Misunderstood with No Desire to Be Understood: Socio-Cultural Dimension of Farming and Conservation Agriculture in Zimbabwe

Abstract

There is extensive literature on barriers and constraints of Conservation Agriculture (CA) adoption in Zimbabwe, but the impact of local socio-cultural factors on the adoption of this technology for rural farm households has largely been assumed. The research was designed to understand socio-cultural factors that led to dis-adoption and outright rejection of this seemingly appropriate intervention using empirical qualitative data from a case study in Nyanga District. The article found that there is a discernible and significant relationship between farming practise (farmers’ prior experiences, culture, Indigenous knowledge systems and values) arrangements and the abandonment and outright rejection of CA.