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The role of extension in strengthening relationships among stakeholders along agricultural commodity value chains remains an important discussion point especially with orphan crops in semi-arid areas. The study used a participatory framework to analyse the sorghum value chain in the Mid Zambezi Valley of Zimbabwe. A sample comprising of 380 small scale farmers, proportionately selected from five major sorghum producing wards, was used. Six agrodealers, 15 traders, 10 retailers, three wholesalers, and two processors were also sampled. In addition, focus group discussions, informant interviews, questionnaires and reviews of financial records were conducted. Input supply systems for sorghum are weakly developed and production is stalled by inappropriate innovations including seed and fertilizer application. Marketing and processing channels are limited due to erratic supply and low producer prices. Demand for sorghum inputs can be created by engaging extension agents in helping farmers with realising the benefits of using improved sorghum seed varieties and fertilizer in sorghum production. This will smoothen the flow of sorghum products along strategic value chain nodes.

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Sorghum is important for sustainability of smallholder farmers’ subsistence, social and economic livelihoods in semi-arid and arid environments of Southern Africa. However, production of the crop has been on the decline in the smallholder communities of semi-arid Zimbabwe. The study examines factors affecting smallholder farmers’ inclination towards producing sorghum and allocating differential land proportions towards the crop. The paper uses a double hurdle estimation approach with cross-sectional survey data from 380 small holder sorghum farmers in the Mid Zambezi region. Frequency of contact with relatives, duration of receiving subsidies and the number of groups to which household members belonged had a robust influence (p<0.01) on the adoption decision. Market frequency, availability of storage facilities and the number of buyers in the market significantly (p<0.01) influenced the land allocation decision. Variables influencing the two decisions are not necessarily the same showing independence in the decisions. However, information flow from networks and conditions of market platforms remain important variables in the two decisions. It is important to decentralise sorghum markets, strengthen local networks of kinships and increase the scope of inclusive and responsive formal extension delivery systems. Storage facilities can also be developed in partnership with private players to allow for sales during market windows which generates higher returns for the small holder sorghum farmers.

This article explores the identity-construction capacity of place names. Since place names are icons of identity, and symbolic representations of a people's memory and belonging, the article analyses the use of place names in the creation of distinct racial identities for places in Salisbury (the presentday Harare) during the colonial era in Zimbabwe. This article views a place as a concept which goes beyond the physical dimension, since it is discursively constructed. The article gives special attention to Salisbury because it was the capital city of Rhodesia. As such the place-naming trends in Salisbury were repeated throughout the country. Place naming is part of the wider process of attaching an identity on the landscape partly because place names carry aspects of the lived experiences of a particular people. In addition, a name is a cultural symbol which projects fears, hopes, aspirations and the general belief system of a people. It is a critical component of the intangible heritage of a people. Rhodesia had a rigid system of racial segregation. The article examines the nature of the relationship between place naming and the colonial separate development policy given that the same colonial administrative system also superintended over the official place-naming system through approving and standardising all official geographical names. The article analyses three components of the built environment, namely street names in residential areas, names of residential areas and school names.