CAMPFIRE through the lens of the 'commons' literature: Nyaminyami rural district in post-2000 Zimbabwe

Journal of Southern African Studies

Volumn 34, Issue 1, 2008, Pages 127-143

  Balint, Peter J ^a   Mashinya, Judith ^b  

^a GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

NATURAL RESOURCE; RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT; RESOURCE MANAGEMENT; RURAL AREA; SELF ORGANIZATION;

AFRICA; SOUTHERN AFRICA; SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA; ZIMBABWE;

EID: 39749148850     PISSN: 03057070     EISSN: 14653893     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/03057070701832924     Document Type: Article

References (98)

1. M. Murphree, 'Communal Approaches to Natural Resource Management in Africa: From Whence and to Where?', Journal of International Wildlife Law and Policy, 7, 3-4 (2004), p. 204.
2. Ibid., p. 216.
3. B. Child, 'The Practice and Principles of Community-based Wildlife Management in Zimbabwe: The CAMPFIRE Programme', Biodiversity and Conservation, 5, 3 (1996), pp. 369-98
4. J. D. Hackel, 'Community Conservation and the Future of Africa's Wildlife', Conservation Biology, 13, 4 (1999), pp. 726-34
5. D. Hulme and M. Murphree (eds), African Wildlife and Livelihoods: The Promise and Performance of Community Conservation (Oxford, James Currey, 2001).
6. V. Dzingirai, '"CAMPFIRE is Not for Ndebele Migrants": The Impact of Excluding Outsiders from CAMPFIRE in the Zambezi Valley, Zimbabwe', Journal of Southern African Studies, 29, 2 (2003), pp. 445-59.
7. S. Metcalfe, 'The Zimbabwe Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE)', in D. Western and R. M. Wright (eds), Natural Connections: Perspectives in Community-Based Conservation (Washington DC, Island Press, 1994), pp. 161-92.
8. G. Child, Wildlife and People: The Zimbabwean Success (Harare, Wisdom Foundation, 1995)
9. M. Murphree, 'The Lesson from Mahenye: Rural Poverty, Democracy and Wildlife Conservation', Wildlife and Development Series No. 1 (London, IIED, 1995)
10. B. I. Logan and W. G. Moseley, 'The Political Ecology of Poverty Alleviation in Zimbabwe's Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE)', Geoforum, 33, 1 (2002), pp. 1-14.
11. J. Alexander and J. McGregor, 'Wildlife and Politics: CAMPFIRE in Zimbabwe', Development and Change, 31, 3 (2000), pp. 605-27
12. I. Bond, 'CAMPFIRE and the Incentives for Institutional Change', in Hulme and Murphree (eds), African Wildlife and Livelihoods, pp. 227-43
13. R. Hasler, 'An Overview of the Social, Ecological and Economic Achievements and Challenges of Zimbabwe's CAMPFIRE Programme', Evaluating Eden Discussion Paper No. 3 (London, IIED, 1999).
14. K.A. Hill, 'Zimbabwe's Wildlife Utilization Programmes: Grassroots Democracy or an Extension of State Power', African Studies Review, 39, 1 (1996), pp. 103-21
15. J. Murombedzi, 'Devolution and Stewardship in Zimbabwe's CAMPFIRE Programme', Journal of International Development, 11, 2 (1999), pp. 287-93
16. Murphree, 'Communal Approaches'
17. L. Emerton, 'The Nature of Benefits and the Benefits of Nature: Why Wildlife Conservation Has Not Economically Benefited Communities in Africa', in Hulme and Murphree (eds), African Wildlife and Livelihoods, pp. 208-26
18. M. Norton-Griffiths and C. Southey, 'The Opportunity Costs of Biodiversity Conservation in Kenya', Ecological Economics, 12, 2 (1995), pp. 125-39.
19. CAMPFIRE Association, Annual Report 2004-2005 (Harare, CAMPFIRE Association, 2005)
20. K. Muir-Leresche, I. Bond, W. Chambati, and A. Khumalo, An Analysis of CAMPFIRE Revenue Generation and Distribution: The First Decade, 1989-2000 (Harare, WWF-SARPO, 2003).
21. P.J. Balint, 'Improving Conservation near Protected Areas: The Importance of Development Variables', Environmental Management, 38, 1 (2006), pp. 137-48.
22. A. Agrawal and C.C. Gibson, 'Enchantment and Disenchantment: The Role of Community in Natural Resource Conservation', World Development, 27, 4 (1999), pp. 629-49.
23. Alexander and McGregor, 'Wildlife and Politics'
24. Dzingirai, 'Ndebele Migrants'.
25. Murphree, 'Communal Approaches', p. 211.
26. P.J. Balint and J. Mashinya, 'The Decline of a Model Community-Based Conservation Project: Governance, Capacity, and Devolution in Mahenye, Zimbabwe', Geoforum, 37, 5 (2006), pp. 805-15.
27. Murphree, 'Communal Approaches', p. 215.
28. Ibid., p. 211.
29. Ibid., p. 216.
30. Ibid., p. 211.
31. See also J. Pretty, 'Social Capital and the Collective Management of Resources', in D. Kennedy (ed.), State of the Planet 2006-2007 (Washington DC, Island Press, 2006), pp. 142-8.
