Last week the blog offered an overview of horticulture growing across our research sites in Zimbabwe. The blog emphasised the importance of a ‘hidden middle’ connecting growers to a range of other activities, all generating employment. This blog focuses on … Continue reading → …
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ZimbabweLand
Booming horticulture markets in Zimbabwe: a growing ‘hidden middle’
Everyone seems to be growing vegetables (and fruit) these days. It is big business and the horticulture sector is generating income, jobs and secondary businesses like never before. The ‘hidden middle’ in this value web is thriving. In the … Continue reading → …
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NEW books: Why farmer participatory research is essential for agricultural development
The trio of ‘Farmer First’ books published originally between 1989 and 2009 have just been released as open access versions. You can download and share them for free. Together, they make the case that we must put farmers first if … Continue reading → …
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How poultry production generates income and employment: some cases from Zimbabwe
In this final blog in our series on the ‘hidden middle’ around poultry production, we offer a few cases from across our sites. They are categorised according to the typology presented in the first blog in this short series. They … Continue reading → …
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The poultry value web in Zimbabwe: the growing ‘hidden middle’
Beyond the poultry producers discussed in the last blog, there are many different actors in the wider value web. This blog explores the wider ‘hidden middle’ at the centre of the growing small and medium-scale poultry industry in Zimbabwe. With … Continue reading → …
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The growth of small and medium-scale poultry production in Zimbabwe
In this blog we return to the theme of the ‘hidden middle’; those activities that exist between the very small-scale and informal and the larger, more organised formal operations. As we discussed in relation to maize, these activities are vital … Continue reading → …
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Confronting uncertainties: towards convivial development in Africa?
Some readers may be heading to the European Conference on African Studies (ECAS) this week in Cologne, Germany, whether physically or online. The conference’s focus is ‘African futures’ and there is a fantastic set of panels planned, with a bewildering … Continue reading → …
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Drought and resilience: some lessons from Kenya
I recently wrote an article for The Conversation together with Tahira Mohamed on the drought situation in Kenya. We’d spent a few weeks in Isiolo and Marsabit counties exploring ‘resilience projects’ alongside local responses by pastoralists. The disconnect was extreme … Continue reading → …
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The maize value web in Zimbabwe: new business opportunities
Last week, the ‘hidden middle’ around maize production and sale was introduced. From across our sites in Chikombedzi, Triangle, Matobo, Wondedzo, Chatsworth and Mvurwi, in this blog we offer a few case studies of the diversity of players in these … Continue reading → …
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Maize markets in Zimbabwe: a complex web of hidden activity
This year looks like it will be a bumper harvest, with the recently published crop assessment expecting a massive 2.3 million tonnes of maize, up 58% from last year. Maize is central to a complex web of small-scale businesses supporting … Continue reading → …
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