Jumping the water queue: changing waterscapes under water reform processes in rural Zimbabwe

Authors

  • JS Kemerink-Seyoum 1. Integrated Water Systems and Governance department, UNESCO-IHE, PO Box 3015, 2601 DA Delft, the Netherlands; 2. Governance and Inclusive Development, Department of Geography, University of Amsterdam, PO Box 19268, 1000 GG, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
  • NLT Chinguno Integrated Water Systems and Governance department, UNESCO-IHE, PO Box 3015, 2601 DA Delft, the Netherlands
  • SD Seyoum Integrated Water Systems and Governance department, UNESCO-IHE, PO Box 3015, 2601 DA Delft, the Netherlands
  • R Ahlers Independent Researcher, Frederik Hendrikstraat 113c, 1052HN Amsterdam, the Netherlands
  • JA Bolding Water Resources Management Group, Wageningen University, PO Box 47, 6700AA, Wageningen, The Netherlands
  • P van der Zaag 1. Integrated Water Systems and Governance department, UNESCO-IHE, PO Box 3015, 2601 DA Delft, the Netherlands; 2. Water Resources Section, Delft University of Technology, PO Box 3015, 2601 DA, Delft, The Netherlands

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4314/wsa.v43i3.07

Keywords:

irrigation, water reforms, river basin management, socio-nature, Zimbabwe

Abstract

This paper contributes to the ongoing discussion on the implementation of water reforms in rural African waterscapes and explores how farmers in a tertiary catchment in Zimbabwe react to these reforms. It shows how privileged farmers have jumped the water queue by moving their agricultural activities upstream where they illegally divert water straight from the river, while downstream, in the smallholder irrigation scheme, farmers resort to rainfed farming. This unforeseen consequence of the 1998 water reform process, implemented during the economically unstable decade that followed, is explained by adopting a socio-nature approach. Empirical field data as well as processed satellite images are presented and the politicized implications of water reform processes in the Zimbabwean context are discussed. Besides the need to critically examine the content of water reform processes, more attention is needed for understanding what happens to the water that escapes stipulated plans, prescribed rules of control and visible decision-making arenas.

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Published

2017-07-28

Issue

Vol. 43 No. 3 July (2017): Water SA

Section

Research paper

License

Copyright (c) 2017 JS Kemerink-Seyoum, NLT Chinguno, SD Seyoum, R Ahlers, JA Bolding, P van der Zaag

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Creative Commons License

The content of this journal is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Licence.  Users are permitted to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search or link to the full texts of the articles in this journal under the terms of this Licence, without asking prior permission from the publisher or the author, provided the source is attributed. Copyright is retained by the authors.

How to Cite

JS Kemerink-Seyoum (2017) “Jumping the water queue: changing waterscapes under water reform processes in rural Zimbabwe”, Water SA, 43(3 July). doi:10.4314/wsa.v43i3.07.