32. Murphree, 'Communal Approaches', p. 215.
33. E. Ostrom, T. Dietz, N. Dolšak, P. C. Stern, S. Stonich and E. U. Weber (eds), The Drama of the Commons (Washington DC, National Academy Press, 2002).
34. A. Agrawal, 'Common Property Institutions and Sustainable Governance of Resources', World Development, 29, 10 (2001), pp. 1,649-72
35. E. Ostrom, 'Self-Governance and Forest Resources', Occasional Paper No. 20 (Jakarta, CIFOR, 1999).
36. P. Stern, T. Dietz, N. Dolsíak, E. Ostrom and S. Stonich, 'Knowledge and Questions After 15 Years of Research', in Ostrom et al. (eds), Drama of the Commons, p. 457.
37. Metcalfe, 'Zimbabwe Communal Areas'.
38. Hulme and Murphree (eds), African Wildlife and Livelihoods
39. Muir-Leresche et al., Analysis
40. S. Matanhire, Process Oriented Monitoring System (POMS) Evaluation of Select Sub-District CAMPFIRE Institutions (Harare, Zimbabwe Trust, 2003)
41. G. Matzke and N. Nabane, 'Outcomes of a Community Controlled Wildlife Utilization Programme in a Zambezi Valley Community', Human Ecology 24, 1 (1996), pp. 65-86.
42. USAID funding was previously scheduled to end in 2000; thus the two events are only coincidentally linked.
43. Muir-Leresche et al., Analysis.
44. Zimbabwe's crisis has been widely analysed. See for example, B. Raftopoulos, 'The State in Crisis: Authoritarian Nationalism, Selective Citizenship and Distortions of Democracy in Zimbabwe', in A. Hammar, B. Raftopoulos and S. Jensen (eds), Zimbabwe's Unfinished Business: Rethinking Land, State and Nation in the Context of Crisis (Harare, Weaver Press, 2003), pp. 217-41
45. T. Scarnecchia, 'The "Fascist Cycle" in Zimbabwe: 2000-2005', Journal of Southern African Studies, 32, 2 (2006), pp. 221-37
46. J. McGregor, 'The Politics of Disruption: War Veterans and the Local State in Zimbabwe', African Affairs, 101, 402 (2002), pp. 9-37.
47. As one of the authors, Mashinya, is Shona, we were able to communicate, as appropriate, either in English or in a national language familiar to all respondents. Mashinya is also responsible for the translations to English of the statements from our interviewees in the rural areas reported in this article.
48. Alexander and McGregor ('Wildlife and Politics', pp. 618-19) report similar research experiences.
49. United Nations Development Programme, Zimbabwe Human Development Report, 2000 (Harare, UNDP, 2000).
50. Soil quality in Nyaminyami is described as 'unsuitable for meaningful agricultural activities': Save the Children, Household Economy Assessments, Binga & Nyaminyami (Kariba Rural) Districts, Matabeleland North & Mashonaland West Provinces, Zimbabwe: April-May 2004 (Harare, Save the Children UK, 2004), p. 14.
51. Rainfall is generally both insufficient for agriculture and unreliable: A. Khumalo, CAMPFIRE Monitoring and Evaluation Data, 2001 (Harare, WWF-SARPO, 2003).
52. 2. This population density is one-third the national average.
53. A. Hammar, 'The Making and Unma(s)king of Local Government in Zimbabwe', in Hammar, Raftopoulos, and Jensen (eds), Unfinished Business, pp. 119-54
54. McGregor, 'Politics of Disruption'.
55. Hammar, 'Local Government'
56. McGregor, 'Politics of Disruption'.
57. S. Metcalfe, 'CAMPFIRE: Zimbabwe's Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources', Paper prepared for the Liz Claiborne & Art Ortenberg Foundation Workshop on Community-Based Conservation (Harare, CASS, 1993).
58. E. Mapedza and I. Bond, 'Political Deadlock and Devolved Wildlife Management in Zimbabwe: The Case of Nenyunga Ward', Journal of Environment and Development, 15, 4 (2006), pp. 407-27.
59. Metcalfe, 'CAMPFIRE', p. 5.
60. D. Potts, '"Restoring Order"? Operation Murambatsvina and the Urban Crisis in Zimbabwe', Journal of Southern African Studies, 32, 2 (2006), pp. 273-91.
61. Mapedza and Bond, 'Political Deadlock'.
62. Dzingirai, 'Ndebele Migrants'.
63. Interview with a senior RDC administrator, Siakobvu, March 2006.
64. J. Murombedzi, 'Decentralising Common Property Resources Management: A Case Study of the Nyaminyami District Council of Zimbabwe's Wildlife Management Programme', Dryland Networks Programme Paper No. 30 (London, IIED, 1991).
65. Metcalfe, 'Zimbabwe Communal Areas'
66. Metcalfe, 'CAMPFIRE'
67. Murombedzi, 'Decentralising'.
