Natural Sciences

Permanent URI for this collection

http://41.63.25.24:4000/handle/123456789/84

Browse

Browsing Natural Sciences by Author "Buumba, Lebita"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    An assessment of the impact of resettlement Schemes on livelihoods in Zambia: Case study of Lukanga North Copperbelt Province
    (The University of Zambia, 2015) Buumba, Lebita
    Agricultural resettlement schemes have been introduced in Zambia as a way of curbing poverty and unemployment; increasing household and national food security; and creating new focal points for rural development through farming. Examining the mechanisms through which resettlement schemes are able to help the people is essential. The study considers many factors that people define as contributing to their livelihood improvements in Lukanga North resettlement scheme, in the context of the Sustainable Livelihood Framework (SLF). The SLF provides an approach to examining ways in which agricultural resettlement schemes fit into livelihood strategies or households with different types of assets. Applying this framework requires interdisciplinary research and a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. The quantitative methods included the use of the questionnaire in the survey of 79 households in the scheme, 48 households in the control group (adjacent community). The qualitative methods included the interviews with 8 key informants, two community meetings and observations. The research reveals that livelihood strategies in the scheme are based on a combination of activities relating to crop and livestock production, natural resource utilisation and non-farm activities such as trading. The results show that the average crop production, with maize as the main crop, is more in the scheme than in the adjacent villages, possibly contributing to improved livelihoods through food security and general income; while the mean number of Livestock Units is slightly higher in the scheme than the adjacent villages. The survey has also shown that households in the scheme has accumulated more assets in terms of land and physical assets such as well built houses, than the adjacent villages. It is also worth noting that households in the scheme employ more people than those in the adjacent villages, possibly a sign of more improved livelihoods in terms of income. Total income per household in the scheme proved to be about 2 times higher than that of the adjacent community. Lack of resources and poor institutional support are identified as the major constraints to livelihood improvements in the scheme. The main strength identified is that the resettlement programme has given the people of Lukanga North a privilege of owning land with title deeds, which is necessary to avoid arbitrary evictions and landlessness. The creation of resettlement scheme has also promoted rural development in those places where they are located. The main weakness identified is that there is lack of information in the villages surrounding the scheme on the logistics of how to apply for land such that local people in villages are left out in this important venture of land entitlement. Nevertheless, given the positive findings, we need more resettlement schemes in the fight against rural poverty in order to promote livelihood improvements and rural development