Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana

Youths in Zimbabwe constitute the majority of the population but are either sidelined or alienated from electoral processes, weakening the very ground-works of citizenship and democracy. Young people in Zimbabwe are facing different challenges ranging from unemployment, poverty, drug abuse, crime, p...

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Main Author: Chigwenjere, Lisben Tawanda
Language:English
Published: Midlands State University 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11408/2198
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author Chigwenjere, Lisben Tawanda
author_facet Chigwenjere, Lisben Tawanda
author_sort Chigwenjere, Lisben Tawanda
collection DSpace
description Youths in Zimbabwe constitute the majority of the population but are either sidelined or alienated from electoral processes, weakening the very ground-works of citizenship and democracy. Young people in Zimbabwe are facing different challenges ranging from unemployment, poverty, drug abuse, crime, prostitution, lack of funding for tertiary education, and HIV/AIDS. These problems have been exacerbated by an undemocratic and unyielding ZANU PF government which has been in power since 1980. Young people in Zimbabwe have been exploited by the ZANU PF party and made into ruffians responsible for attacking and hurting members and supporters of the opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). Factors such as political violence have contributed to the fear of politics among the youth in Zimbabwe, scaring them away from the electoral process. This has created a “participatory crisis” in Zimbabwe which is weakening the very groundworks of citizenship and democracy. Against this backdrop, this study sought to establish the nature and extent of youth participation in electoral processes in Zimbabwe, using the case study of Kuwadzana, in Harare Province. The study used a descriptive research design and a combination of purposive and stratified random sampling techniques in order to choose the participants. Data was collected using questionnaires, interviews and the Internet. The results of the study indicated that young people in Zimbabwe wish to participate in electoral process of their country in order to change the economic, political, and economic conditions of their country, but they fear victimization. They are also distrustful of Zimbabwe’s electoral process. The government of Zimbabwe, the political parties in the country, and the civil society, are encouraged to take measures in ensuring that young people in Zimbabwe participate in electoral processes. This is the only hope for consolidating democracy in Zimbabwe.
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spelling ir-11408-21982022-06-27T13:49:05Z Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana Chigwenjere, Lisben Tawanda Youths Zimbabwe Electoral processes Youths in Zimbabwe constitute the majority of the population but are either sidelined or alienated from electoral processes, weakening the very ground-works of citizenship and democracy. Young people in Zimbabwe are facing different challenges ranging from unemployment, poverty, drug abuse, crime, prostitution, lack of funding for tertiary education, and HIV/AIDS. These problems have been exacerbated by an undemocratic and unyielding ZANU PF government which has been in power since 1980. Young people in Zimbabwe have been exploited by the ZANU PF party and made into ruffians responsible for attacking and hurting members and supporters of the opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). Factors such as political violence have contributed to the fear of politics among the youth in Zimbabwe, scaring them away from the electoral process. This has created a “participatory crisis” in Zimbabwe which is weakening the very groundworks of citizenship and democracy. Against this backdrop, this study sought to establish the nature and extent of youth participation in electoral processes in Zimbabwe, using the case study of Kuwadzana, in Harare Province. The study used a descriptive research design and a combination of purposive and stratified random sampling techniques in order to choose the participants. Data was collected using questionnaires, interviews and the Internet. The results of the study indicated that young people in Zimbabwe wish to participate in electoral process of their country in order to change the economic, political, and economic conditions of their country, but they fear victimization. They are also distrustful of Zimbabwe’s electoral process. The government of Zimbabwe, the political parties in the country, and the civil society, are encouraged to take measures in ensuring that young people in Zimbabwe participate in electoral processes. This is the only hope for consolidating democracy in Zimbabwe. 2017-06-23T11:57:24Z 2017-06-23T11:57:24Z 2016 http://hdl.handle.net/11408/2198 en open Midlands State University
spellingShingle Youths
Zimbabwe
Electoral processes
Chigwenjere, Lisben Tawanda
Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana
title Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana
title_full Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana
title_fullStr Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana
title_full_unstemmed Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana
title_short Examining youth participation in the electoral process of Zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of Kuwadzana
title_sort examining youth participation in the electoral process of zimbabwe from the period 2000 - 2013: case study of kuwadzana
topic Youths
Zimbabwe
Electoral processes
url http://hdl.handle.net/11408/2198
work_keys_str_mv AT chigwenjerelisbentawanda examiningyouthparticipationintheelectoralprocessofzimbabwefromtheperiod20002013casestudyofkuwadzana