Integrating Community-Led Interventions for Enhanced Water Access through the Watershed Management Approach in Mudzi Rural District, Zimbabwe

Integrating Community-Led Interventions for Enhanced Water Access through the Watershed Management Approach in Mudzi Rural District, Zimbabwe

Shepherd Gudyani^1*, Jephias Matunhu², Hilda Jaka Mabiza³, Tamuka Davira⁴

  ¹PhD Student, Department of Heritage, Historical and Sustainable Development, School of Heritage and Education, Great Zimbabwe University (GZU), Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

  ²PhD Supervisor and Director, Midlands State University (MSU), Tugwi Mukosi Multidisciplinary Research Institute, Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

  ³PhD Supervisor and Lecturer, Development studies in the Department of Heritage, Historical and Sustainable Development, School of Heritage and Education, Great Zimbabwe University (GZU), Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

  ⁴PhD Student, Department of Heritage, Historical and Sustainable Development, School of Heritage and Education, Great Zimbabwe University (GZU), Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

^*Corresponding Author

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2025.906000171

Received: 27 May 2025; Accepted: 31 May 2025; Published: 05 July 2025

ABSTRACT

The world continues to grapple with many challenges, including the pace of global development through urbanization and other complex problems brought on by the convergence of global threats such as climate change and pandemics. The connections between poverty, scarcity of water and health are becoming more complex, making solutions to these concerns critically important. Water related issues unquestionably have a negative impact on health, which leads to higher levels of poverty in disadvantaged and vulnerable countries, communities, and households. Poverty, water shortage and health continue to plague many communities worldwide, thus community driven efforts to improve water access are indispensable. With the recent COVID-19 pandemic, poverty, water scarcity and health burdens have gotten worse in developing countries. Once more, as more countries strive to navigate through many challenges including climate change; issues of poverty, water scarcity and health burdens only get worse. The lack of infrastructural development in many African countries has resulted in disproportionate increases in the demand for water resources and healthcare services in many vulnerable communities such as rural communities. On the other hand, the ability of communities to get sustainable yields of surface and sub-surface water has been disrupted by climate change, making it more difficult for them to address the connection between poverty, water scarcity and health challenges. This paper, arising from the above intricacies has found that supporting community driven strategies for improving rural population’s access to water by adapting the Watershed Management disposition is critical, as this provides several solutions. This paper examined literature on the Watershed Management Theory and evaluated its relevance to customized community strategies for improved water access through a case study of Zimbabwe’s Mudzi rural district’s productive assets strategy. The evaluation showed immense water and other benefits to rural communities from Watershed Management Approach-based Community-Led Interventions. Data for this paper was collected as part of the author’s PhD studies in Mudzi district through participation of diverse study participants (including key stakeholders) in Focus Group Discussions and Key Informant Interviews.  Further data was obtained from Literature Review and Field Observations of water assets and as well as majorly qualitative questionnaires.

Keywords: Watershed Management Theory; Community-Driven; Water Access Improvement Initiatives; Productive Assets

INTRODUCTION

The article examines community-driven strategies for enhancing rural communities’ access to water by exploring the watershed approach’s potential to provide communities a solid way to deal with drought disasters and their aftereffects, which include water scarcity, food and livelihood insecurity, and other issues. The article examines climate change induced issues such as how droughts affect populations’ ability to get enough water and enhance their health, food and livelihood situations (Champalle & Turner, 2014; Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), 2012). In the wake of the grave and brutal consequences of climate change, this article presents tailored watershed approach solutions which are believed to be in line with the rural people’s emic perspectives on disaster risk reduction in general and drought catastrophes in particular. It broadens the range of options and strategies available to protect marginalized communities from the brunt of climate change impacts whilst preserving and enhancing their access to water, health, means of subsistence, and food security. Based on several challenges to food security and livelihood in Mudzi district (Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWSNET), 2020; Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Reports (ZIMVAC 2022), issues primarily related to water scarcity brought on by the effects of climate change are explored, with Mudzi rural district having remained one of Zimbabwe’s many drought-prone regions (ZIMVAC, 2020). This has made the district vulnerable to droughts caused by climate change (such as the droughts that occurred from 2016 to 2020) and numerous other effects of climate variation, such as heat waves, cyclones and crop and livestock diseases (ZIMVAC, 2021; Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) 2006). The above-mentioned disasters have negatively impacted Mudzi district’s water security, food, livelihood security; and, the community’s ability to respond to calamities has been severely hampered by the water problems. This paper is premised on examining the worth of watershed-based approaches in sustaining water solutions and subsequently health, food and livelihood security. Water security remains a key aspect of food and livelihood security in rural communities. Water is a source of economic development as communities depend on agriculture for their economic activities (Champalle & Turner, 2014). It remains also a remedy for the challenges caused by climate change such as droughts.

