Wilfred Lunga

• PhD Development and Management (Disaster Studies)
• African Research Fellow at the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) at Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC)

With constrained resources and many issues at hand, various prioritization mechanisms will be needed to determine issues to be addressed for the upcoming Science Policy Panel (SPP) for chemicals, waste and pollution, currently mandated for development by the UN Environment Assembly. This proposed rapid review sets out one way to assist in prioritiz...

Essay 1: Foresight Visions: Embracing Community-led and Indigenous Perspectives

Recent trends in science communication have demonstrated that many scientific and social innovations that have the potential to empower society and facilitate social transformation can only achieve their aims through inclusive engagement methodologies and approaches. In the Global South, scientists and science communicators are increasingly acknowl...

Globally, the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events including flash floods, rising sea levels, and storms is increasing. Poorly planned informal settlements have become more vulnerable. In most regions, infrastructure to cope and protect the vulnerable from such impacts is inadequate. This article aimed to elucidate the main issues face...

Introduction Recent trends in science communication have demonstrated that there is an increasing need for scientific information as well as the ability to access it. This has been especially true during the COVID-19 pandemic, where the extent of misinformation and disinformation (Ahinkora et al, 2020) has been a source of concern, with information...

Zimbabwe has been experiencing food insecurity for many centuries. This study sought to explore and learn from Zimbabwe’s past and current food security (FS) efforts and challenges, through three historical periods, namely the precolonial, colonial and postcolonial, from about 1430 to 2020. The year 1430 marks the establishment of the Monomotapa st...

This research study explores the impact of disasters on economic growth in selected Southern Africa Development Community countries. Annual data from 2005 to 2019 and panel data econometric estimation techniques are used in this study. The estimation approaches used control for both pooled and individual effects, heteroscedasticity, serial correlat...

We argue in this paper that indigenous knowledge systems on teenage pregnancy have some good qualities and traits that can be harnessed to inform contemporary interventions. Seroto (2011, p. 79) explained that indigenous education in Africa was practised in two ways: informally through parents and elders in society in a socialisation process and fo...

An extreme drought event occurred in the Western Cape when the mean level of water supply dams declined to 28% of capacity in August 2017 (Odendaal 2019). Our survey of 240 households and 71 businesses identified neighbourhood variations in response to the drought and to local government restrictions in water usage, and in the methods of adaptation...

Communicating about teenage pregnancy is increasingly necessary to combat rising teenage pregnancy in South Africa, particularly in rural areas, where teenage pregnancy is reportedly growing rapidly among school-going pupils. Several communication interventions have been proposed many of which were informed by scholarly theoretical frameworks, glob...

The increasing frequency of disasters induced by anthropogenic and natural hazards has epitomised the complex nature of dealing with uncertainty. Cyclone Idai-induced floods in Southern Africa had a series of foreseeable and unforeseeable risks that affected vulnerable communities in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Thus a key question to address i...

The increasing frequency of disasters induced by anthropogenic and natural hazards has epitomised the complex nature of dealing with uncertainty. Cyclone Idai-induced floods in Southern Africa had a series of foreseeable and unforeseeable risks that affected vulnerable communities in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Thus a key question to address i...

This policy brief explores and provides a holistic view of the existing practices, issues, and opportunities for a sustainable coastal management initiative among the G20 member countries. Specifically, it highlights coastal disaster risk reduction and resilience strategies, along with the financial implications of public investment on the need of...

An extreme drought event occurred in the Western Cape when the mean level of water supply dams declined to 28% of capacity in August 2017 (Odendaal 2019). Our survey of 240 households and 71 businesses identified neighbourhood variations in response to the drought and to local government restrictions in water usage, and in the methods of adaptation...

Population aging has become a global concern for most economies due to the implications it has on labor market dynamics and economic development. Aging results in increased expenditure on health and welfare services, yet the labor force shrinks and is unable to match available labor market opportunities, with detrimental results for production and...

Chapter discusses the social and behavioural change communication (SBCC) as a domain in health communication. It presents empirical examples of successful culturally-oriented health communication in the Global South with a specific focus on HIV/Aids.

The policy thrust of disaster risk reduction initiatives is in many instances tailored towards able-bodied people. This is at the expense of those challenged in many facets such as physically, mentally and other forms of disability. The suggestion for disability to be mainstreamed into disaster risk reduction initiatives has been made imperative by...

Population ageing has become a global concern for most economies due to the implications it has on labor market dynamics and economic development. Ageing results in increased expenditure on health and welfare services, yet the labour force shrinks and is unable to match available labour market opportunities, with detrimental results for production...

As migration trends escalate and child migrations patterns rise, G20 countries need to rethink policy frameworks and ensure that they facilitate ease of access to education for migrant children. Policies around regularization of stay, inclusive pedagogies and education funding should be strategically developed to enhance enrollments of children of...

This article is based on an evaluation concerning the practice of the Zunde raMambo concept (commonly referred to as Zunde) in four of Zimbabwe's 52 districts; (Mangwe, Lupane, Guruve and Hwedza). Zunde is a social security system providing protection against food shortages to vulnerable families and is coordinated by chiefs. The Zunde concept iden...

This research explored the relationship between vulnerability and the use of indigenous knowledge in mitigating disasters particularly those linked to food security and preservation of forest resources in some communities in Zimbabwe. This focus on provision of food was important since food issues have an immediate impact on communities and for vul...

This report is a synthesised analysis of Ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction (Eco-DRR) in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) for the RELIEF kit project. This project looks at how Eco-DRR is incorporated into the various biodiversity conservation efforts either directly or indirectly. It seeks to outline the economic case for Eco- DRR and the dev...

Disaster risk reduction as a strategy is increasingly gaining prominence in development discourse within the context of a paradigm shift from post-disaster relief and reconstruction to pre-disaster prevention and preparedness. In the SADC region particularly in Zimbabwe, drought has always had a devastating impact on people's livelihoods and hence...

Immigration is a source of concern to politicians and the public alike the world over. This phenomenon often characterized by labour flight from relatively poor and politically unstable economies to regional economic hubs, is closely tied to illegal immigration activities. Thus the purpose of this research was to investigate factors influencing Zim...

As Non Governmental Organizations are expanding in Zimbabwe with the aim of fighting the widening poverty levels in communities and to curb HIV/AIDS pandemic, there is an increased need for volunteers to staff and support these organizations. Despite the NGOs operating under limited financial resources, they still faced the challenge of attracting...

Most of Zimbabwe's urban settlements owe their existence to mining activities; hence most peri-urban communities around Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second largest city, are mining communities. However, research in these mining communities has shown that there is little focus on the strengthening of community dynamics that help members to cope with the cha...