Strengthening Local Institutional Development and Capacity of Local Leaders

Chegutu, Mbire, Mudzi and Chikomba - December 21, 2023

The partnership between the CFHD and Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) continues to grow through a joint initiative on training of traditional leaders. The CFHD successfully trained a total of 3,146 traditional leaders from Chegutu, Mbire, Mudzi and Chikomba districts with funding from KAS. The training workshops focused mainly on the following four key components:

Constitutionalism and the Role of Traditional Leaders.
Social Cohesion and Culture Rejuvenation
Green Economy and Community-led Resilience Building Roles and Responsibilities of Traditional Leaders within Their Communities on Local Government Systems.
Devolution and Vision 2030

CFHD worked with the office of the District Development Coordinator (DDC) who were mobilizing the targeted participants at the local level. The training workshops also targeted the Village Development Committee (VIDCO) secretaries to be part of the training.

Some key takeaways from the training of traditional leaders include:

The marriage institution under the patriarchal system was highlighted as a major barrier for women to be considered for major positions in the institution of traditional leadership. Thus, if women can be encouraged and given chances to start as secretaries they can advocate for the implementation of many other women-specific priorities in the RDCs for the good of humanity.
The institution of traditional leadership is still regarded in high esteem by members of the community. For instance, members of the rural communities rely on the traditional courts in situations of conflict. The traditional courts are more accessible and cheap for rural communities than modern courts. The traditional courts tend to emphasize reconciliation rather than retribution to ensure harmony among neighbors, relatives, and communities in rural areas.
The dispute-resolution role of traditional leaders is widely accepted by the government and rural populace. This role, however, is slowly being questioned in light of factors such as unethical and criminal conduct by some traditional leaders. The low educational levels of most traditional leaders and their inability to apply a consistent doctrine have raised doubts about their competence and credibility as judicial officials. This knowledge gap needs to be closed to ensure the rule of law and social justice in the communities.
The training workshops brought present and futuristic mutual understanding between traditional leaders and relevant local authorities enabling the institutions to consult and engage each other in any activity requiring the complementarity of their roles.
It is very important for local authorities to work together with the traditional leaders in ensuring that quality services are delivered to the rural communities. Projects at Ward level can be monitored by the traditional leaders if they are capacitated.
The traditional leaders are an indigenous resource who can assist in any way that needs indigenous knowledge guidelines from either the respective traditional leader or the village people.

The CFHD and KAS have developed a Community Leadership Manual which is an outcome from the interactions with councillors and traditional leaders in rural areas. The key objective of the manual is to improve understanding by traditional leaders, councillors and other leaders of the legal and policy framework that provides for their roles and responsibilities. Another objective is to raise community awareness of the constitutional provisions that support citizen engagement in planning and consultation processes. The manual will also equip community leaders with the requisite skills and knowledge for facilitating community prioritization processes that are inclusive and responsive to the needs of members of the community. Training local leaders builds their capacities in facilitating conflict resolution, transformation processes and initiatives within their areas of jurisdiction as well as to equip members of the community with requisite skills and tools for effective community communication.