Access to water is crucial for human life. Access to clean water is one of the most basic human needs (Ritchie, Spooner & Roser, 2019). According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF (2024), access to water refers to the ability of people, households, and communities to obtain sufficient, safe and acceptable water for domestic, agricultural, industrial, and environmental purposes. It includes the physical availability of water as well as its cost, affordability, reliability and quality (African Development Bank (AfDB), Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) & United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), 2017). Water access is a basic human right that is necessary for human survival, well-being, dignity, and economic development. It covers having access to water for irrigation, energy production, sanitation, hygiene, and ecosystem preservation (Ritchie et al, 2019). Access to water is essential to sustainable development since it directly affects gender equality, food security, poverty alleviation, and environmental sustainability (Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), 2024). Having access to safe and clean water is a major difficulty in Zimbabwe’s Mudzi Rural District (World Food Programme (WFP), 2020). The district’s inability to access clean water sources is hampered by inadequate water infrastructure, with drought-related shortages occurring frequently, as per WFP (2020) and Mudzi District Development Fund (DDF) (2019). WFP (2020) reports that access to clean water sources is restricted, and that the situation is worse when it comes to water for agriculture and livestock. For their water needs, many households in Mudzi Rural District rely on rivers, ponds, and unprotected wells which cannot survive through dry seasons.

Mudzi Rural District faces waterborne diseases due to contaminated sources and inadequate water infrastructure (WFP 2021; 2022). The district experiences frequent water shortages and droughts, forcing households to rely on distant water sources and increasing the time spent on collecting water. The lack of clean water sources exacerbates risks of waterborne diseases and water security (ZIMVAC, 2022). Apparently, Mudzi district faces a water crisis due to inadequate supply. To address this, WFP (2022) encouraged multifaceted approaches including rehabilitating water infrastructure, implementing conservation measures, promoting rainwater harvesting, raising community awareness, and increasing funding for water development projects. This would improve access to clean water, reduce waterborne diseases, and enhance community well-being.

According to WHO and UNICEF Report (2024), rural areas like Mudzi district in Zimbabwe lack access to clean water, leading to increased waterborne diseases. Contaminated water sources, poor sanitation, and inadequate waste management contribute to this issue (International Labour Organization (ILO), 2017). Poor hygiene practices also increase the risk of disease transmission (FAO, 2015). Improving access to safe water is crucial for reducing waterborne diseases and promoting public health in rural areas (WFP 2022; ZIMVAC, 2022). This can be achieved through water infrastructure development, good hygiene practices, and education on disease prevention. Access to water is crucial for food and livelihood security in rural communities, as it aids in agricultural production, livestock management, and income generation (FAO, WFP & IFAD, 2013). It enables farmers to grow crops and raise livestock, providing food and income for families and communities. Water access also supports small-scale enterprises, such as gardening, poultry, and dairy farming, contributing to household income and livelihood diversification (FAO, 2003; FAO, 2009). Lack of water access in rural communities negatively impacts food and livelihood security, leading to reduced income, malnutrition, and vulnerability to external shocks. Improving water access is crucial for enhancing food and livelihood security, promoting sustainable development, and prosperity.

This paper acknowledges that models of the watershed management approach have evolved from the integrated watershed management approach (Dixon & Easter, 1991). Tailored residues of these models formed the bedrock of this article as it paved the way to the understanding of the adoption of processes for formulating and implementing courses of action that supports use of resources including water resources, agriculture land and management of other natural and human resources in a community. The approach helped in understanding the use of land and water resources and adoption of agricultural activities, considering the social, political, economic, and institutional factors operating within a community and its resources for the achievement of social objectives (Dixon & Easter, 1991). Whilst the Integrated Watershed Management Approach has evolved for a very long time in terms of definition, scope, and application (Wang et al. 2016; Bebermeier et al. 2017 & Roth et al. 2016), the latest edition has been of great importance to this article. According (Dixon and Easter, 1991), Integrated watershed management is defined as the procedure of formulating and implementing sequences of activities or action involving natural and human resources, which is done with a full recognition of other critical factors such as the social, political, economic, and institutional factors operating within a community to meet specific objectives such as environmental protection, boosting local agricultural initiatives, land healing and conserving new and existing livelihood assets. According to Tennyson (2005), this permits contribution from different actors to protect and restore the physical, chemical, and biological integrity of ecosystems whilst giving an impetus to trying new methods of land utilization or farming as well as new livelihoods activities to preserve human health and the base for sustainable economic growth.

The watershed approach under the World Food Programme’s Food Assistance for Assets (FFA) in Mudzi and other rural districts in Zimbabwe, has been used to develop community assets aimed at boosting rural resilience against drought shocks and boost subsistence agricultural production. Whilst WFP used food assistance as an assistive modality for communities involved in the development of assets, the approach intended to facilitate the development of community asserts based on a watershed approach model that supported improved agricultural activities and utilization of livelihoods assets (World Food Programme, 2016). The approach reflected on a drive towards food and agricultural assets assistance, building blocks for community resilience against shocks and providing windows for improving food security (WFP, 2016). The model focused on watershed-based assets with an appreciation of the diversity of livelihoods of rural people despite the tragedies of climate change that have affected the rural rain-fed agriculture (WFP, 2017).

