DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION
A research in Ruwombwe ward, Makoni district, Zimbabwe
Hannie Lutke Schipholt 1994 University of Amsterdam
Ill Ruwombwe Ward
Zil\mABWE
KADZUNGE Kadzunge seconaary sJtool ~KUIUJMIDZE URBAN AREA B.C. : BUSINESS CENTRE
....-...-+- B"" ""'"'from Rusape to Manyora and v. v.
Development Communication
Contents
Preface and acknowledgements fntroduction
. . . 5
. . . 7
Chapter 1 DEVELOPMENT- AND COMMUNICATION THEORY . . . 11
§ 1. 1 Communication theories § 1.2 Development theory and development communication § 1. 2 .1 Modernization theories § 1. 2. 2 Marxist- and dependency theories §1.2.3 'Another' development and participatory communication § 1. 3 Summary and conclusion Chapter 2 METHODS OF RESEARCH §2.1 Hypothesis and operationalisations §2.2 Access in the field §2.3 Participant observation §2.3 Interviewing §2.4 Analysis 1 1 a • • • • • • • I. l_ . . . 14 . . . 14 . . . 16 . . . 18 . . . 23 . . . 25 . . . 26 . . . 27 . . . 28 . . . 30 . . . 32
Chapter 3 DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION IN RUWOMBWE . . . 33 §3.1 The actors §3 .1.1 Local government §3. 1.1.1 Historical overview . . . 33 . . . 34 . . . 35 contents
Development Communication
§3 .1.1.2 The current decentralized structure of local government §3.1.2 Agritex
§3.1.3 Zimfep
§3.1.4 Molisv/UDCORP
§3 .1.5 The population of Ruwombwe ward §3.2 Content and substance of development
communication in Ruwombwe ward
§3.2. i General opinions of a representatiive sample of the Ruwombwe ward population
§3.2.2 Productive Projects
§3.2.3 An economic support project §3.2.4 A social infrastructure project §3.2.5 Education
§3.3 Some opinions about development communication in Ruwombwe ward
Chapter 4. CONCLUSION §4 .1 Conclusion §4.2 Latest developments Appendix Literature . . . 37 . . . 39 . . . 40 . . . 41 . . . 43 . . . 47 . . . 48 . . . 50 . . . 54 . . . 57 . . . 58 . . . 59 . . . 61 . . . 61 . . . 64 . . . 65 . . . 67 Contents
Preface and Acknowledgements
PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This study is based on research carried out from July to December 1993 in order to obtain a masters degree in social anthropology. Its focus is on development communi-cation in a rural area in Zimbabwe.
Despite current scepticism about development aid, questioning the role of Western countries in particular, I think it is still necessary and could be helpful. To achieve efficient aid, there is a need for feedback from past experience and for an ongoing reflection about the best way to reach th.e people who need aid the most. This study is an attempt to contribute to this. Its focus on communication was caused by my conviction that nothing perpetuating can be achieved without a well thought of communication strategy in development and social change.
Many people helped me during my research. Of them I'd like to mention SNV (a Dutch NGO) and Frank Borst, Mr. Loveridge Haparimwi and Miss Shinga Mupindu in particular. Frank offered me accommodation, hospitality, encouragement, useful criticism and access to key persons. For all these things I am most grateful. Mr. Haparimwi helped me to obtain a temporary employment permit, which made my research legal and avoided having problems with the government. Local government of Makoni District, the Makoni rural district council, has been very cooperative, offering the opportunity to carry out my research in one of its wards and write my findings in its office. The Senior Executive Officer, Mr. Pise and Frank Borst helped me by reading my first version and discussing it with me. As to Ruwombwe ward, I cannot be thankful enough to my friends there. The councillor, Mrs. Murahwa introduced me to many people including 'my temporary grandmother' ambuya Jane Mary Murahwa, who offered me one of the rooms in her three roomed hut, during the first phase of my research. My translator, Miss Beatrice Mutsoka, helped me, not only with her translation of Shona, but also by explaining things I did not know. I keep good memories of the interesting conversations we had during our long walking trips through the ward, finding people to interview.
During the writing of this study, I was helped by Kristoff el Lieten, who read all versions and supervised the proceedings. His ideas and knowledge helped me through
Preface and Acknowledgements
many difficulties.
Of course there are many more people involved, but it would be an endless list once I started. I thank them all.
Introduction
INTRODUCTION
Since Columbus, Vasco da Gama and other discoverers visited the 'new worlds', the local people of these territories have seen a lot of westerners passing by. Whether they came in the shape of a missionary, colonial ruler or development worker, they all wanted to change something in the way these people lived. They all claimed to know what was best for them, but the wealth gap between Third World and the First World is ever widening. Harbitz expresses his doubts about development aid in this way:
The irony of history is that Africa in particular, but the rest of 'the third world' as well, is exposed to a more comprehensive and direct cultural influence from 'the west' than ever before. In a longer perspective, it will be clear that the era of aid was another organised drive towards Westerni-sation. The differences between the successive periods of 'the raiders, the traders and the aiders' will probably look smaller from the distance of the future than they look to us today. And the minor differences between the successive periods of development theory will hardly be signifficant at all (Harbitz 1993: 27).
Still I'd like to separate this more philosophical view from a practical one. Poor people exist and could be helped, even if it was on a small scale from the outlook of history. Nowadays, Western and local development organizations are trying to help the people to better their lot. Whether they indeed do succeed depends upon many factors. Everybody knows the metaphor of a drop in the ocean. There are different opinions about the causes of underdevelopment. Because of the inequalities in economic and power distribution on global and national scales, many people live in poverty. Part of it is caused by the colonial past and the global exploitative structures it brought about. But it is too easy to put the blame on the Western world only, even though it could make a big difference if they allowed Third World countries fair prices for their products, and lift
Introduction
their trade barriers.
