National Research Database of Zimbabwe
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Institution of Special Economic Zones in Zimbabwe: Lessons from the international experience and implications for tourism zone development: paper presented at the Midlands State University 1st International Research Conference: Driving Socio-Economic Development through Value Addition and Sustainable use of Resources, held at Elephant Hills Resort, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe 14-16 July 2015
No full textThe introduction of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in Zimbabwe is currently a topical issue. The success of the ZIMASSET Plan in growing the economy depends on how much investment the country is able to attract from within and outside its borders. Special Economic Zones are renowned for their ability to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from developed countries. This paper’s main thrust is to generate more debate and enthusiasms among stakeholders in SEZ development. The paper gives background information to the introduction of SEZs in Zimbabwe, and discusses the objectives and benefits of SEZS to developing countries and more specifically Zimbabwe. A literature survey revealed the African and Asian experience with SEZs. In the process, common mistakes that Zimbabwe must avoid are given and key success factors are highlighted. The article then attempts to build a case for the establishment of a tourism zone in Victoria Falls. The Chinese experience clearly support the conduciveness of a tourism zone in Victoria Falls since it is located strategically at a border with three countries, is part of the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Park and already has a refurbished international airport and one of the wonders of the world, the falls
Impact of ICT on service management in the Zimbabwean public sector: a case of Zimbabwe National Road Administration (ZINARA): Paper prepared for the Midlands State University 1st International Research Conference: Driving Socio-Economic Development through Value Addition and Sustainable use of Resources, held at Elephant Hills Resort, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe 14-16 July 2015
No full textThe paper seeks to find out the effectiveness of ICT on the supply side and how infrastructure limitations have a bearing on service delivery in the Zimbabwean public sector. In this paper we focus on ZINARA a parastatal mandated by the government of Zimbabwe to administer among other things, the collection of tollgates fees for the purposes of building new and up grading the existing infrastructure. A qualitative research design in the form of a case study was used to guide this research. Observations and interviews were the research instruments used to collect data from the tollgates under study and from senior executives at ZINARA Head Office in Harare. The study shows that ZINARA’s migration from a manual system to ICT led tolling system, has improved revenue collection but has not eliminated queues at some toll gates under study. We recommend that ZINARA should introduce prepaid tolling for left hand driven trucks and other techno-savvy road users and dedicate a green route for them to avoid delays especially at the tollgates with more than one lane. In addition a swiping system that allows use of debit and credit cards may also be introduced
Glutathione S-transferase activity in the maize weevil, sitophilus zeamais (Mostch.)
No full textAn article with 4 pages.,Glutathione S-transferase activities in field populalions (Fo) of the maize weevil,
Sitophilus zeamais, were compared with their 3rd generation (F,) progeny which
were reared in the laboratory. Two substrates, 1 -chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB)
i and glutathione (GSH) were used in the tests and the Michaelis constant (K,,,) was
determined for both these substrates. Enzyme activity was detected using the
CDNB as the model substrate. The K,, values using CDNB were lower for the field
populations compared to the F, progeny which were reared without any exposure
insecticides. The data indicate that the insects collected from the field were better
able to metabolise xenobiotics than their laboratory reared progeny wl-iich were
not exposed to any insecticides.,International Program in the Chemical Sciences (UPPSALA, Sweden) and the Research board, University of Zimbabwe
The contribution of youth development fund (loans) towards employment creation aiming youth in Zimbabwe from 2009 – 2014: a case of Mashonaland central Province.