The watershed approach in Mudzi introduced the creation of water harvesting assets like weir dams and an assortment of other assets and activities around these water assets. The communities had opportunities to further construct dip tanks, nutrition gardens, fishponds, fruit orchards and other small livestock projects around the weir dams and other water sources. The weir dams would act as the key watershed assets that attract other related assets and activities to further protect the whole area that the asset is situated in. Following the creation of these assets, several watershed management activities would be implemented to protect the assets and provide further value through environmental protection as complementary activities to the watershed approach.

The philosophy behind this approach was that the community would benefit from the established assets whilst they take care of the same assets and its environment (which is the watershed), hence an assortment of conservation works that are also supported by the various local leaders, government technical departments and other key stakeholders. The assets are identified by the communities themselves, for example those areas they could have previously tried to harvest water from but failed to do so due to lack of resources. In Mudzi district, plans for these assets were found at the local authority, the Mudzi Rural District Council, as village actions plans that were ready to be implemented with the availability of funds. Table 1 below shows the activities conducted in the Watershed approach and the actors involved.

Table 1: Projects And Activities and Actors of The Watershed Approach in Mudzi District

Source: Field Work

The Mudzi community benefited from the watershed approach through the development of watershed-based assets and implemented several other activities in a bid to access water, produce agriculturally and deal with drought challenges that the district has been experiencing. According to Browner (1996), the watershed approach is a coordinating framework for environmental management that focuses public and private sector efforts to address the highest priority problems within hydrologically defined geographic areas, taking into consideration both ground and surface water flow. In this regard, the application of the watershed approach in Mudzi rural district under the World Food Programme (WFP)’s Productive Assets creation projects was seen in several coordinated works to come up with assets and protection works to conserve them. Through these projects, communities have been working on the natural environment to develop agricultural water harvesting assets like Weir and Earth dams, and at the same time conduct various watershed management activities to protect the assets and conduct a mixture of agricultural activities that are linked to the initial set of assets. As has been noted by Browner (1996), the watershed approach aimed at preventing further degradation to the natural environment, achieve and sustain environmental improvements and meet other goals important to the community. In Mudzi district, the communities managed to work on watershed protection activities to sustain the environment as well as the constructed assets, thus they were involved in constructing gabions, water percolation holes, drainage basins, wire or natural gabions, live fencing, stone buns and others. This was in addition to the goal of the watershed approach to sustain community livelihoods through rural agricultural transformation leading to food security.

It is critical to note that watershed approaches may vary in terms of specific objectives, priorities, elements, timing, and resources. In Mudzi district, the weir dams, nutrition gardens and a hodge-podge of other projects within the watershed were guided by a joint planning process involving the local authority, World Food Programme, World Vision, the affected communities and government technical departments such as Agricultural Extension Services, District Development Fund, Department of Mechanization and others. This partnership was to ensure that the activities were implemented within the minimum acceptable standards and to ensure ownership by the communities for sustainability. Also, geographic focus was another factor considered where activities were directed within specific geographic areas, typically the areas that have been noted to have a needy and have spaces that are suitable to construct the water harvesting assets, areas that drain surface water bodies or that recharge or overlay ground waters or a combination of both. In this case, the community worked to conserve and maintain the watershed area through various conservative works which were defined as watershed management activities (WFP, 2017). Sound Management Techniques based on Science and Data was also useful especially in construction of the weir dams. The government technical departments were instrumental in approving sites and coming up with drawings for dams, making sure that the works met minimum standards, and the materials were durable enough to develop strong assets. Collectively and in completing the watershed activities stakeholders employed scientific data, tools, and techniques in an iterative decision-making process. This included assessment and characterization of the natural resources and the communities boundaries that depended upon the planned assets; goal setting and identification of environmental objectives based on people’s problems, the condition or vulnerability of resources and the needs of the environment and its people within the community; identification of priority problems; development of specific management options, action plans, projects and activities; implementation; and evaluation of effectiveness and revision of projects and activities as needed (WFP 2016, 2017).  Therefore, the Watershed Approach (below in Figure 1) is an ongoing cycle of tasks including coordinating processes for environmental management that focuses the community and their programs to address the highest priority problems within hydrologically defined geographic areas, taking into consideration the assets, activities and protection works required for food and livelihood objectives.

Figure 1.0: The cycle in the Watershed Management Approach: Source: Persyn et al (2016)