National and local politics is another much discussed inhibiting strain on develop-ment. Leaders are not always as committed to development as they are to their own positions and wealth accumulation. I also believe in people's own ability and responsibi-lity for shaping their lives and futures. This is not to deny that there are many limiting factors, especially for the very poor and marginalized, to accomplish more prosperity in their lifes.
Communication is very important in development strategies, for in order to plan anything, all parties involved need to know what the others want and need. This research focuses mainly on this very basic part of communication. This is not to say that other ways and means of communication are not important. Extension work is also an object of this study, but only restricted to small scale, interpersonal communication. The mass media are mainly left out in the part of this study that discusses the research findings, because this is a wide field, which needs another research. Although mass media can play a role in development communication, the problem is that they are often a one way process and are not very accessible for the rural people in Third World countries. In the area of my research, I seldom saw a newspaper, and if I did it was an old one. Still it was read. There are some people with radios and very few with a television set. A research carried out in 1990, showed that only 17% of the people have access to working radios at home (Jensen and Jenset 1993: 59). This leaves us with the question how many rural people are reached by radio broadcasting, keeping in mind that they can gather to listen together at their neighbours home, for instance. They used to do this during the independence war, listening to broadcastings from the resistance in Mozambique, but during my research I didn't see it. Of course there is also the effect of listeners spreading the information, but as I've said before, mass media effects are not within the focus of this study. In the theory chapter, it was inevitable to look at mass media, because most communication theories involve them. As far as these theories can also be used in interpersonal communication, they will be discussed.
Introduction
Although education is normally another field of study, it does transmit develop-ment related issues and is therefore also relevant. Ruwombwe ward, the area where this research has been carried out, has many children who are attending the eight schools in the area and some other schools in bordering wards. Also there are many school leavers, either drop-outs or those who obtained their diploma, who have no jobs due to the bad economic situation. Their view of what development is or should be, and how it could be accomplished could be a source of new initiatives and ways of looking at development. It is very unfortunate that the schools in Zimbabwe do not prepare their pupils for this kind of independent thinking, and rather use 'spoonfeeding' as a teaching method.
In a philosophical sense, I am sceptical about what will really be the result of development aid and this will become clear in my theoretical chapter. But at the same time, scepticism or even cynicism will not contribute to solve the world wide problem of inequality and skew wealth distribution either. For that reason I decided to look at development from a more pragmatic point of view. A closer look at communication could produce an answer to the critical questions development theorists have posed. Especially where they are concerned with development aid being just another method of promoting Western ideology and life style, and serving Western economical interests.
From the pragmatic angle, development programmes could make a difference in alleviating poverty, however small. Not by merely dumping modem techniques, equipment and western ideology, as is happening everywhere, but by opening up and listening to what the impoverished people have to say about their own situation. From there, needs can be assessed and a hand can be given to help the people help themselves, giving them a chance to implement their own ideas. Communication links people; politicians, planners, donors, implementors and beneficiaries. If not taken care of seriously, communication problems, in the worst case, can cause even bigger trouble than people had before any aid was given. More often, it leads to waste of resources.
This study is organized in four chapters. It begins by explaining development communication theory and links it with development theory in chapter one, followed by a description of how the research was carried out in chapter two. In chapter four
develop-Introduction
ment communication in Ruwombwe ward and the results of the research will be described. The last chapter will summarize the findings and discuss the conclusions.
Development- and communication Theory
CHAPTER 1 DEVELOPMENT- AND COMMUNICATION THEORY.
Development communication is a broad field within the communication studies, with subjects ranging from mass media to interpersonal communication and from extension to conscientization. This chapter will give a general overview of current discussions, theories and communication models and links communication theory with development theory in order to reach an overall approach that is suitable to the subject of this study.
The first paragraph discusses communication theories, which will be linked to development theories in the second paragraph. In the third paragraph a choice will be made for an approach that is to my opinion the most usefull in this study.
§ 1.1 Communication theories
Communication is a process between persons in which a sender codes and sends a message through a channel, which a receiver decodes with his or her knowledge, experience, and norms and value system. The sender also sends the message from his or her own cognitive make-up. Subsequently the receiver can become a sender and vice versa. The political, social, cultural and economical context in which communication takes place is very important for the communication process. The cultural context defines whether language, norms, opinions, habits and customs of all parties involved are corresponding, and in this way eases or obstructs communication. Also important are power relations, the socioeconomic positions of the communicators and the organizational structure in which communication takes place.
Until the sixties communication theories focused on a top-down, one-way structure that was rather undemocratic in the sense that it did not involve the majority of the people as active communicators. Later other theories developed which were still top-down oriented, but there was a supposed possibility for the 'audience' to react to information coming from 'above'. In the sixties "a reassessment of impact studies led to a new ortho-doxy of limited effects. This entailed selective exposure, selective perception and
Development- and Communication Theory
selective retention" (Mda 1993; 28). The recipient of messages was no longer considered a passive 'sponge', but a person with an ability to choose and a liability to only take in what is already in line with his or her way of thinking. Another change in theorizing was that from a one step flow to a multi step flow. It was no longer thought that the media reached persons as individuals, but that the people are part of social networks in which they mutually influence each other. Such groups were supposed to have opinion leaders that were dominant in diffusing received messages from mass media to their network. This also accounts for the rural areas:
In less technological and less urbanised countries opinion leaders may obtain messages from channels other than mass media. Community leaders in villages where very few mass media are available depend for their information mostly on interpersonal channels, such as conversations with extension workers, personal visits to towns, and attending public meetings
(Mda 1993;30).
The Diffussion of Innovations Paradigm (Rogers and Shoemaker, 1973) was the most influential approach to development communication planning that has taken into account the reliance on interpersonal channels in rural areas. McQuail defines their approach as "the planned diffusion of innovations for purposes of long-term development, using a series of campaigns and other means of influence, especially the interpersonal network and authority structure of the community or society (McQuail 1987 :259)".
