Reviving BaTonga culture to support community development: A case of Zambezi Valley communities, Zimbabwe

Abstract

The Tonga culture in the Zambezi Valley has lost some value due to various driving factors which speeded the atomisation of culture amongst BaTonga people in North-Western Zimbabwe. The main thrust of the paper is to identify major causes of cultural decay in the Zambezi Valley communities, assess the impact of cultural decay and suggest solutions that are aimed at preservation of BaTonga culture in ways that promote community development This study was carried out in the Zambezi Valley communities of Binga, Nyaminyami, and Hwange with a sample size of 30 people targeting Tonga people. Mixed methods and simple statistics were used to quantify the data collected during the research. Ethically, local leadership (chiefs and village heads), heads of departments in the districts were consulted to seek permission to carry out the research. The key informants and focussed group discussion participants were carefully selected to include old men and women who were displaced from Zambezi River during the construction of the Kariba dam in 1950’s as well as group of able-bodied men, women and youth to obtain detailed information on the phenomenon which is under review. The need for this research therefore arose due to unbridled increase in disappearance of cultural values and norms among BaTonga people along Zambezi Valley in Zimbabwe.

How to cite this article using ASWNet style

Muntanga W. (2023). Reviving BaTonga culture to support community development. A case of Zambezi Valley communities, Zimbabwe. People centred – The Journal of Development Administration (JDA), 8(4), 121-126. https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jda.v8i4.4                            

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