APPRPOPRIATE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.

A CASE FOR
MARONDERA COMMUNITY FARMING, ZIMBABWE
BACKGROUND - Zimbabwes agriculture is currently facing serious challenges of productivity. In recent years, productivity has declined
drastically and the country is unable to feed itself. Hunger is at a five-year high in Zimbabwe, with one quarter of the rural population . . .
estimated to be facing food shortages between now and March, says the World Food Programme (WFP). APPROXIMATELY 6% of the rural
population the majority of them in Matabeleland provinces will require about 21 000 metric tonnes of maize in food assistance at the
height of the hunger season between January and March 2015, according to the latest Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee
(ZimVAC) rural livelihoods report. Several policy frameworks on agriculture have been announced over a period of 10 years but these have
had little impact because they were politically motivated, emotionally enacted as justification of a runaway land reform process. The policy
frameworks lacked content and specifics on investment and role of parastatals in driving home the need to maintain or increase productivity of
the sector.
Core challenges facing the agriculture sector
Declining soil fertility and low productivity-enhancing inputs; Lack of efficient early warning systems on weather, pests, vectors and diseases
controls; Rudimentary means of farming use of hoe (human labor) for commercial farming, Dependency on weather for production due to
absence of affordable and reliable irrigation facilities ; Inadequate infrastructure and technologies for value addition, marketing, storage and
distribution access/feeder roads and energy; Poor Attitude towards Agriculture especially in the work force, The struggle to comply with
increasingly demanding international quality standards in packaging and Lack of Capacity building programs for rural farming communities.
WAY FORWARD
In light of these problems I am planning to write a term paper on the Topic Community Development focusing on Community Farming in
Marondera, Mashonaland East, Zimbabwe. In the term paper will try to assess the applicability of new appropriate technologies used in Korea
and other areas for sustainable Community Development. The term paper will try to address most of challenges mentioned above through the
designing of a Community Development Plan by taking appropriate applications for example from the Canaan Farming School concept where
we can try the community organic farming concept and the mindset change teaching on farmers. To address the funding issue for the
technologies will also explore the Impact of Microfinance for sustainable community development and also come up with capacity building
solutions for training, education and mindset change.
THIS IS THE GENERAL BACKGROUND AND IDEA OF WHAT I AM THINKING TO RIGHT ABOUT IN THE TERM PAPER.