The paradigm is based on four stages of information diffusion. The first is the stage of information, in which the role of the media is concentrated. In the next three stages interpersonal communication is more important: persuasion, decision or adoption, confirmation. The emphasis lies on organization and planning, hierarchy, social structure, reinforcement and feedback.
The major criticism is that the model is designed from the perspective of an external or superior agent of change who decides what is beneficial to the target audience. Rogers himself has also signalled some years later that the paradigm was too much of a
Development- and communication Theory
top-down strategy (McQuail 1987: 273). Furthermore, according to this view, the change does not occur from below, originated by those who need it, but is imposed on them by outside forces who have already determined what kind of change it should be. The process then becomes a manipulative one (Mda 1993: 33). The diffusion of innovations model is not appropriate in the context of development, because it reinforces dependency between communicators and the impoverished people, through its one-way, top-down approach. In Third World countries this keeps the situation of underdevelopment intact.
Marxists approach communication in three ways: the political-economic theory, the critical theory and the theory of media hegemony. In all of these, the ruling class, which is in possession and control of the media, use the media as a means to look after its interests. This includes producing ideologies and world views that suit their priviliged position, and preventing opposing ideas which might lead to a growing consciousness or change by the working class, or the poor people in general. The political-economy media theory looks at the economic structure in which the media function more than at the con-tents. The media are a part of the economic structure and also closely linked to the political system. The ones in political-economic power can use the media to voice their ideas and try to influence big audiences, and secure their positions in this way. Those who have opposing interests or ideas do not have these possibilities. To the critical theorists, the social change predicted by Marx, did not happen, because the working class has assimilated in the dominant class ideology. The commercialized media have played an important role in this process. Critical and oppositional points of view are also integrated in the media, thereby taking out its sting of real threat to the ~)'stem. In the hegemony theory ideology is regarded as more independent from the economic base than in the other two approaches. It is not considered to be imposed by force by the ruling classes, but is constantly and consistently influencing people in a covert way.
In Marxist theory, some possible ways of countering the domination of the ruling class in the media, are the collective ownership of media by groups with alternative views, or change through micro- or grassroots-media (McQuail 1987: 63- 67, 84, 101).
The above theories approach communication mostly from the angle of mass communication. There is more need for interpersonal theories in the context of
develop-Development- and communication Theory
ment communication. In development communication theory mass media should be assig-ned a smaller role, because it is preferable to work on grassroots level, close to the beneficiaries, using a participatory approach that should also be reflected in the develop-ment communication theory. This approach has not always been present in developdevelop-ment theory, as will become clear in the next paragraph, which will discuss various develop-ment theories and their link with communication theory.
§ 1.2 Development theory and communication theory
Development theories are closely connected to the history of international develop-ment politics, in such a way that they mutually influence each other. In the fifties and in the beginning of the sixties it was common to see development aid as a remedy against the threat of communism. Development theories in that period used to aim at 'modernizing'. This means chiefly that the underdeveloped countries should develop just like the western countries, with western aid. After an interlude of reactions by Marxist- and Dependency theorists, these modernisation theories have become popular again in universities since the early eighties. They have never really been dropped in international political practice. The 'another development' approach offers a challenge for development- and communica-tion strategies. The next three sub-paragraphs will discuss respectively modernization theories, Marxfat- and dependency theories, and the 'another development' approach.
§1.2.1 Modernization Theories
An example and starting point for modernization theories is 'The Stages of Economic Growth Theory' by Rostow (1960), who saw his theory as an alternative to Marxist thinking. Based on the assumption that an 'undeveloped' country can start developing when capital accumulation takes place, the theory states that from there the country continues to a take-off position. The following phase would be the road to 'maturity', ending in the stage of the mass consumption society. The first phase repre-sents a traditional economy with subsistence agriculture and if there are large cities, they
Development- and Communication Theory
depend on trade rather than on industry. In this stage, communication is interpersonal and small scale. In the take off stage, when the economy is transitional and social change abound, with growing literacy-, and educational level, the emergence of states and the disintegration of local traditional ties, the character of communication also changes. Mass media strengthen their place in society. Because of growing literacy, the newspaper comes within reach of a wider audience and radio was believed to play an important role in this stage. Communication depends on two-step models, whereby literate opinion leaders or those who have the means to buy a radio or a television set pass on the information from the media to their respective, mostly illiterate, audiences. The last stage, the mature or developed economy is characterized by an industrialized, diversified and socially integrated economy. In this mass consumption society everybody is supposed to be literate, highly mobile and sharing common values, relying on mass media to get information about the state of the world and to participate socially (Mda 1993; 41). The problem in Third world countries according to modernization theory is the lack of savings to accumulate capital that is supposed to be needed for the 'take off' stage. Development aid, therefore should entail pumping money into the Third World economies. Following this advise, the World Bank and the IMF gave loans to these countries, but however favourable the conditions for these loans, most of the Third World is now facing a debt crisis. In many cases more money is paid back to the West, than is received as develop-ment aid.
There have been many critics of modernization theories. First of all there is the criticism of ethnocentrism and evolutionism. In Modernization thinking, development should be brought about by imitating the West. Some of their theorist~ have described the differences between developed or underdeveloped societies in terms of 'pattern variables' (e.g. Talcott Parsons, 1951). Dependency theorist Frank has shown that these variables are not exclusive for either kind of society. Furthermore he has argued that the presumed stages are difficult to find in reality (Hettne 1990: 71).
Third World countries do not necesarily lack savings, but it is not considered save to invest them there, because of the feeble economies and the unstable political situation in many of them. Moreover investing capital does not automatically mean improving the
Development- and CommunAcation Theory
living conditions of the poor. This supposed trickle-down effect has been critizised by many theorists, especially Marxists.
