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1 Billy Mukamuri, Jeanette Manjengwa & Simon Anstey This book seeks to capture the spirit of Professor Marshall Murphree’s work and convictions from the past, present and in shaping future research initiatives . The book is based on a collection of papers that were prepared for and presented at a conference hosted in honour of Murphree’s work, held at Leopard Rock Hotel, Vumba, Zimbabwe, in May 2007. Professor Marshall Murphree contributed immensely to academia, to the conservation of wildlife resources, to community development and to race relations for more than four decades. His professional career as an academic and social developer was anchored at the Centre for Applied Social Sciences (CASS), formerly called the Centre for Race Relations, which he opened in the 1960s. The book covers a wide range of issues that are in the purview of Professor Murphree’s scholarship, and conveys a central concern with the notion of equality and fairness to all humankind. There is a deliberate focus on the poor and marginalised people living in Southern Africa’s most impoverished and remote regions, characterised by low rainfall, limited agricultural potential, and poor infrastructure and social services. However, these remote regions have latent opportunities for economic development and conservation of natural resources, particularly wildlife. This opportunity for wildlife-based development was noted by Murphree and his colleagues while they worked with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Management. Following the attainment of Zimbabwe’s independence in 1980, race became sidelined in economic debates; access, management and benefit sharing of the country’s natural resources took centre stage. Murphree and his colleagues spearheaded the wildlife proprietorship initiatives. The group’s effort led to the creation of the world acclaimed Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (Campfire) programme in the mid-1980s. The programme, though encompassing other natural resources, was centred on wildlife in Communal Areas adjacent to National Parks and other protected areas. It was, and is still, based on the principles set by Murphree and his colleagues , notably Rowan Martin, who crafted the initial Campfire document. These principles centre on proprietorship of wildlife by communal people 1 Introduction Billy Mukamuri, Jeanette Manjengwa & Simon Anstey 2 INTRODUCTION living with wildlife and their right to benefit from funds generated through wildlife-based activities including trophy hunting, culling and eco-tourism. Wildlife management was devolved from the state to local communities in partnership with or through their respective Rural District Councils (RDCs). Murphree and colleagues, together with students largely from CASS, provided academic and professional advice to Campfire. The first decade of Campfire implementation was characterised by success, evidenced by financial dividends that were channelled to the communities through their respective RDCs. Funds derived from Campfire activities were used to build or upgrade schools, clinics, community centres, as well as remit dividends to households. However, reviews of the programme have indicated reversals in these benefits, particularly following the implementation of economic reforms which led to reduced government subsidies to RDCs. There is recognition that RDCs tend to derive more benefit from the wildlife remittances than do local communities, and that RDCs have retained most of the power related to decision making. Despite these problems, recent research indicates that the design of Campfire has not been found wanting. What needs to be promoted is how to make local authorities more responsive to the needs and aspirations of local communities. Achieving this requires more transparency and accountability, as well as communities being able to set up institutions that can deal with all these issues. Contributors to the book have interacted with Professor Murphree in various capacities: people who have worked with him over the last 20 or more years, his former students and friends, academics currently based at CASS who have benefited immensely from his scholarship and leadership, as well as postgraduate students who continue to be inspired by him. The chapters are predicated on past and present community-based natural resource management initiatives in Southern Africa. The strand running through them borrows from a series of Murphree’s principles governing the relationship between bureaucracy and local communities: devolution, decentralisation and rights over decision making and property, and the inclusion of marginalised communities who bear the consequences of living with wildlife. Community-based natural resource management principles Rowan Martin’s chapter summarises the core values and principles espoused by Murphree. Though the laws, or perhaps more correctly ‘principles’, are not sorted by order of importance, readers are able to get...

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