The cycle involves taking measurements of the conditions; assessing the data and identifying the impairments including establishing priorities; verifying the degradation sources and developing plans for projects to restore land and water quality; and implementing degradation controls, (Persyn et al, 2016). Because stakeholders work together with the community, actions are based upon shared goals and information, and a common understanding of the roles, priorities, and responsibilities of all involved parties. This is one of the key success factors in the implementation of the watershed approach, where communities would choose an asset to develop and how to maintain its watershed area. Concerns about environmental justice were addressed through agreeing to implement various conservation activities that were covered under the watershed management activities. These activities included but not limited to creation of stone buns to control the usage of weir dams, drainage pits to allow percolation to take place during rains, drainage basins, to protect soils in fields and gardens around the water source, planting conservative vegetation such as vetiver grass and orchard trees as way of improving the natural environment. The iterative nature of the watershed approach encourages partners to set goals and targets and to make maximum progress based on available information while continuing conducting agricultural activities to boost their food production and support their families.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Five focus group discussions (FGDs) with participants from Mudzi district wards 5, 7, 15, and 18 provided the data for this article. The participants included those benefited directly and indirectly from the Mudzi district’s Watershed approach initiatives through the Productive Assets program (including district stakeholders, government departments and local leadership), which was supported by the World Food Programme and World Vision Zimbabwe. To review and analyze the data and gain insight into the potential impact of productive assets on water access and food security, data was also collected through 18 key informant interviews that were conducted in the same wards, targeting a range of programme participants and key stakeholders. This provided the chance to learn how important the watershed approach was in addressing the water scarcity caused by drought disasters and the ensuing food insecurity in Mudzi rural community. In addition to the two methods mentioned above, document or content analysis was conducted with an emphasis on the content generated during the planning, execution, and oversight of the Mudzi district’s watershed-based interventions. Scholars like MacDonald and Headlam (1986), who described the approach as “Concerned with a quality of information and attempts to gain an understanding of the underlying reasons and motivations for actions and establish how people interpret their experiences and the world around them,” supported the qualitative nature of the approach. The method’s main goal was to shed light on the difficulties associated with climate change, such as those relating to water access, and how adopting watershed concepts might be used as adaptive measures to address these difficulties. As has been noted by Baumeister and Leary (1997), and Transfield, Denyer, and Smart (2003), document analysis or literature review is a systematic way of collecting and synthesizing previous articles/reports or extracts of data, which is what this article has focused to create a firm foundation for advancing knowledge (Transfield et al. 2003); Webster & Watson, 2002). Lastly, 35 majorly qualitative questionnaires were administered to household representatives and some key stakeholders to gain more insights into impact of the Watershed Management approach on water issues in Mudzi rural district (Frankel & Wallen, 1996). This is despite the fact that the majority of questionnaire data was analysed qualitatively.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The article’s major findings were focused on key issues that both directly and indirectly relate to the watershed approach’s potential and applicability to improved water access, responding to drought disasters, and fostering food and livelihood security in Mudzi rural district. Through the promotion of water harvesting techniques, the approach has been perceived as an immediate response by communities to droughts and a solution to water access challenges. Indirectly, however, the approach’s trickle-down effect through various activities enables communities to take actions that give them an advantage over drought-related events and effects. Communities could use the watershed approach to support a variety of livelihoods and generate more food as groups or individuals by engaging in both the soft and physical aspects of the approach. The field research participants highlighted the approach’s crucial role in uniting the community against the drought disaster risk, as well as the potential to comprehend the role of co-owned water and livelihood assets and processes in disaster preparedness, improving community access to water, and promoting food security. The article’s main findings are outlined and discussed thematically below.

Water Harvesting Techniques and Soil Conservation

Mudzi district has long been one of the areas plagued by recurring water challenges. Since they depend on rain-fed agriculture, all study participants highlighted that the constant water shortages have negative implications on all facets of their lives such as access to food, health and agricultural production. Due to this issue, the study participants stated that the broad goal of developing water harvesting assets, such as weir dams, earth dams, percolation pits, solar-mechanized deep boreholes, wells, and others, helped them accept and take advantage of the watershed approach. These assets enable the Mudzi community to access water without difficulties, conduct various agricultural activities and improve productivity, and develop other livelihood assets around a water source. The research participants indicated that the idea behind water harvesting, and soil conservation shall go a long way in solving a raft of problems such as ensuring easy access to water for domestic use as well as agricultural activities. The assets such as community weirs or earth dams (gravity dams/weirs and earth dams) are constructed from concrete/stone and earth respectively and designed to hold back large volumes of water. The water-harvesting techniques like rain pitting, digging and renovation of wells which have been instrumental in raising the depth of water table in the watershed areas of ward 5, 7, 15 and 18 in Mudzi district.

Deep wells and boreholes, mechanized with solar panels provide the communities with safe drinking water and additional water for other domestic and economic activities such as gardening and livestock watering. Reservoirs created by these structures are used through mechanized technologies that suit the rural set up for irrigation in the nutrition gardens, fruit tree orchards, human and livestock water consumption and aquaculture. According to one village head in ward 7, ‘the availability of water has helped them to be occupied by agricultural activities throughout the year whilst they have guaranteed sources of water for domestic purposes and their agricultural activities.’  Thus, this watershed management idea has ensured and led to better food security levels and improved livelihoods within the Mudzi community. Below in Figure 2 are the major highlighted benefits of prioritizing water harvesting assets as has been indicated by the participants in both wards 5, 7, 15 and 18 during the field research.

