What does success mean in a livestock-based economy? How has land reform influenced what success is possible in a dryland, marginal area? To explore these questions, we carried out success rankings in our two A1 sites in Matobo district. In one village 6 women and 5 men attended, while in the other 5 men and 5 women took part.
In relation to the clusters of criteria identified in the previous blog, in Matobo, cattle as assets are clearly vital, and especially for men. All livestock were however seen as vital, including donkeys, sheep, goats, turkeys, chickens and even dogs. Navigating through successive droughts was seen as crucial to success, as was ‘prior accumulation’ (idlela owaqalisa ngayo) – for example, someone who arrived with one animal and slowly grew the herd/flock over time. Having cars/trucks was seen as crucial, especially given the remote locations of these farms and the poor roads preventing public transport to operate. Shuttling of people and agricultural products from the farm to town was seen as vital in ensuring success.
This article is from Zimbabweland, a blog written by IDS Research Fellow Ian Scoones. Zimbabweland focuses on issues related to rural livelihoods and land reform in Zimbabwe.