The diffusion of innovations paradigm of Rogers and Shoemaker has modernization as a starting point. The innovations that are to be diffused are technical solutions that usually originate from the West. In the previous paragraph it has already been said that the way these innovations are disseminated is top-down and going in one direction, from the communicator to the target group. In this way, people have little to say about their own development, and their future. The paradigm, like modernization theories, doesn't take into account the socioeconomic diversification of a developing society. For commu-nication it is significant which socioeconomic layer the audience is made of, because 'if there is one rule in the science of extension (and development communication in general, HLS), it is that extension without special measures will reach particularly those that objectively speaking need it the least' (Wapenaar e.a. 1989:123). The deterministic character of modernization theories do not leave room for communicating development related issues in a way that suits the poor people themselves. The road they should take or the stages they are supposed to go through are already set by these theories.
§ 1.2 .2 Marxist- and dependency theories
Marxist- and dependency theories, which gave a powerfull reaction against the modernization theories in the late 1960's, do not pay so much attention to the phenome-non of development aid. They question its positive contribution. To dependency theorists development aid is "one of the instruments of the West to dominate the Third World and to maintain the dependant position of developing countries" (Hoebink 1988: 31). It is their opinion that the world economy has a structure in which the poor countries (periphe-ry) are dependant on the rich (centre), and that the latter have an interest to keep this situation as it is. To Marxists development aid is "a political instrument for the sake of economic and military control over the Third World" (Hoebink 1988: 33).
In Marxist theory society develops by transition to communism through the stages of primitive communism, feudalism, capitalism and socialism. Each transition is a result
oeveiopment- and Communication Tbeorv of the inherent conflicting interests between classes in society. What modernist-, and Marxists theories have in common is that they all originate from the Western theoritical tradition. The main differences between the modernists and the Marxists are that the latter see development as a result of competing interests within the society and that capitalism is a mere stage in the road to communism. To the former, capitalism is a last stage. The Marxist critical tradition discusses mass communication in terms of its great influence of the mass media on their public. The analysis is that of social and political structures, rather than an empirical examination of the presence or absence of effects on individuals. It doesn't discuss participatory communication theories.
Marxist communication theory focuses on mass media, and the way it helps to keep the powerfull in power. Extending this viewpoint, the organisation of development planning and implementing could also be seen as a communication medium, which can be organized in such a way that it either gives opportunities for the impoverished to have their say in their development, or in a way that prevents this, and only looks after the interest of the wealthy. Like modernization theories and the diffusion of innovations para-digm, Marxist theory also has a fixed 'program' for the way a society will develop. If
people are to participate in development communication, a more open-end approach is needed.
Dependency theory was developed first in Latin America and gained support among Western theorists. In this view, the development of Third World countries is regressive rather than progressive. They call this the development of underdevelopment.
It is caused by the World economy system, whereby the 'center' (Western economies) keeps its dominance by exploiting the 'periphery' (Third World countries). The latter cannot stand up for themselves because of their dependence on loans from the Western dominated World Bank and IMF, and for the selling of their raw materials to Western industries. The dependency notion of the center-periphery dichotomy can also be used within countries, either Western or underdeveloped. This brings us back to important parts of Marxist thinking, allbeit that dependency theorists have a more pessimistic approach.
Development- and Communication Theory
Communication theory has recently given attention to the relation of dependency between the West and the Third World. Especially the technological advantage W estem countries have over underdeveloped countries, keeps the latter in a dependent position, when it comes to acces and use of information and media. One could say the same for the situation within underdeveloped countries, where media are in the hands of the better off. The poor people, mostly living in the rural areas, depend on them for their informati-on, which is still in most cases top-down oriented.
A possible alternative for the theories mentioned so far, could be the 'another development approach'. Although it does not have much theoretical aspirations, I find it the most suitable approach to fit with my ideas of how development communication should work. 'Another development, includes a participatory approach, which can be extended to participatory communication, and allows for a more 'open end' approach in which the people can choose for themselves which road to take. Because it is a strategy, rather than a theory, there is room to include experience from the practice of development aid, for instance in form of extension services. This will be discussed in the next paragraph.
§1.2.3 'Another development' and participatory communication
'Another development' as a development strategy comprises a few characteristics which are defined by the Dag HammarskjOld Foundation:
- Need oriented (being geared to meeting human needs, both material and nonmaterial).
- Endogenous (stemming from the heart of each society, which defines in sovereignty its value and the vision of its future).
- Self-reliant (implying that each society relies primarily on its own
strength and resources in terms of its members' energies and its natural and cultural environment)
Development- and communication Theory - Ecologically sound (utilizing rationally the resources of the biosphere in full
awareness of the potential of local ecosystems as well as the global and local outer limits imposed on present and future generations).
- Based on structural transformation (so as to realize the conditions of
self-management and participation in decisionmaking by all those affected by it, from the rural or urban community to the world as a whole, without which the goals above could not be achieved) (Nerfin 1977, cited in Hettne 1987: 153-154).
In each of these criteria, development communication is essential. Needs can only be assessed by asking the people involved about them. The same accounts for finding out about values and visions for the future. To handle development in a ecologically sound way, information is needed about how not to waste environmental resources, and last but not least, if development is to be sustainable, training of local people is needed in order to secure continuity. All of this means participation of the local population is needed. If
participation in development is to mean more than people just contributing in materials or manual labour to projects, development agents should use participatory communication as a means of really involving the people in their own development, allowing them to make their own analysis of their situation, and finding their own solutions for it, with or without the help of an external agent. With participatory communication as a helping tool, bottom-up development can be initiated.
