The character-building role of African ‘informal’ economies

By Charles Dhewa People who co-exist with Kombi drivers in Zimbabwe, Matatu drivers in Nairobi’s traffic jammed roads, boda-boda motorcyclists in Kampala and similar situations in African cities have always wondered if those drivers are from the same mother. This is due to their character which is exactly the same. ‘Informal’ traders and MSMEs also…

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Zimbabwe is open for tourism business: International buyers

By Hildah Sipono International buyers from key source markets have said Zimbabwe is sellable and buyable. The buyers arrived in Harare yesterday on a familiarisation tour ahead of the 11th edition of Sanganai/Hlanganani World Travel Expo scheduled for Bulawayo on September 6-8 at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair grounds. “People do not want to see…

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Policy Innovation Labs (PILs) and their contribution to policy-making

Taking Lessons from Canada By Elmond Bandauko During the 70th Annual Conference of the Institute of Public Administration (IPAC) which was held in Quebec between the 19th to 22nd of August 2018, policy innovation was at the centre of the workshop discussions. The increased complexity of policy problems requires public administrations to be agile, creative…

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MSF offers SRHR at Harare Agricultural Show

During the Harare Agricultural Show (Monday 27 August to Saturday, 1 September, 2018) Medecins Sans Frontieres/ Doctors Without Borders (MSF) will be providing free sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services with specific focus on people aged between 10 to 24 years. MSF will partner with the National AIDS Council (NAC), Young Peoples’ Network on Sexual…

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Fund green revolution: Africa, developing world urged

By Nevson Mpofu Africa and the developing world have been urged to fund the Green Energy Revolution to the tune of at least $49, 4 billion from the current $9 billion. The World Bank has since 2007 financed $31 billion energy projects in developing countries especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. To reduce poverty, there is need…

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Zimnat rewards students who participated in hackathon

Zimnat, one of the country’s leading insurance groups, yesterday rewarded students from the Harare Institute of Technology who took part in a hackathon that the company organised. A hackathon is a competitive event where people work collaboratively in groups on software or even hardware projects with the aim of creating a functioning product by the…

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Citizens Manifesto gives a synopsis of the 2018 elections

The Citizens Manifesto, representing the citizens of Zimbabwe, who in the past 20 months, have been coming together as residents associations, labour, faith based organisations, women and gender rights groups, disabled persons rights activists, youths and students, environmentalists, social and economic justice activists, informal traders, civil society and other concerned and progressive individuals assembled together…

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Tourism and peace work hand in glove: churches

Tourism transcends humankind and political affiliation across the borders and it unites nations and different cultures so it is the best conduit for peace, church leaders have said. “We thank Dr Karikoga Kaseke and the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) for spearheading the Zimbabwe Peace Festival 2018. At the festival Christians united for the same purpose,…

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Nudging universities in developing countries to harness community based inquiry

By Charles Dhewa Contrary to prevailing formal approaches, knowledge sharing in most rural African communities is embedded in the way people work. For instance, knowledge sharing happens as farmers select seed or choose livestock breeds.  It also happens as they milk cows, plant crops, weed, harvest, store and market.  They do not stop and say,…

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Using performance measurement as a tool for decision-making in local government

By Elmond Bandauko The practice of public administration continues to face a lot of pressure emanating from rising citizen expectations, pressure for the privatisation of public services, legislative controls and the devolution of many responsibilities to lower levels of government. These forces have led to the renewed interest in performance measurement, to make government agencies…

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CSOs demand judicial independence in the pending Constitutional Court case

Civil society organisations (CSOs) under the banner of the United Citizens Alliance (UCA), Zimbabwe Divine Destiny (ZDD), Prayer Network of Zimbabwe (PNZ) and War Veterans for Peace Initiative (WVPI) have insisted that judicial independence should be upheld in the pending Constitutional Court case in which MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa is challenging the results of…

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Strategic planning in the City of Harare: what went wrong and what needs to be fixed?