Figure 2: Importance of water assets under the watershed approach: Source – Field Work

Conservation – of the water and livelihood assets, natural environment and fields

The study participants noted that the watershed approach improves many aspects, but most importantly, conservation of community resources through combining water management and food production activities with protection works. According to the District Development Coordinator, Muzezewa of Mudzi district, “The watershed approach is about conserving the land and water resources which are the source of life and revenue in the district”. The study noted that the usage and sustainability of weir dams and other water assets is depended on community capacity to organize themselves to manage, operate and maintain (mobilize resources) the infrastructure and to protect the catchment (both micro and macro environment) of the water sources. Most weirs silt up and at the end fail to provide adequate water for domestic uses, gardening purposes and livestock due to poor watershed management. Hence, the importance of thinking beyond the infrastructure/weir has been hailed by the community members and indicated that through the introduction of the watershed approach to their community, they have learnt that water is harvested and best practices to conserve it are applied to sustainably use the water. When there is water, communities can water their crops and conduct their domestic activities and as well their livestock are able to access drinking water and stay health.

Sustainable Land Use

The majority of the study participants indicated that among the key characteristics of the watershed approach, sustainable land use is the bedrock to sustaining both water resources, land and natural resources. Participants described sustainable land use as a distinctive activity and a key characteristic of the watershed approach, positing that the approach is about dealing with upstream and downstream resource management, identifying sustainable land use practices, to increase water retention and sustainable agriculture production. In this regard, both upstream and downstream parts of a community are endowed with different water harvesting activities (both ground and underground) and thus providing opportunities to create assets such as weir dams and the surrounding compatible assets such as nutrition gardens, fishponds, fruit tree orchards, beehives and others, thereby increasing opportunities for improved food harvesting and boosting rural food security.

The participants noted that most of the challenges emanating from drought risk are exacerbated by the failure to sustainably use land within communities, however, with the watershed approach, the priority is to sustain the environment that houses various resources including water. The participants indicated that the availability of water throughout the year in the weir dams and other sources enable them to cultivate food crops in their home and gardens/fields all year round as well as utilize those pieces of land that are not always used to plant fruit trees or conduct activities that help them to have viable livelihoods, for example having fishponds and small enterprises such as mushroom production around the water sources. The gardens provide spaces for many households in the wards to be productive, producing various types of leaf vegetables, fruit vegetables, legumes, root vegetables and others which are crucial for the day-to-day diet of the communities. The key issue is how the watershed approach has encouraged them to be aware of the productive and sustainable uses of land to boost food production and sustain food stocks throughout the year, whilst also having adequate water resources.

According to the participants, sustainable land use entails putting mechanisms in place to maintain the health of land, availability of water and several other resources that are reliant on the environment. Sustainable land use, which the communities learned from the watershed approach, is based on an understanding that the land itself requires care. This includes ensuring that all activities follow best practices for protecting the natural land and engage in non-land-damaging activities. They stated that they carry out numerous land-healing initiatives that allow for the capture of potable water in weir dams and safeguard the land from problems of erosion, deterioration, and unnecessarily felling trees in the watershed area. Since all the areas surrounding the assets are affected by these activities, everyone with fields near the weir dam must implement all necessary precautions to ensure that their fields do not negatively impact the assets in the watershed area. Thus, the idea behind the watershed model is to ensure that communities participate in and take ownership of the development process as articulated by Chambers (1991) for it to be meaningful as well as for them to appreciate the importance of development processes. The tasks listed below in Table 2 were provided by the participants as part of the efforts to ensure that land use adheres to sustainable practices.

Table 2: Best Practises for Sustainable Land Use

 Source: Field Work

Watershed Approach and Agricultural Revival and Achievement of Food Security

The participants indicated that one of the major exciting fundamentals about the watershed approach is that the approach allowed them to be busy throughout the year by providing them with water and to do a variety of agricultural activities leading to more food for household consumption and for selling. Key contributions of the watershed approach to aid agricultural revival and food security are as follows:

Generation – of agricultural activities based on the management of upstream and downstream resources Participants indicated that the watershed generates tailored agricultural activities, activities that suit the context of the rural communities. They indicated that this is important as it encourages everyone to have something to do, even during the off-rain season. The activities range from gardening with manageable plots, fruit tree orchards, bee keeping, fish production through small fishponds, livestock production and other agricultural activities that produce food for the families and excess for selling. They indicated that the watershed programmes helped them mainly to understand that agricultural activities can be done throughout the year by generating such activities, which would contribute towards the conservation of as much water/precipitation as possible in soil profile and collection, storage and reuse of harvested water. Water plays a significant role in a variety of household or community processes and activities. Water supports agricultural activities and helps prepare for the possibility of droughts, which can cause an agricultural season to fail.

