Adapting to pressure? Social capital dynamics in Greendale Harare

Innocent Chirisa* and Halleluah Mangombe-Chirisa

Senior Lecturer, Department of Rural and Urban Planning, University of Zimbabwe, PO Box MP167 Mt Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe.

*Corresponding Author E-mail: chirisa.innocent@gmail.com

Accepted 21 June, 2012

Abstract

The paper maps the different intra- and inter-grouping social capital strategies for survival by the cosmopolitan neighbourhoods of Greendale, a ‘dry’ suburb in Harare, Zimbabwe. Since the turn of the twenty-first century Zimbabwe underwent several challenges primarily due to its controversial national policies leading to international isolation. This isolation saw a general paralysis of the country’s economy along income groupings. Greendale is a residential area traditionally known for housing principally high and middle income groups of Harare. But, particularly the year 2005 saw wide and huge influx of low-income groups in the residential area. The major reason for this development was the push due to the controversial Operation Murambatsvina by the government in the same year. Subsequently, this thrust  saw the relegated populations finding new accommodation in especially former servant quarters in the suburbs now predominantly occupied by the ‘petty African bourgeoisie’ class. The original white land occupiers should have mostly evacuated their homes due to the general unfavourable and hostile economic and political situation in the country. The thrust of this discourse is to chronicle the adversity of experience of the ‘new look’ neighbourhood, in the context of the broader national and geo-political tumult and jerks including but not limited to power faults, water cuts, cash shortages and empty shelves in shops. It underlines some of the functional networks and strategies for survival adopted by the social groupings in the neighbourhood.

Keywords: Neighbourhood, social capital, economic policy, constraints, trust