By Elmond Bandauko During my strategic planning and management course, I did an analysis of the City of Harare’s current strategic plan (2012-2025), with the objective of identifying positive traits, weak points and provide policy recommendations that can strengthen the City’s strategic planning practices. This brief synthesises my perspectives on Harare’s vision of becoming a…

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Kwesé iflix now biggest TV platform in Zimbabwe

Harare, 16 August 2018 – Kwesé iflix, which took Zimbabwe by storm during the FIFA 2018 World Cup, is now the country’s largest television platform, with more than 1.2 million active account holders. The uptake figures were revealed by Econet Wireless Zimbabwe Chief Executive Officer, Mr Douglas Mboweni, at the launch of a new million-dollar…

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Invest in religious tourism: Kapuya

Gideon Madzikatidze recently in Mhondoro Indigenous churches should constantly market their doctrines and cultural values in order to sell their unique features to the external world to augment the country’s development through promotion of religious tourist attraction centres, Zanu PF legislator for Mhondoro Mubaira constituency, Freddy Kapuya has said. While addressing thousands who witnessed an…

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15th UNWTO Awards to recognise innovation and sustainability in tourism, applications open

Promoting innovation, job creation and sustainability are key considerations for the 15th World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Awards. UNWTO invites submissions until 31 October 2018. The UNWTO Awards recognise the contribution of public and private institutions and NGOs to development of a more competitive, responsible and sustainable tourism sector that works towards achieving the 2030 Sustainable…

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Exploring Innovations in Local Economic Development (LED)

Reflections from the Business Retention and Expansion (BRE) programme in the Town of Swift Current, Saskatchewan (Canada) By Elmond Bandauko One of the projects we were tasked to do in our Economics and Policy Analysis course with Dr. Rob Leone was prepare a report analysing the preparedness of selected smaller municipalities to implement local economic…

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The Role of Municipalities in Poverty Reduction: Experiences from Canada

By Elmond Bandauko “Local spaces are ultimately the key site of delivery and development and, as such, local government is central to the success of sustainable development.” – South African Local Government Association (SALGA) While the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are global in nature, their achievement largely depends on our ability to make them a…

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Asking and answering fundamental questions through informal markets

By Charles Dhewa Street markets or roadside food markets have remained a permanent feature in most developing countries. The fact that these markets continue to flourish alongside emerging shopping malls shows they occupy a unique position in commercial activities.  Informal markets were previously designed for disadvantaged, low income households with ad hoc incomes who were…

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Vynn Capital Partners with the World Tourism Organisation to Boost Asia’s Tourism Sector

Vynn Capital, a South-East Asia-based early-stage venture capital firm, and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) today jointly announced a strategic partnership to promote South-East Asia’s tourism sector by facilitating entrepreneurship and innovation. Through this strategic partnership, Vynn Capital and UNWTO will collaborate to create a framework and policies to support technology startups that are addressing…

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CWGH urges new government to prioritise primary health care

The Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) has urged the New Government to prioritise strengthening of Primary Health Care (PHC) to achieve Universal Health Coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals SDGs). “Now that the elections are over, the people of Zimbabwe expect the fulfilment of the election manifesto, in which you promised massive improvement in…

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Rethinking public consultation in local policy processes: Lessons from the City of London’s official plan review process

By Elmond Bandauko This brief focuses on some of the most important highlights from my MPA research project, in which I was examining the dynamics of public consultation and stakeholder participation in a large-scale land-use planning project that was undertaken by the City of London a few years ago. Official Plan review-these words mean a…

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Bindura North MP pays tribute to constituents

By Byron Mutingwende   Honourable Kenneth Musanhi, the Member of the National Assembly for Bindura North Constituency has paid tribute to the President and the electorate for his emphatic victory in the just ended 2018 harmonised elections.   “I am humbled by the massive support that our revolutionary party ZANU (PF) got in the just…

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ZCLDN trains senior prison officers on promoting harm reduction among prisoners

The Zimbabwe Civil Liberties and Drug Network (ZCLDN) on Wednesday held a workshop on harm reduction in prison for senior Zimbabwe Prison and Correctional officers. The capacity building workshop was attended by senior officers from the Harare Metro province based at the Harare, Chikurubi Maximum, Women and Farm prisons. ZCLDN director, Wilson Box said the…