A distinction should be made between three different fields where development communication plays a role, in order to avoid confusion. The first is the extension type of communication, whereby professional extension workers train and inform people, for instance about ecologically sound farming methods. The second type is communication of development agents with beneficiaries about the way development should be brought about. How and which kind of projects should be planned and implemented. The third type is education, whether or not formal. In formal education, children can be taught to think about what development should be, and how it is to come about, discussing it, rather than being 'spoonfed' by their teachers.
Development- and communication Theory
In many countries informal education has been set up. Literacy- and farming courses for people 'at a low level of skills, knowledge and technology' (Harrison 1980: 128) are organized. Sometimes television or radio are the channels through which these courses are given, or educational centers are opened for people who missed the chance of finishing formal education. So education can be either disseminated through mass media or in a classroom-type situation which includes interpersonal communication.
In general the people in rural areas in Third World countries have no easy access to rnass media. Radios and televisions are scarce, and the newspaper cannot be delivered on a regular basis, due to transport problems. So they rely more on interpersonal communication. Most often local leaders and extension workers are in the first line of development communication in their area. More distant are NGOs, donors and workers of departments of local government concerning development programmes, as they usually don't live in the area where aid is given. So access to them is more difficult. Informati-on can be shared in meetings, formal or informal educatiInformati-on programmes, extensiInformati-on programmes, community theatre and on occasions of needs assessment and monitoring by development agents.
Sometimes the beneficiaries are involved from the start in the planning proces, or initiated the the projects. In later stages, when pr~jects are implemented and monitored the communication process goes on. The same kinds of problems arise here as in other areas of development communication. In the first place there are diferences between development agents; national governments, local governments, ngo's, donors, unions and development oriented associations. They differ in degrees of contact with their beneficia-ries and in the quality of this contact. Secondly, the content of the communication is predominantly about the specific project that is started; the conditions, who are to benefit, how it will be done and where, what the contribution of all involved will be etc. Once on the rails, the pr~ject is likely to be monitored by the agents. Information will be shared about how the project is getting on and if anything needs to be reconsidered or looked upon. Thirdly a distinction should be made between different kinds of pr~jects, and the resulting variety in communication and intensity of contact. Cernea ( 1992) distinguishes
r>eve1opment- and Communication Theory three types of projects:
- Productive projects: for example small scale irrigation schemes, fruit plantations, agroindustry and lifestock units.
- Economic support: for example stores, warehouses, local markets and rural electrification.
- Social infrastructure: for example schools, health centers, community halls, recreation areas, water supply and sewerage systems (Cernea 1992: 14).
The way in which communication in development planning takes place can be examined according to the criteria of the Dag Hammars~jOld Foundation. In addition to the type of
pr~ject, the characteristics of the development agent and the requirements of communica-tion, some groups of marginalized people are defined as difficult to reach.
These problems arise when the communicator cannot find a channel to disseminate his or her message. Sometimes he or she literally has a different language than the target group, or a different background, education level etc. which inhibits a mutual understan-ding. Or the message just does not appeal to the audience, because there is no attractive or attainable alternative for the way they currently do things. Other reasons for unreacha-bleness can lie in the qualities of both the communicator and the poor people that comprise the audience. The mental make-up of the latter might be rather passive, not having faith in the possibility to bring about change. Illiteracy can also be a problem, because it rules out the possiblity to disseminate messages through writings, e.g. leaflets or articles in newspapers. Sometimes the marginalized feel a barrier to go to institutions or organizations, because of the closedness of the system, the formality, the confusing division of the buildings in departments, the unfriendly treatment, the use of written information and the 'bureaucratic' use of language (Wapenaar e.a. 1989:123-129).
Local development communicators can be as alien to the rural people as those from Western countries. Often their background resembles that of Western communicators, rather than that of their rural compatriots. The communicators' 'strangeness' to the
Development- and Co•munication Theory
people they are trying to reach is caused by their usual middle class background, their higher education level, and their more individualistic lifestyle, whereas rural people in developing countries usually depend on their family a great deal. To overcome all these differences between the communicators and their target group, extra efforts are needed. The communication strategy should be adjusted to the local culture, norms, values and behaviour codes, and take into account the real margins for alternatives of behaviour of the target group (Wapenaar e.a. 1989:123-129).
Even though Wapenaar e.a. do not mention socioeconomic power relations as a possible inhibitor of development communication, it is in some cases the most obvious reason. Governments who merely represent the higher strata in their country are not always keen on conscientizing activities of development communicators. That is, if it makes poor people critical of the socioeconomic position they are in, it could cause them to want radical changes, which are not in the interest of the wealthy. An example of this is the work of the Brazilian educationist Paolo Freire, who takes it that conscientization is the way to liberation, and according to him, liberation is development. He and other liberation theorists see development as a matter of justice rather than wealth. His works have been banned for a period in Brazil and other Latin American countries (Fagerlind &
Saha 1983: 25).
Another area affecting development communication is the organizational side of development planning. Governments have different approaches towards the development of their countries. For participatory communication the most interesting approach is setting up bottom-up planning structures down to the village level. Weaknesses that can occur for example, concerns the paucity of staff, like extension workers:
. . . Agricultural extension rarely fulfils its immense potential in developing countries. Typically the extension worker may have to service as many as 4,000 farmers scattered over a large area. The individual farmer sees him rarely, or often not at all, and has no chance to develop that relationship of confidence without which he will not accept new techniques. The extension worker, for his part, may have little more to offer than a stereotyped
Development- and communication Theory
lecture that bears little relation to the ordinary farmers' problems. Usually he is not kept in touch with the latest conclusions of research. Underpaid, undersupervised, with no hope of improving his expertise and little feed-back in concrete results, he may sink into demoralized lethargy, while the national agricultural research programme continues its investigation in a social vacuum, unaware of the real conditions of production (Harrison 1980: 88).
