Strategies for sustainable rural development in Mozambique: a case study of the Chimani Transfrontier Conservation Area Project

Abstract

This study examines the process and implementation of a conservation project in Chimanimani locality, a remote rural area located in Sussundenga district in the central province of Manica. The Chimanimani Transfrontier Conservation Area Project, as the Project became known, was one of the conservation area projects established in three provinces of Mozambique (Maputo, Gaza and Manica1) in the years following the civil conflict. In essence the Chimanimani Project was framed to enhance environmental sustainability of the targeted areas and contribute to poverty reduction through sustainable use of local natural resources. Accordingly, it was seen as a way of improving the overall quality of life of the targeted communities. The study analyses the Project efforts of utilizing the synergies between conservation and community development in rural areas where income-earning opportunities are limited. The research has focused on two of the five Chimanimani communities (Nhaedzi and Moribane) and brings to the fore evidences of the factors that have affected either positively or negatively the success of the Project.