood pathways & economic linkages: emerging impacts of land reformLessons from Zimbabwe’s land reform