Harrison contrasts this sitoation with the new extension work model now being applied in. several World Bank assisted projects. The most important feature of this model is that it operates on a smaller scale level. It uses a two-step model of communication, forming a core of chosen farmers who will be trained by the extension worker and who will then pass on the information to the other local farmers. In this way many of the weaknesses might be removed. It is important that the core group of farmers are chosen by the local people themselves, because then there is a better chance of the passing on of the informa-tion. In some cases it has become clear that the informed farmers do not always do so, in order to maintain their priviliged position in the community. Still, the election of the farmers by their community is not a foolproof system, because elections can easily be manipulated by economical powerfull members.
§1.3 Summary and conclusion
In this chapter we have discussed several development theories linked to communi-cation theories. We have touched upon a number of issues that affect communicommuni-cation in development planning and ultimately the success of projects. In the discussion the idea is put forward that participatory communication is needed in order to attain the goals as posed by the Dag HammarskjOld Foundation. Participatory communicaton in development can be defined as follows: It comprises interpersonal communication in development policy, making use of a two-way flow of information and planning power.
Deve1opment- and Communication Theory The major issues affecting participatory communication are:
- the organisation of development planning
- degree of contact between development agentl) and the target group
- quality of this contact - content of communication
- social and cultural differences between the two - socioeconomic powerrelations
- goals of development agents according the 'another development' approach.
- the three different types of interpersonal development communication: extension, interpersonal communication in development planning and implementation, and education.
- the three different types of projects, using the distinctions made by Cernea.
These issues will be looked at in the discussion of the research findings in chapter three. The next chapter will describe the way the research was carried out.
Methods of Research
CHAPTER 2 METHODS OF RESEARCH
Zimbabwe has inherited from its colonial past a division of the rural areas into three types. The first are the large scale commercial farming areas that comprise about half of the country, and which are still for the biggest part owned by white farmer-settlers. The second are the communal lands, which were called the tribal trust lands in the colonial times. The majority of black people is living in these areas, practicing subsistence farming. They usually have the least fertile soil and the areas are too densely populated. The third type of area is what the colonial government used to call the African purchase areas. These are now small scale commercial farms, owned by black farmers.
After independence in 1980, the government has made an effort to improve the living conditions of the black people in the communal lands in particular. One strategy to accomplish this was to decentralize government tasks, and to promote local participation in development projects. Also, the ideals in development as formulated by the Dag Ham-marsltjOld Foundation are usually underlined by development agents in Zimbabwe.
The research was set up to examine whether these goals are put in practice and in particular if participatory communication is part of the strategy to make these goals effective. I have chosen a qualitative approach to carry out this research, because I believe this to give a better insight in the situation, than statistical data can. Paragraph one of this chapter will show my hypothesis on this matter, and the operationalisation of the research question as posed above. How and through who I gained access to the research population and informants will be described in paragraph two.
The qualitative approach comprised three stages. In the first one I have lived in the area of research to find out about the living conditions of the local people. This parti-cipant observation method will be described in paragraph three. Secondly, I have interviewed 26 inhabitants of Ruwombwe ward in Makoni district about their ideas concerning the way development communication in general takes place. And thirdly I have interviewed seven different development agents, based in Rusape, the nearest town, that are active in Ruwombwe about the same su~ject to find out their side of the story. The ways of interviewing are discussed in paragraph four. In the last section I will
Methods of Research
describe how I analysed the research findings.
§ 1 Hypothesis and ope:rationalisations
My hypothesis is that the participatory approach is much desired by the actors, but in practice a well worked out communication strategy is missing. This is one of the reasons why its full potential isn't reached.
The main question was what all actors' opinions are about channels, content and results of development communication in Ruwombwe ward. Operationalisation of this theme was done through grouping the three main subjects; communication channels, substance of communication and result of communication, and subsequently posing several research questions concerning these subjects. Some are more general, others concerning the specific situation of being inside a prqject. The first group contains the following questions:
About channels:
Who are the actors in Ruwombwe ward involved in development communication? What channels do the people in Ruwombwe ward know?
What is the role of each actor in the process of project planning, implementation and evaluation?
How do people who have ideas for a project try to get them implemented? Are the actors content with the channels available?
Concerning the substance:
How are the needs of the communities m Ruwombwe assessed, and projects identified?
What do the people think about the way they are treated by the persons and/or organizations they consult?
Methods of Research
implementor demand before supporting a project?
Do the people involved in a pr~ject get training in su~jects related to the project? E.g. book-keeping, or farming methods.
What do the people involved think of conditions posed by development agents. Has there been room to discuss it, or was it one-sided?
Did the people who had ideas and had access to the channels through which assistance can be obtained get the help they asked for?
§2.2 Access in the field
Despite of what is common knowledge in anthropological literature, that one should be prepared it is not easy to gain access into the population one would like to research, I was extremely lucky to find this was not the case this time. I was lucky in the sense that I happened to know a Dutch development worker, stationed in the area where I
had decided to conduct my research. It was a coincidence; I hadn't seen him for years. He works as a planning advisor in the development department of Makoni Rural District Council and introduced me to his colleagues, helped me to decide which area was fit for research, and introduced me to its councillor. After seeing some parts of the district we both thought Ruwombwe ward was an interesting place to investigate. One of the criteria was that there is a project that has had many problems in the past and he was curious
wnafTcoulcrfmaTfom a
comrrfunicat.fon-perspective.-Another was mat
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councitlor ts ··
one of the few active ones in Makoni district, and this is one of the reasons thatRu-wombwe ward has a number of projects, which can be studied and compared.
The councillor of Ruwombwe is Mrs. Murahwa and she is a very warmhearted and open person, who immediately agreed with me coming to her ward. At first she wanted me to stay in her house. But as she is a representative leader in the district council, this did not seem to be a good idea to me. The danger would be that the people I would talk to would identify me with her, and would not be open in our conversations. As a sort of compromise I agreed to stay with Ambuya Jane Mary Murahwa, who is her husbands aunt.