Water Harvesting – A buffer for droughts and water challenges for agricultural activities In Mudzi district, this has proven to be the main advantage of the watershed strategy, as evidenced by the 99% of participants who expressed satisfaction with their possession of water harvesting assets. As has already been articulated above, the Mudzi district is arid. However, people have been able to engage in year-round agricultural activities to generate food, even during dry spells, thanks to the availability of water through water collection techniques. The little rain they may receive any time of the year is harvested. They produce food using the harvested water and produce commodities to sell in the district markets. The water-harvesting techniques like rain pitting, digging and renovation of wells have been instrumental in raising the depth of water table in the watershed areas. All these strategies and techniques directly contribute towards a significant rise in the levels of water resources of the communities, indicating a positive impact on the moisture regime and groundwater recharge, which all have influenced positively on several agricultural activities and production in wards 5, 7, 15, and 18. Below are the major agricultural activities that are boosted by the availability of water resources.

Table 3: Agricultural Activities in The Watershed Approach

Source: Field Work

Production – through agricultural activities As has been indicated above, the availability of water resources has been making production possible. Production has been made possible through secured household or community gardens, weirs with water for annual activities and the imitation of garden activities and practices in the fields around the watershed area. In this sense, the watershed and the gardens serve as a teaching classroom for farmers, who apply the skills they acquire there to their own farms. The participants mentioned demonstration plots where various government departments show off new farming techniques and practices to the local community and asset recipients at the dam site and in the gardens. The demo plots are treated as learning classrooms where the communities benefit on various trainings on drought issues, good farming practices, harvesting and storage techniques and others. In addition, through watershed-based agriculture there is increase in crop productivity because of various factors like increased human labour-use, rise in manure application and increased moisture availability which have been translated into higher farm income in nominal as well as real terms.

Employment – through all year-round agricultural activities The watershed approach has resulted in increased crop production, employment generation, farm income and groundwater status, which all came into existence because most of the people had something to do throughout the year. This means that there was employment creation through, with people working in the gardens, increasingly tendering their livestock, working in fishponds, fruit tree orchards and other activities around the water assets and fields. The most important part of all the activities is that they all focus on sustaining as much water resources as possible to increase crop production and incorporate practices with the participation of government departments and key stakeholders in the district. With everyone having something to do, participants indicated that since the inception of the watershed approach in Mudzi district, there was a significant increase in overall crop production per year in all the four wards studied, with Suswe (ward 7) becoming the market for cereals and other vegetables, leading to overall stable food situation in those wards. The study also found that women and young people benefited from the creation of agricultural and water assets, which increased their ability to produce. One participant claimed that because everyone had become involved at various assets, watershed activities have lowered crime rates as well as youth and juvenile delinquency issues in their communities.

Prioritization Of the Watershed Approach Due To Its Impact in Mudzi

The paper established that the communities that benefitted from the productive asset program and the implementation of the watershed approached have expressed their willingness to prioritize the model as an approach to secure and improve water provision for their communities. They see it as both an approach for community preparedness and response against drought risk and as an option for food security even in the face the perpetual climate-related droughts. More than 95% of the survey participants agreed that the model must be adapted to the water related situations they face all time due to the droughts. They stated that water shortages and difficulties are the reasons that pushed them to accept and experiment with the watershed model as an alternative approach. The following factors describe their reasons for choosing to prioritize the watershed approach.

The Approach as a Solution to Water Challenges and Dry Spells

Considering the persistent dry spells being experienced across the rural communities of Zimbabwe, and particularly Mudzi district, the watershed brought a relief to this challenge in the studied wards. As a result, communities have praised the emphasis on gathering and managing water resources, pointing out that this focus enables community leaders and everyone else to focus their energies on the most important aspects of the effects of droughts on the community. The participants perceived this as a relief from the dry spells and evaluated the strategy as “essential” from the perspective of managing water resources. One asset management committee member at Chitambazi Weir dam (ward 7) indicated that, “water resources management is an essential component of managing the persistent drought situations and sustainable development as economic development is accompanied by increase in water-use.” By this, the community believe that supporting the approach should be a high priority for the government’s National Development Strategy. The construction of weirs and dams to support rain fed agriculture through mechanized rural-based irrigation and solar powered energy will go a long way in reviving the rural agriculture and providing a buffer for the dry spells in Mudzi rural district. Apart from the approach allowing all year-round agricultural production, the surrounding environment is regenerated, allowing domestic and wild animals to co-exist. Underground water and stored water in dams supplement surface runoff water which is normally found during the rainy season and thereafter will not be available in winter, this adds to the flare of having an environment that supports life throughout the year. In this regard, the watershed approach complements Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6, which aims to guarantee universal access to and sustainable management of water and sanitation, protecting water supplies for sustainable development without threatening future generations.

