Reforma De Tierras En Ingles

REDISTRIBUTIVE LAND REFORM AND POVERTY REDUCTION
IN ZIMBABWE
Nelson Marongwe
A working paper for the research project on ‘Livelihoods after Land
Reform’

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REDISTRIBUTIVE LAND REFORM AND POVERTY REDUCTION IN ZIMBABWE, by
Nelson Marongwe
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1.0INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................................................... 2
1.1

THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT ...................................................................................................................................................... 3

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EMPHASIZING POVERTY REDUCTION IN LAND REFORM: THE SETTING ........................................................ 6

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POVERTY IN THE NATIONALCONTEXT.......................................................................................................................... 9

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THE PERFORMANCE OF RESETTLEMENT IN THE CONTEXT OF POVERTY ALLEVIATION....................17

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OUTCOMES OF LAND REFORM FROM A POVERTY REDUCTION PERSPECTIVE: EVIDENCE FROMMASVINGO..................................................................................................................................................................................23

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FAST TRACK LAND REFORM AND RESETTLEMENT IN MASVINGO PROVINCE AND ITS
IMPLICATIONS ON POVERTY REDUCTION ..................................................................................................................28

6.1

SPECIALIZED LAND USES IN MASVINGO PROVINCE...............................................................................................32

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CONCLUDING REMARKS......................................................................................................................................................33

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REFERENCES.............................................................................................................................................................................35

LIST OF ANNEXES ......................................................................................................................................................................................39

1.0

Introduction

Zimbabwe attained political independence in 1980 and embarked upon its land reform
programme soon after. Overa period spanning almost 30 years, the country’s land
reform programme has undergone many changes in its objectives and its key
implementation characteristics, including methods of land acquisition, the quality of land
acquired, the scale of land reform, types of resettlement model, settler selection criteria,
types of beneficiaries, and provision of support services, amongst other issues. Inthe
early stages of resettlement, poverty alleviation and the decongestion of the communal
lands were central objectives of land reform and the main beneficiaries were identified as
the landless or those with too little land to support themselves and their dependents, the
unemployed, the poor, and returning refugees (Zimbabwe, Government of 1985: 23-24).
Gradually the main emphasis shiftedtowards production, although this was abandoned in
the Fast Track Resettlement (post-2000) period. Overall, changes in the implementation
characteristics of land reform have influenced the performance of land reform, especially
its ability to reduce poverty amongst beneficiaries and beyond. What have not changed
in almost 30 years of implementing land reform have been key features of thepolitical
and governance systems that provide policy direction for the programme. Assessments
of the performance of the post-independence land-reform programme have often
overlooked the limitations that arise from the fact that only one party, ZANU-PF, has
governed the country since 1980. Any “inherent weaknesses” in the party, in terms of its
approach to land reform, have undoubtedly influenced...