Methods of Research
When I first arrived to stay with ambuya, her daughter and granddaughter were visiting her, staying for a few weeks. I asked the granddaughter, miss Beatrice Mutsoka, to become my translator, for a certain payment per interview. She gladly accepted. I choose her not only for opportunistic reasons, like that she was temporarily living in the same place. It was also convenient that she was not born in the area and that most people did not know her. In this way a pro-councillor bias was avoided, nor was she part of any local disagreements amongst the people. Equally important was that we could get along well, and she was eager to learn about my research. When she started to feel more comfortable, she also added questions to the interviews we were taking, which were quite informative for me.
I experienced one access problem in talking with cooperatives and groups with small scale, income generating pr~jects. Because of my white skin I was always thought to be either a donor or at least someone who knew the right persons to get funds from. This is one of the reasons I could not get inside information about their group dynamics, especially the problems they might have with one another. That's why my information concerning these group dynamics in these particular pr~jects are mainly coming from outsiders.
§2.3 Participant observation.
I decided to live in the area of research first for two months, in order to under-stand the living conditions and to build rapport with the research population in Ruwomb-we ward. The observations thus made could be used as background information for the later findings in interviews. Burgess describes four ideal typical types of participant observation as devised by Gold (1958): the complete participant, the participant-as-observer, the observer-as-participant and the complete observer (Burgess 1984: 80). The first hides the fact that he or she is a researcher, and thus observes the population covertly. The second type makes no secret of his or her research. Here the researcher participates and observes by developing relations with the informants. The observer-as-participant takes on a similar field role, but the contact with the informants is brief and
Methods of Research
formal. The complete ohserver does not mteract with the mformants, and merely watches and listens. The role I took 1s of the part1c1pant-as-ohserver type. l could not he a complete part1c1pant, because of my white skm, and the fact that everybody knew I was a stranger. But 1 do not thmk I would have chosen that role either, because I would not have had the freedom to walk around the way I would choose to. By making it clear that the research was my reason for being there, l could go where I wanted, and when I wanted, even though people were sometimes amazed by my 'speed' and urged me to stay with them for a while. Sometimes I would give in to their request, but that often resulted in me sitting in the nicest room of the hut with a cup of tea, and nobody to talk with, because the people had other things to do. It was probably a matter of status improve-ment to have me sitting with them for a while, although I never asked, for fear of insulting them.
The other two field.roles were less preferable, because of the lesser degree of contact with the informants and the increased probability of not being confronted with biases.
(.; .o~ ' \
temporary residence of the researcher
Methods of Research husband. Living in her hut for two months gave me the opportunity to experience some of the life in a communal area. It could surely never be the same for me as it is for the people who really live there, as I always had the possibility to go away from the uncom-fortable conditions when they became too much for me, or when I needed someone from my own background to talk with. Being the only murungu (white person, stranger) in the vicinity made me a rarity to the local people. They are not used to whites staying for a longer period in the communal areas. The only time this has happened in the past, was during the independence war. The white soldiers did obviously not leave a good impression about whites, and I was treated with great cautiousness by some older people. Though the war is over, I think they still have the idea that you can never be sure with "those whites". After my explanations of what I was there for, most became more open to me.
In general people were very open and did not hide their discontentment with certain persons and happenings. Participant observation helped me to understand living conditions and a way of seeing things from the people's perspective. Of course I must stress here that it is never possible for an outsider to fully comprehend. I'm sure it would take years to be able to see, notice and understand all that's going on. For this research though, I think I've seen enough to be able put my findings in the right perspective.
§2.4 Interviewing.
After an initial period of participant observation, I started interviewing to get more specific information concerning my research questions. First I had to find out which actors were involved in development communication in Ruwombwe ward. Then I started interviewing a stratified sample of 26 people living in Ruwombwe. They were chosen while my translator and I were walking around in Ruwombwe ward. We knew in advance which kind of persons we needed to interview that day to get a representative sample. For instance, while walking we were on the outlook for a homestead which featured indications of different grades of poverty and verified it through asking inco-me/harvest related questions. We would choose people of different age groups and gender
Methods of Research
in a comparable way. Because there are more women than men in Ruwombwe, more of them were interviewed. As for age, an effort was made to have representatives of every group, classified in groups of 20-40 years, 40-60 years and 60 and older.
We asked these people about their ideas for improving their living conditions, or for projects in general, whether they were ever asked such a question before, and whether they knew where to go with their ideas, should they have them. The full list of interview questions is shown in the appendix. The style of interviewing was quite structured, because I had to rely on my translator. She translated my questionnaire into Shona in her exercise book, so I couid check her way of asking questions using a dictionary and my little knowledge of Shona. When my translator felt more at ease with me and understood what I aimed at, it was possible to have a little bit more loose interviews, allowing some associative questions, in which she also participated.
During this period I also had some unstructured interviews, which means that I was not taking notes, and giving the respondent as much liberty in associating one subject to a next. I only intetfered if I felt we were side-tracking too much. Of course I had in mind which information I was after, and took care that my questions were also answered. Afterwards I would hurry 'home' to write all the information in my notebooks. I prefer this way of interviewing, for it leaves the respondent room to say things you possibly didn't think of asking. Or maybe you would think of it too late. This can reveal interesting information. We did not particularly see it as an interview in the first place. These talks were in general with people who spoke English and had a certain responsible function in Ruwombwe ward. I met them through introduction by the councillor, though for these talks I would visit them afterwards, several times, without her presence.