Triple-To-Quadruple Benefits of The Approach

The participants indicated that a tailored watershed approach entails triple-to-quadruple benefits to their communities. As a result, there is greater benefit in adapting the watershed-based approach to responding to droughts and as an option for securing food security. The approach harvests water resources, generates agricultural activities and improves production which is the initial set of the tripartite benefit view that helps them to achieve food security. In addition to these critical benefits, the participants also indicated that the approach revives their agricultural activities in ways that also respond directly and indirectly to drought shocks, thus providing more complementary benefits apart from improving the water and food security situation. The benefits include the watershed management enhancing and maintaining the productive capacity of natural resources in the watershed area; secondly, it arrests the degrading processes; and it becomes more cost-effective than rehabilitation of degraded watersheds, lastly the approach enables farmers to continue adapting their farming and learning best practises of farming which is critical in responding to droughts and reinvigorating water access and the rural agriculture (Table 4 below). The ultimate benefit of the watershed approach is that it increases the economic and social well-being of the participants of the basin and of the district, hence also providing a collaborative approach to responding to shocks especially droughts. These findings are consistent with what was highlighted by WFP (2016) in their study which stated that the watershed approach drive towards creation of assets that support agricultural activities, enabling water and food assets assistance and building blocks for community resilience against shocks whilst providing windows for improving food security.

Table 4: Triple-Quadruple Benefits of the Watershed Approach

Source: Field Work

Improved Subsistence Crop yields, Income and Community Health

With the watershed approach, land use and management has offered significant improvement in crop yields as witnessed by the communities of wards 5, 7, 15, and 18 and others surrounding the host wards for example areas such as Chimukoko, Shinga, and Nyamukoho of Mudzi district. These areas realized an improvement in the levels of production following the adoption of the watershed-based approach to rural agriculture. More households that were not involved in the piloting and implementation of the watershed-based approach realized its significance and they copied and implemented tenets of the approach by applying the model template in their fields and household plots. It has not only impacted on crop production but also brought improvement in livestock production, fruit and vegetable production under horticulture, and improved water provision and the health status of the community. According to the AGRITEX Officer of ward 7 (Chitambazi area), “Livelihood activities are now no longer based on dry land farming but are now diversified. Income generation is now all year round. Most households are now food secure and healthier through proper and continuous utilization of their pieces of irrigated land.” Communities are as well assured of a better harvest through undertaking the watershed-based approach in their household owned plots.

Environmental Protection and Agricultural Productivity

Planting of fodder grasses and trees upland preserves soil as well as established soil conservation and water harvesting structures. Terracing is one such practice that has significant contribution to the revival of conservation of the watershed area, improve water retention and sustains agricultural activities if undertaken holistically with other practices discussed earlier on. Combining of the efforts of the wider community, the government departments and development partners in implementing the watershed approach indicate that many public and private organizations can join forces and create multidisciplinary and multi-jurisdictional partnerships to focus on interventions that provide water solutions and heal the environment, the end result is that the communities participating benefit extensively from improved agriculture best practices, water assets and other related techniques, which all lead to food security and improved health in the community. The watershed approach has shown its ability to result in significant restoration, maintenance and protection of water resources in Mudzi district.

The communities in wards 5, 7, 15, and 18 in Mudzi rural district have hailed the watershed approach as transforming the way they are now doing farming. Accordingly, the impact of the watershed approach on their water situation, agricultural activities, livelihoods and food security are an indication that climate change effects that have largely affected the amount and distribution of rainfall in Mudzi district can be contained through the watershed approach. These challenges had created unimaginable water challenges and rendered agriculture an undependable option of livelihood in the district and caused a lot of suffering as many households were food insecure every year. Participants indicated that the watershed approach did not only show positive effect on agricultural production, but it also brought sanity in the communities, with communities now sensitive about taking care of the environment. The participants indicated that implementing and coordinating drought response, agricultural and livelihood programs and activities on a watershed basis makes good sense for social capabilities development and for boosting environmental, financial, social, and administrative capacities. This is more important in making the watershed approach more successful and sustainable. For example, in Mudzi, people had the opportunity to produce, harvest, protect and sustain by jointly reviewing their activities and efforts for water assets, agricultural activities, protection works, pollution control, fishing and other aquatic and natural resource protection activities from all levels of community leadership and interaction.

The approach also provided a better understanding that cumulatively produced positive impact that various activities would help the community to rediscover their capacities to improve their water situation, deal with droughts and attain food security. Applying the watershed approach in setting priorities for action allows the community and all involved parties from all community levels to allocate limited reasonable financial and human resources to collaboratively address the most critical needs like addressing water challenges emanating from climate change challenges. The participants have shown the desire to establish environmental measures that help them to guide activities towards solving high priority problems and measuring success in making real community improvements in their agricultural processes, addressing climate change and as well environmental protection. This is critical and important as it helps the community in many ways, for example, apart from driving results towards environmental benefits, the approach yield improved agricultural production, provides a platform for communities to learn and adopt best practices on top of cost savings by leveraging and building upon the willingness of the people with interests in the watershed to participate fully.

CONCLUSION

The article established that Mudzi district has consistently been affected by droughts and many other climate-related calamities which led to severe food insecurity. Communities and households that adopted the Watershed approach since its inception are way better-off and equipped to deal with the water challenges affecting the district leading to food and livelihood insecurity. They are well prepared to deal with future drought situations and food and livelihood issues using the learnings from the watershed approach. The watershed approach in Mudzi comprises of efforts to create productive water assets, implementing sustainable land use through best practices of agriculture, situational analysis to establish watersheds, protect them and create asserts that boost agricultural and livelihoods activities throughout the year. The availability of water, either harvested from the watershed or indirectly through good environmental management for example through improved underground water serves well for climate-change affected communities. The water harvesting technologies and activities help to manage the droughts that used to ravage the district. Soil conservation and best agricultural practices improves land use and crop and livestock production. The watershed approach has shown promises to be key in the revival of rural agriculture through well managed watershed areas, combined with compatible assets and selecting correct cultivars suitable for the areas. The approach in Mudzi has seen most farmers harvesting more than their household consumption requirements and have remained with surplus for selling.

