Socio-economic aspects of animal power: a diagnostic study in Zimbabwe.

A diagnostic participatory and questionnaire survey of 451 farmers was conducted in Tsholotsho, Chinyika and Mutoko Communal Areas in Zimbabwe to understand farmers? crop production constraints in relation to draft power. Nearly half (49%) of all the farmers had no draft animals but 55% of these had access to neighbours? or relatives? animals. The rest hired or worked in others? fields in exchange for draft use. Animal diseases and shortage of grazing land were noted as the major problems in animal production. Both farmer education and experience as well as household herd were found to vary between districts (p