68. A 2001 aerial survey estimated Zimbabwe's total elephant population at about 90,000 animals, representing a doubling since 1980: K.M. Dunham and C. S. Mackie, 'National Summary of Aerial Census Results for Elephant in Zimbabwe: 2001', Occasional Paper No. 1 (Harare, WWF-SARPO, 2002). Under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES), elephants in Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Botswana are listed in Appendix II, instead of the stricter Appendix I that applies elsewhere.
69. Zimbabwe has set aside 14.7 per cent of its territory in national parks and other nature reserves. The average for nations worldwide is 10.8 per cent.
70. G. Child, 'Elephant Culling in Zimbabwe', ZimConservation (August 2004), pp. 1-6.
71. 2; the national average density for communal lands with elephants nationwide is 0.38 per km2: Dunham and Mackie, 'Aerial Census Results'.
72. Twenty-three were killed by elephant, twelve by hippopotamus, ten by crocodile, and nine by buffalo.
73. R. Neumann, 'Moral and Discursive Geographies in the War for Biodiversity in Africa', Political Geography, 23, 7 (2004), pp. 813-37.
74. Murombedzi, 'Decentralising', p. 10.
75. McGregor, 'Politics of Disruption', p. 9.
76. Hammar, 'Local Government', p. 120.
77. Metcalfe, 'CAMPFIRE'
78. Murombedzi, 'Decentralising'.
79. Metcalfe, 'CAMPFIRE', p. 176.
80. Matanhire, Evaluation, p. 11.
81. B. Derman and J. Murombedzi, 'Democracy, Development and Human Rights in Zimbabwe: A Contradictory Terrain', African Rural and Urban Studies 1, 2 (1994), pp. 119-45.
82. C.S. Mackie, 'Aerial Census of Elephants and Other Large Herbivores in the Sebungwe Region, Zimbabwe: 2001', Occasional Paper No. 3 (Harare, WWF-SARPO, 2002)
83. CAMPFIRE Association, Annual Report. RDC staff reported that commercial poachers from Zambia were a more significant concern than local poachers.
84. Khumalo, CAMPFIRE Data. In 2001, CAMPFIRE projects nationwide earned US$2.3 million. The median gross revenue per household for participating districts was about US$9. In contrast, gross income divided by number of households in Nyaminyami equalled about US$90. Benefits differ among wards in Nyaminyami, however, because revenues are disbursed proportionally based on hunting revenues generated within their borders.
85. Guidelines allow districts to hold 12 per cent as a council levy, 35 per cent for wildlife management, and 2-4 per cent to cover dues to the national CAMPFIRE Association.
86. The RDC has strong incentives to capture as much of the earnings as possible because CAMPFIRE supports more than half of its budget. Most of the remainder comes from grants from the increasingly cash-strapped central government. In comparison, non-CAMPFIRE rural districts typically rely on the central government for 85 per cent of their revenue, suggesting that CAMPFIRE subsidises rather than supplements central government spending on local development: Muir-Leresche et al., Analysis.
87. On the importance of grinding mills, a report by the US National Research Council states: Pounding grain is 'a hot and disagreeable task [that] has to be done day after day, in fair weather and foul, and regardless of sickness or other indisposition. Probably no single development could help rural Africa more than relief from this neverending drudgery'. US National Research Council, Lost Crops of Africa. Volume I: Grains (Washington DC, National Academy Press, 1996), p. 285.
88. The couple reported that the councillor was using the motor in his own household.
89. District employees were offering fuel for private sale.
90. Operation Nyama.
91. Replicating findings reported by Dzingirai ('Ndebele Migrants') in the neighbouring Binga district, however, the Tonga we spoke to in Nyaminyami generally reported continued willingness to help protect wildlife despite the poor performance of their CAMPFIRE project's community development component.
92. According to the RDC administrator we spoke to, the central bank discounted the US dollar earnings by about 50 per cent in the official exchange rate and then deducted an additional 7.5 per cent in calculating the 'interbank' rate used for payments to the districts. The administrator also told us that the RDC was lobbying the central government, unsuccessfully to that point, for the right to hold assets in hard currency.
93. Muir-Leresche et al., Analysis.
94. B. Derman, 'Environmental NGOs, Dispossession, and the African State: the Ideology and Praxis of African Nature and Development', Human Ecology, 23, 2 (1995), pp. 199-215.
95. Stern et al., 'Knowledge and Questions'.
96. Ibid. p. 457.
97. Agrawal, 'Common Property Institutions', p. 1,659
98. A. Agrawal, 'Common Resources and Sustainability', in Ostrom et al. (eds), Drama of the Commons, pp. 62-3.