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Binga rising from the ashes of underdevelopment

By Chipa Gonditii & Johnson Chihambakwe About 400km northeast of Bulawayo lies Binga, a small town which is virtually in the middle of nowhere on map but definitely vibrant and visible on sight with its flagship convenience destination: Binga shopping centre informally known as “Pa centre” which has cemented its status as the entertainment hub…

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Policy innovation in the housing sector: Lessons from Canada’s National Housing Strategy (NHS)

By Elmond Bandauko Between 29 June and 02 July 2018, I had the opportunity to attend the annual Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, the convergence of over 70 scholarly associations, each holding their annual conference under one umbrella. Congress 2018 was held at the University of Regina in Saskatchewan, one of Canada’s ten…

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Dynamics of the rural vote in Zimbabwean elections

By Dumisani Ncube The recent developments in Zimbabwean Elections have once again demonstrated the important role that the peasantry plays in determining the country’s future.   Zimbabwe has 63 Districts of which 58 are rural districts thus giving a percentage figure of 92 % .Given the statistics it is evident that the rural vote has…

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Demystifying council-staff relations in local government

By Elmond Bandauko Discussions of local government are usually about the activities of the mayor and councillors. After all, elected officials make the important policy decisions. However, this focus overlooks those who deliver municipal services. A small group of elected officials is supported by a much larger group of professional public servants who advise the…

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Zimbabwe: Rein in security forces and stop mass arrests in wake of disputed vote

By Amnesty International The Zimbabwean authorities must immediately stop arresting and harassing protesters and bystanders following post-election violence that has killed at least six people, Amnesty International said today. More than 60 people have been arbitrarily arrested in the past seven days in a government crackdown on supporters of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change…

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Understanding key competencies for improving local governance

A transition briefing for Zimbabwe’s newly elected local councillors By Elmond Bandauko During the 2018 election period, there was limited attention on what the elections would mean for policy and governance at the local level. Local government remains a very significant level of government as it is deliberately created to bring government to the grass-roots…

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Let peace reign supreme: ZCC

The Zimbabwe council of Churches (ZCC) in solidarity with the Zimbabwe Heads of Christian Denominations has called for the people of Zimbabwe to unite and promote peace in the aftermath of the 2018 harmonised elections. Addressing the press yesterday (Friday 3 August 2018), Rev. Dr Kenneth Mtata, the General Secretary of Zimbabwe Council of Churches …

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IOM: Most Victims Trafficked Internationally Cross Official Border Points

From IOM Headquarters Geneva – On the occasion of World Day against Trafficking in Persons (30/07), new data released by IOM, the UN Migration Agency, show that in the last ten years, almost 80 per cent of journeys undertaken by victims trafficked internationally cross through official border points, such as airports and land border control…

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The merits of an effective marketplace for agricultural evidence

By Charles Dhewa Discovering and maintaining agricultural commodities markets is not enough for developing countries. They have to build a culture of synthesising and sharing evidence in real-time. Absence of a culture of synthesising information and knowledge from diverse sources remains a big challenge among farmers, economic actors, consumers and policy makers in the majority…

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Policies and development should prioritise the poor: AAZ social justice manifesto

Those living in poverty and suffering inequalities and injustices should be at the centre of policies and development, the Action Aid Zimbabwe (AAZ)’s Social Justice Manifesto reveals. “The Social Justice Manifesto we are launching today (Sunday 29 July 2018) is a product of ActionAid Zimbabwe’s two (2) decades of work with people living in poverty…

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For Kuwadzana it’s Betty Nhambu-Kaseke, Zanu PF Harare’s only female candidate

By Byron Mutingwende   Monday the 30th of July 2018 will witness the re-election of the ever hardworking Member of the National Assembly for Kuwadzana Constituency Honourable Betty Nhambu-Kaseke.   Honourable Nhambu-Kaseke is not only a motherly figure but a philanthropist, devoted Christian and a multiple award winning female MP in Harare Province out of…

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