After this stage interviews were taken with people who are involved in different types of projects. Both development agents: i.e. people who work for local government, parastatals, NGO's, etc. and the beneficiaries were being questioned. I was introduced to them by the contact I had in the Makoni Rural District Council. The interviews with the development agents could all be done in English, and were also of an unstructered nature. The questions were not as fixed in a questionnaire as they were in the first stage of interviewing. During this stage I was principally interested in the opinions of the
infor-Methods of Research
mants about development communication related issues, especially what they thought of the way it worked.
By this time I had moved to Rusape, to be more flexible in which step to take next, either to interview persons in development related organizations in town, or to take the bus into Ruwombwe and visit projects, returning with the afternoon bus.
§2.5 Analysis
The research findings, which were recorded in notebooks, were categorized according to the operationalisation questions. Each structured or unstructured interview was scanned for answers to these questions. Subsequently the different kinds of answers were grouped and counted. The information that came out this way was combined with the notes from my field diary in which my own observations were written down.
I also used documents such as evaluations of a project by a NGO, leaflets, minutes of meetings and training material of the agricultural extension service in Zimbabwe (AGRITEX). Furthermore most of the information on local government was found b~ studying relevant literature and by talking with people who work for Makoni Rural District Council.
In the next chapter the research findings will be described and discussed systematically according to the questions asked in this chapter. First all the actors that are active in Ruwombwe will be described and the channels through which they can be reached. The second paragraph will discuss the findings on the content and substance of communication between the actors.
Development Communication in Ruwombwe ward
Chapter 3 DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION IN RUWOMBWE WARD
Zimbabwe inherited a distribution of land from its colonial past whereby the minority of white settlers own half of the land, which is also the most fertile. The black majority live in what is now called the communal areas (formerly tribal trust lands). Ruwombwe is situated in the Chiduku communal lands in Makoni district.
This chapter will discuss what organizational structures the central government (CG) is using to establish bottom-up communication, how all the actors involved in development in Ruwombwe fit into this structure, and what all these actors think about the communication channels. We will start by describing the actors and the structure.
§3 .1 The actors
The actors described in this chapter do not actually include all donors and NGO's in Ruwombwe. I thought it sufficient to describe only a few in more detail, those who are the most 'visible' in Ruwombwe ward. That is to say, those who are known by a reasonable number of local people. This paragraph will start by giving a historical overview of the emergence of local government administrating the communal lands in order to better understand the present situation. This will be described in the section that follows after this overview. The other actors that are active in Ruwombwe ward will be discussed in the then following sections. First of all there is the extension department of the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture and Water Development (MLA WD), Agritex. Secondly a Zimbabwean NGO, Zimfep, will be described, followed by the cooperation of the Italian NGO Molisv and a parastatal of the Ministry of Local Government, Rural and Urban Development (MLGRUD), UDCORP (Urban Development Corporation). Last to be discussed, in a brief way, will be the population of Ruwombwe ward. It is meant to give some insight in the main characteristics of their lifes and circumstances, rather then to give a 'monography' -type of lecture on Ruwombwe ward.
Development Communication in Ruwombwe Ward
§3. 1.1 Local government
After independence in 1980 the new Zimbabwean government committed itself to improving the living conditions of the poor people living in the communal lands. The main strategy to involve them in their own development was to decentralize government functions. The concept of decentralization has different possible meanings and therefore it should be explained here that the kind of decentralization we are looking at in the context of participatory development communication is 'the transfer of power and/or authority to plan, make decisions and/or manage public functions from a higher level of government to a lower one (Common Wealth Secretariat 1985, cited in de Valle and Wekwete 1990: 19).
According to de V allc this kind of decentralization alone is not enough to bring about meaningfull participation. He states that more fundamental changes in society are needed.
Three types of perversion of the participatory structures are possible. The first type is when . . . participation also becomes instrumental to internal government objectives. Councils and development committees will de
facto turn into advisory boards and meetings into hearings. Secondly, in so far as real decisions are made, participatory organs can also be hijacked by local interest groups or individuals . . . Thirdly, channels for participa-tion can be turned into their opposite when ministries implement their own plans through them and when they are given instructions that are controver-sial (de Valk and Wekwete 1991 : 9).
Thus the role of local government needs to be looked at in order to see if it really improves participation of the rural poor in their own development.
Development Communication in Ruwombwe ward
§3 .1.1.1 Historical Overview
When Zimbabwe gained its independence in 1980, it inherited a tripartite local government system, which was organized in accordance with the spacial distribution of land. It consisted of urban councils (UC's) which administered towns and the cities, rural councils (RC's) which administered the large scale farms owned by white settlers, and African councils (AC's) which partly administered the so called tribal trust lands.
The UC's were the first local government bodies that institutionalised racial segregation. Only a few Africa.ris were allowed in its advisory boards and thus only participated in the UC's decision making in a minor and indirect way.
In the rural areas white farmers started roads committees after World War II, which later became rural councils (RC's). These had powers and levels of autonomy comparable with those of UC's, concerning service provision, infrastructural development and maintenance, development control and revenue raising powers. Its administration was quite independent of the central government (CG). They were administrating commercial farm- and often also urban areas with substantial resources and had skilled technical and managerial staff. The councillors had significant political power and a wide scope of responsibilities at local level due to the council's revenue base. They also appointed their own chief executive officer (CEO). The former tribal trust lands were ruled by the traditional local authority hierarchy until 1920 when the transition to a formal local government started, initiated by colonial authorities. The new bodies were named native councils and later African councils, and had elected councillors. During the same period the colonial government started a policy of 'community development'. The AC's were granted small funds to develop basic community services such as roads, bridges, water supply etc. When compared with the rural councils they had very poor resources, and almost no political autonomy (Helmsing 1989: 2- 3).
After independence the new Zimbabwean government committed itself to changing the racial imbalances, which included resettlement schemes for the landless on farms acquired from white farmers, and restructuring local government. Following the District Council Act of 1980 over 240 small and fragmented African councils were regrouped in
