Browsing by Author "Dube, T."

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    Enhancing food security through micro irrigation: Evaluating the contribution of treadle pumps to household food security in Umzingwane district of Zimbabwe
    (2014) Dube, T.; Maphosa, M.; Dube, Z.L.; Tomson Dube, Mandlenkosi Maphosa *, Zenzo L. Dube, Gracsious Ncube, Nevel Tshuma; Ncube, G.; Tshuma , N.
    Amongst a plethora of challenges facing the African continent today is the food security issue. Close to 240 million people in sub-Saharan Africa are food insecure (Bremner, 2012). A number of reasons have been advanced to explain the food insecurity situation of which inter-alia include climate change, low food and agricultural productivity and production. This article is centred on assessing the use of treadle pumps micro irrigation technologies strategy in an attempt to counter low food and agricultural productivity in Umzingwane district of Zimbabwe. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used with data being collected through questionnaires, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. A total of 100 smallholder farmers participated in the study which covered 6 Wards. Study findings reveal that the use of treadle pumps improves household food security though this inevitably comes at a cost to the natural environment. This is largely due to the way in which this form of micro-irrigation is practiced in the District. However, notwithstanding the positive contribution of treadle pumps to household food security, the use of these pumps is fraught with a number of challenges some of which include lack of backup services, spares, marketing and an unsupportive institutional environment.
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    Enhancing food security through microirrigation: Evaluating the contribution of treadle pumps to household food security in Umzingwane district of Zimbabwe
    (2014) Dube, T.; Maphosa, M.; Dube, Z. L.; Ncube, G.; Tshuma, N.
    Amongst a plethora of challenges facing the African continent today is the food security issue. Close to 240 million people in sub-Saharan Africa are food insecure (Bremner, 2012). A number of reasons have been advanced to explain the food insecurity situation of which inter-alia include climate change, low food and agricultural productivity and production. This article is centred on assessing the use of treadle pumps micro irrigation technologies strategy in an attempt to counter low food and agricultural productivity in Umzingwane district of Zimbabwe. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used with data being collected through questionnaires, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. A total of 100 smallholder farmers participated in the study which covered 6 Wards. Study findings reveal that the use of treadle pumps improves household food security though this inevitably comes at a cost to the natural environment. This is largely due to the way in which this form of micro-irrigation is practiced in the District. However, notwithstanding the positive contribution of treadle pumps to household food security, the use of these pumps is fraught with a number of challenges some of which include lack of backup services, spares, marketing and an unsupportive institutional environment
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    Urban household food insecurity and cash transfers in Bulawayo townships, Zimbabwe
    (Taylor and Francis, 2021-12-12) Ndlovu, S.; Mpofu, M.; Moyo, P.; Phiri, K.; Dube, T.
    Urban household food insecurity is highly prevalent in Zimbabwe due to the persisting poor macro-economic environment, droughts, HIV and AIDS and climate change. This paper examines the effectiveness of cash transfers in alleviating urban household food insecurity in the city of Bulawayo. The assessment focuses on understanding the extent to which cash transfers improve poor households’ access to food. The study was conducted in Makokoba and Njube townships. A combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods were used in gathering and analysing data. Purposive sampling techniques were used to select study participants. Semi-structured in-depth interviews (50), questionnaires (280), and key-informant interviews (11) were used to collect primary data. The study is anchored on Sen’s Entitlement Approach in examining the role of cash transfers in strengthening trade-based entitlements of ultra-poor households. We find that cash transfers have nominally alleviated urban household food insecurity in these townships. Households receiving cash transfers have not meaningfully improved access to food on a regular basis. They ate small quantities of food, skipped meals and had poor dietary diversity regardless of receiving cash transfers. Factors such as low transfer value, irregular distributions, weak targeting mechanisms, disbursement mechanism and poor communication have deterred the effectiveness of cash transfers in the two townships. We recommend a revamp in design and implementation processes of cash transfer programmes. Transfers meant for improving access to food should be implemented in conjunction with livelihood projects to enable poor urbanites to meet non-food basic needs.