Davies, Jonathan

This article uses a case study of the Mabalauta Workshop in Zimbabwe to examine whether PRA can produce comparable and/or better quantitative economic data than traditional economic methods and whether PRA methods are more cost effective than the traditional techniques. Both methodologies were found to have their particular strengths and weaknesses, but could be combined to create a 'portfolio' of choices that complement each other.

The main objective of this paper is to assess existing and emerging economic tools in terms of their potential and limitations for assessing stakeholder incentives in Participatory forest management (PFM). It explores the debate between two schools of opinion as regards the application of economics to community-level forestry. On the one hand there are those who think economic analysis is inappropriate or tends to result in æspurious precisionÆ, and who feel that a more qualitative analysis is more appropriate and useful.

This paper gives account of a study that was made as part of Mabalauta Workshop, held in south-eastern Zimbabwe. The study makes a comparison of PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal) methods and a household sample survey for eliciting economic data on the use of the Ilala palm (Hyphaene petersiana), an important resource for livelihoods in this area of Zimbabwe.