Original Research

Perceptions of water access in the context of climate change by rural households in the Seke and Murewa districts, Zimbabwe

Shakespear Mudombi, Mammo Muchie
Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies | Vol 5, No 1 | a71 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/jamba.v5i1.71 | © 2013 Shakespear Mudombi, Mammo Muchie | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 06 January 2013 | Published: 17 September 2013

About the author(s)

Shakespear Mudombi, Institute for Economic Research on Innovation, Tshwane University of Technology, South Africa
Mammo Muchie, Insitute for Economic Research on Innovation, Tshwane University of Technology, South Africa

Abstract

The objective of the study was to assess perceptions of rural household heads with regard to various aspects of water access and climate change, and to evaluate whether there were significant differences in perceptions of respondents from female-headed and male-headed households. The study is based on a cross-sectional survey of 300 respondents conducted in the Seke and Murewa districts of Zimbabwe in 2011. The analysis included mainly descriptive statistics. The majority of both female-headed and male-headed households relied on rainfall for their crops, rivers were cited as the main water source for their livestock and protected wells supplied water for household use. Households experienced water shortages, which were attributed mainly to reduced rainfall. The general perception was that there would be less water available in future, with a greater proportion of female-headed than male-headed households perceiving such difficulties. However, very few respondents indicated that they would consider emigrating, although female-headed households were more likely to consider emigrating than male-headed households. A considerable number of respondents indicated that they did not have any means to overcome the water shortages. This highlights the need for interventions such as training and empowerment of individuals with regard to sustainable water use and management.


Keywords

Water access; Gender; Climate change; Rural; Adaptation; Drought; Zimbabwe

Metrics

Total abstract views: 13535
Total article views: 13295

 

Crossref Citations

1. Building adaptive capacity: Reducing the climate vulnerability of smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe
Tinashe Mitchell Mashizha
Business Strategy & Development  vol: 2  issue: 3  first page: 166  year: 2019  
doi: 10.1002/bsd2.50