No full textYouths in Zimbabwe constitute a greater proportion of the total population and are the most marginalised group within the African societies in terms of resource distribution. Therefore, the government of Zimbabwe involves the youths in the economy by introducing the Indigenisation and Economic policy, which was supported by numerous programmes. To address the issue of unemployment the government decided to establish the Youth Development Fund in conjunction with the financial institutions. Against this background, this study sought to establish the contribution of Youth Development Funds (loans) towards employment creation in Mashonaland Central Province, Zimbabwe. The study used a descriptive research design and a combination of purposive and stratified random sampling techniques to select the respondents. Data was collected using questionnaires, interviews and online research triangulated in order to obtain holistic and robust findings. Using descriptive statistics, the results of the study indicated that Youth Development Fund tried to create the employment for the youths but the programme ended up being politicised therefore, the programme regarded as a failure to create the job opportunities for the majority of the youths because the rate of unemployed youths is still high. It managed to create the employment for the elites. In light of the findings, the government of Zimbabwe is advised to monitor and evaluate the funded projects to ensure the feasibility of the project
Prevalence and the correlates of postnatal depression in an urban high density suburb of Harare
No full textIntroduction: Postnatal depression is a common cause of morbidity but is rarely diagnosed or adequately managed in busy primary care settings in most resource limited countries like Zimbabwe. Objectives: This study sought to determine the prevalence of postnatal depression and establish factors associated with postnatal depression. Methods: The study utilized a cross-sectional descriptive design where 295 consenting women (mean age=25.4 years; SD= 5.6 years) attending post natal care services at Mbare Polyclinic were recruited. Data were collected using the validated Shona version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) questionnaire. Associations between variables were computed using the chi-square test statistic and where appropriate the Fisher's exact statistic. Results: Prevalence for postnatal depression was 34.2% among women in the study. Univariate analysis revealed that there were no statistically significant associations between mother's age (p=0.120), parity (p=0.396), marital status (p=0.523), level of education (p=0.805), and age of child (p=0.489) and postnatal depression. Conclusion: Findings from this study indicate that there is a high prevalence of postnatal depression in women in Mbare, Zimbabwe. This therefore calls for further studies to identify and address the causes of postnatal depression among women attending postnatal care in Zimbabwe
Current state of guidance and counseling in secondary schools in Zimbabwe
No full textKey players in the education system such as District Education Officers, head teachers and teachers need to improve their performance in order to effectively implement the guidance and counseling curriculum in Zimbabwe. All key players should work hard in fulfilling their job descriptions. The aim of this desktop study was to review literature in order to ascertain the current state of guidance and counseling in schools. Thus the findings from the study will help in restructuring the Zimbabwe secondary schools guidance and counseling services. From the various literature reviewed, it emerged that qualifications and teaching experience had nothing to do with the implementing of Guidance and Counseling. Some of the teachers who are given the responsibility of implementing Guidance and Counseling do not have its general understanding. It is recommended that, if possible, Guidance and Counseling be made an integral part of co-curricular activities and given a place on the school timetable
Occupational stress among school head teachers: a case for Hwedza district secondary schools’ head teachers
No full textThe purpose of this research study was to investigate the phenomenon of occupational stress amongst secondary schools in head teachers in Hwedza District. The descriptive survey research design was adopted
using quantitative and qualitative methods. In this study, a total of thirty secondary school head teachers and thirty secondary school ordinary teachers were picked as participants using the purposive sampling approaches. A questionnaire for school heads and interviews for ordinary schoolteachers were used as instruments for data collection. Collected data was presented in tables and figures. The study findings showed that the phenomenon of occupational stress amongst school heads is a real international issue. It was found out that teachers in general are affected physiologically, psychologically and behaviorally. The study recommended that there be clear definitions of workers’ roles and responsibilities for school head teachers. A continuing program by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education on the subject of coping with stress at workplaces could be organized for schools head teachers to benefit from
Effects of different frequencies of loading on healing in partial rupture of the achilles tendon in a rat model
No full textObjective: To determine the histological effects of different frequencies of loading in a healing Achilles tendon following partial rupture.
Design: Experimental laboratory study.
Setting: University of Zimbabwe, Department of Physiology, Animal house.