The study showed that the watershed approach contributes to improving community water access (for various uses), revival of rural agriculture and food security (drought response) in several ways. The process of managing the watershed areas and selecting correct cultivars suitable for the area shows improved awareness and communities acknowledging the need to deal with impacts of drought disasters. With the availability of water, the approach has seen most farmers harvesting more than their household consumption requirements and has remained with surplus for selling. Adoption of conservation agriculture as part of watershed management activities intensified environmentally sound management techniques. The environment is spared from degradation while levels of production are enhanced thereby attaining household food security for the Mudzi communities. The cropping system in Mudzi rural district has been heavily affected by inadequate and erratic rainfall distribution. Undertaking water harvesting and water conservation techniques through mechanical conservation structures mentioned earlier has helped improve water harvesting, retention and crop performance. In order to help communities achieve water and food security, the article also reveals that the watershed approach needs to be supplemented by a range of best practices, such as upstream and downstream management of water resources, selecting suitable crop varieties and planting them on time, proper spacing for good crop cover to the soil, weeding and timely application of organic fertilizer (with a preference for animal manure and decomposed manure), and pest control.

Partnerships forging improved communication and coordination on tailoring the watershed approach to the Mudzi rural district context, which led to increased benefits of the watershed approach as everyone knows what to do and how to do it. This reduced costly duplication of efforts and conflicting actions. As a result, everything points to key benefits of the watershed approach, that of a clear understanding of the approach as a multi-pronged approach, enabling managing the crucial resources within a watershed – community, including aspects of water shortages, climate change and enhancing local agricultural production and food security. Lastly, the watershed approach has improved local collaboration between communities and their public and private sectors to address the severe consequences of drought-related water insecurity, improve local agriculture, and improve the environment all while making the most of the limited resources available. As the rural population depends on rain-fed subsistence agriculture for livelihoods, food, and incomes, this has proven to be crucial in helping the community combat food and livelihood instability and preserve natural resources for health.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Policy and Planning for Water Security, Climate Action, Poverty and Hunger

The watershed strategy is a practical and scalable solution to address the risks associated with drought risk, water scarcity, and promoting food security. It is a driving force behind accomplishing the following objectives: water security; eradicating hunger; combating climate change; poverty; and securing food and nutrition through land-based activities. The strategy can be tailored to fit the unique circumstances of each community and works best in situations when agricultural ecosystems are being severely damaged by climate change. The strategy is backed by science and technology, and it works well with all contemporary management approaches that prioritize sustainability and results. Since the strategy is centered on the concept of planning around water resources, all communities, but notably rural communities, can adapt it and incorporate its precepts to address issues related to water, climate change, and the revival of agriculture in marginalized communities. Many communities’ ability to achieve food security has been severely hampered by water issues, which have also made their situation more vulnerable to the shocks of climate change.

Policy on Food Security and Rural Agricultural Transformation

A successful policy on food security and poverty reduction can be facilitated by the watershed approach and its associated activities. The approach is predicated on people’s opinions and planning, and it focuses on encouraging local collaborative initiatives that are comfortable with science and technology and thrive on local resources. The Zimbabwean government, working with its development partners and relevant structures, should seize this opportunity to establish strategies that effectively implement the customized ideals of the watershed approach to enhance agricultural productivity and alleviate the food insecurity crisis that primarily affects rural and marginalized communities.

People-Stakeholder blend for Sustainable Development

The success and sustainability of the watershed approach depend on the participation and blending of people, in addition to its economic advantages. All stakeholders, including upstream and downstream users of water and other natural resources, government agencies, development partners, and other interested parties, connect and get involved from the start in watershed management plans. Integration, engagement, and participation are essential for working together to find solutions for problems involving water, disaster relief, and food security. The belief that the watershed approach is a coordinating framework for environmental management that concentrates public and private sector efforts to address the most pressing issues for communities while considering both local and federal laws that regulate land use and management is in line with the idea that collaborative efforts work well.

Data Availability

Data for this article can be found at Great Zimbabwe University (GZU)/residues for a PhD Thesis Titled: Towards Rural Household Food Security Through Investment in Productive Assets (PA): A Case of Mudzi District in Zimbabwe.

Conflict Of Interest

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this paper.

Funding Statement

This publication was self-funded by the authors, no external funders contributed to this paper financially.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In order to facilitate field data collection, which produced the data utilized in this work, the Mudzi Rural District Council, the Mudzi District Development Coordinator’s office, and the Mudzi rural community are all acknowledged by the authors.

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