Subjects: Sixty female Sprague-Dawley rats
Intervention: Partial tenotomies of the right Achilles tendon were performed surgically. From day 1 post operatively, the animals were allocated to treadmill running at different frequencies (once (OD), two (BD), three (TDS) and four(QID) times daily) up to 21 days. Histological sides of the tendons were made at days 7,14 and 21 and interpreted by a blinded pathologist
Main Outcome Measures: Collagen fibre orientation, inflammatory cell populations, fibroblast morphology and neoangiogenesis were observed and scored using the Grande Biomechanical Histological Correlation Score.
Results: Mean weight was 209.67g ±30.14. The best and worst arrangements of collagen were in the QID group (73%) and OD group (46.7%) respectively. These differences were not statistically significant (p=0.487). The BD group had the most mature fibroblast nuclei and the QID tendons had the least mature (p=0.577). Inflammatory cell populations were independent of loading frequency (p=0.132).
Conclusion: Changing the frequency of the same type of loading in a healing tendon does not have an effect on the healing process in partially ruptured Achilles tendons during the inflammatory and proliferative
Phases
An evaluation of the factors affecting growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Zimbabwe: A case study of SMEs in Harare (2009 – 2015)
No full textThe study sought to establish and quantify the key factors affecting the growth of SMEs in Zimbabwe and also investigate the influence of the characteristics of SME operators and SMEs on small business growth. SMEs in Zimbabwe are credited with providing employment opportunities for more than half of the working population and contribute about 60% of the nation’s GDP. A cross sectional survey was carried out on a sample of 272 SMEs drawn from the Province of Harare, Zimbabwe. Data on the socioeconomic factors that were suspected to affect SME growth were collected from the sampled SMEs. Statistical Quantitative data analysis tests were carried out to extract the key factors affecting growth of small businesses. The findings were that access to financial resources, regulatory environment and skills shortages in entrepreneurship and management were the main factors affecting SME growth in Zimbabwe. Pearson’s correlation tests results showed a positive relationship between the identified factors and growth while the regulatory environment had the highest influence on small business growth. Linear regression results also confirmed the identified factors as key predictors of SME growth. Based on the findings, the study also provides some recommendations to entrepreneurs, policy makers and development agencies. Policy makers are urged to develop tailor made training programs to capacitate SME operators with appropriate skills for managing small and medium businesses. The regulatory environment should also be improved by implementing targeted policies to stimulate growth of SMEs. Financial assistance programs must also be made available to SMEs to facilitate and accelerate growth
Assessing the importance of international banks in attracting FDI into Zimbabwe
No full textGlobalisation has literally reduced the world into one market place where distance does not matter anymore and technology advancement revolutionised global trade. Unfortunately, as much as the world has become one village in terms of trade and capital flow Africa has lagged behind. Foreign Direct Investment has been low in Africa compared to Asia and Europe. This study was done to assess the impact international banks do have in driving FDI in Zimbabwe. It was born out of the fact that there is so much political attention to international banks and multinational firms from an indigenisation perspective.
Zimbabwe desperately needs FDI to catapult economic development as local savings are too low to reinvigorate the economy. International Banks are believed to be key drivers of capital migration due to their ability to financially advise investors and also because of their capacity to attract cheaper funding for offshore investments.
The research method used was predominantly quantitative and thus more inclined to positivism and a deductive research approach which was preferred instead of an inductive approach as the deductive approach is more reliable and objective in its findings. This was important for identifying causal effects of FDI movement vis a vis International Banks. The target population consisted of banks and their clients which allowed the writer to distribute 360 questionnaires with a response rate of 72.2%.
Overally the findings of the research show that investors favoured foreign owned banks as opposed to local banks and the reasons were that foreign banks had greater access to international markets than local banks; foreign banks were also supported by their parent country governments; they had enhanced efficiency; enhanced corporate governance levels as well as more advanced financial technology and they also had more skilled and motivated staff. The data was analysed using SPSS. The research was limited to Harare only where most of the economic activity is and Head Offices of the respondents are based. From that perspective the study can be generalised for Zimbabwe as the sample was significant and also that a quantitative analysis was done.
The implication of this research show that international banks play a pivotal role in attracting FDI into the country and their presence helps to retain the already invested capital