Catholic University of Zimbabwe

This study investigates the roots of tension, mistrust, and social dichotomy between war veterans and communities in Zimbabwe, across the 10 provinces. Despite multiple welfare interventions, including the War Veterans Act (1992), veterans remain economically vulnerable and socially isolated, while communities perceive them as politically privileged yet disconnected. It aimed to (1) analyse the historical, political, and socio-economic factors contributing to this mistrust and (2) explore community perceptions, coping mechanisms, and potential pathways for reconciliation and integration. It was grounded in two complementary theories: Social Identity Theory, which explains how veterans are positioned as an “in-group” with symbolic authority, and Conflict Transformation Theory, which emphasizes relational and structural change for sustainable peace. Methodologically, the study adopts a pragmatic philosophy, qualitative dominant mixed method approach with an explanatory design. Data were collected through key informant interviews, document analysis of five institutional texts, including the War Veterans Act and African Union DDR Standards complemented by questionnaires. Thematic coding and content analysis, guided by Braun and Clarke’s framework, were used to identify recurring patterns and policy gaps. Abductive reasoning linked empirical findings to theoretical insights. The study concludes that Veteran–community relations in Zimbabwe are defined by a paradox; war veterans, once celebrated as liberators, are now perceived as politically privileged yet socially disconnected, while communities feel excluded and marginalized. This entrenched mistrust cannot be resolved through welfare alone. Sustainable reconciliation requires structural reforms that embed community voices, foster inclusive dialogue, and support grassroots cooperation. Veterans must be repositioned as equal participants in national development, moving beyond politicized, welfare-centric frameworks toward inclusive, community-driven reconciliation strategies that bridge divides and foster genuine social integration. Reconciliation requires more than welfare, it demands structured dialogue, community-driven economic cooperation, and cultural mediation. Reconciliation requires more than welfare, it demands structured dialogue, community-driven economic cooperation, and cultural mediation. It therefore recommendations reforming veteran legislation to embed integration mechanisms, empowering traditional and religious leaders to mediate tensions, and supporting grassroots initiatives that foster shared livelihoods and mutual respect. Ultimately develops an integrated reconciliation and cohesion model for transforming veteran–community relations and advancing inclusive development in Zimbabwe is proposed.

This study, set out to interrogate the evolution of capitalism in Zimbabwe as both an economic system and a political-social order, tracing its trajectory from colonial imposition to post-independence experimentation, neoliberal restructuring, and contemporary informalization. The central problem addressed is that capitalism in Zimbabwe has been fractured, contested, and marked by exclusion, with colonial racial capitalism entrenching dispossession and coercive labour, post-independence statist capitalism promising redistribution but constrained by inefficiency and elite capture, and neoliberal reforms deepening inequality while dismantling social safety nets. The objectives were fourfold: to examine capitalist development during the settler-colonial period (1890–1980), to analyse state-led capitalist experimentation (1980–1990), to explore contemporary informal capitalism (2000–present), and to investigate how ordinary Zimbabweans navigated these transitions. The theoretical framework integrated Dependency Theory (Frank, Amin, Rodney) to explain external domination and structural underdevelopment, and Peripheral Capitalism Theory (Cardoso and Faletto) to capture post-independence contradictions, elite capture, and citizen agency, thereby situating Zimbabwe within broader debates on dependency and peripheral capitalism. Methodologically, the study adopted a pragmatic orientation and explanatory case study design, combining document analysis and semi-structured interviews with key informants from government, academia, labour, civil society, and media, analysed through thematic clustering and triangulation. The overall conclusion is that Zimbabwe’s capitalist trajectory has unfolded through disjointed transitions; settler racial capitalism, statist bureaucratic capitalism, neoliberal restructuring, and informal survivalism, each marked by structural inequality, elite entrenchment, and grassroots improvisation, demonstrating that capitalism in Zimbabwe is both imposed and negotiated, reproducing dependency while generating spaces of resilience and adaptation. Recommendations emphasize the need for inclusive planning, recognition of informal economies, equitable resource distribution, and stronger partnerships between government, civil society, and communities, so that grassroots innovation and citizen agency can be harnessed to complement national development strategies and foster a more just, participatory, and sustainable economic future.

Background of the study: This study examines cognitive development in early childhood within the context of play-based learning at Al-Hidayah Kindergarten. Grounded in constructivist perspectives, the research emphasizes that cognitive development in early childhood is shaped not merely by stimulus–response mechanisms, but by children’s active engagement and individual learning processes. Accordingly, learning processes are considered more critical than final outcomes, given the variability in children’s cognitive developmental trajectories. Aims and scope of paper: The study aims to explore how structured play activities—specifically puzzle-solving and block-stacking—support cognitive learning processes, including problem-solving and creativity, in a preschool setting. It also investigates the implementation of group-based learning models and identifies challenges encountered in fostering cognitive development through play. Methods: A qualitative research design was employed, with data collected through classroom observations and semi-structured interviews with teachers. The analysis focused on children’s interactions during play activities and how these interactions reflected their cognitive development. Results: The findings indicate that play-based learning significantly supports the development of children’s cognitive abilities, particularly in problem-solving and creative thinking. Nevertheless, several challenges were identified, including children’s tendency to lose interest quickly and the emergence of egocentric behaviors, such as limited willingness to share and cooperate with peers. Contribution: This study contributes to the global discourse on early childhood education by providing empirical insights into how play-based learning and responsive pedagogical strategies support cognitive development in preschool settings. It extends existing literature by illustrating the interplay between cognitively enriching play activities and children’s behavioral responses within everyday classroom contexts. By identifying both enabling factors and behavioral challenges inherent in play-based learning environments, this study offers transferable pedagogical implications for early childhood educators seeking to enhance the effectiveness of instructional practices across diverse educational contexts.

This study examines Zimbabwe's public sector's serious cybersecurity issues in light of the country's fast digitisation and increasing reliance on e-governance tools. Adoption of digital services exposes governmental institutions to cyber risks that they are ill-prepared to handle, even if it also offers prospects for efficiency and transparency. Based on contextual analysis and international best practices, this conceptual paper suggests a paradigm for digital resilience that is specific to Zimbabwe. The framework combines awarenessraising, infrastructure modernisation, capacity-building, and policy reform into a cohesive strategy to strengthen public institutions against cyber threats. Examined as major barriers to cybersecurity maturity include institutional inertia, financial limitations, and regulatory fragmentation. In order to move Zimbabwe from reactive to proactive cybersecurity measures, the study urges immediate multi-stakeholder coordination.

The study aims to provide a clear overview of how tourism sustainability has evolved around Africa and, specifically, how these views have impacted Zimbabwe. The need for sustainability has been overshadowed by the need to enhance socio-economic goals like creating employment, fostering democracy, equity, increasing business opportunities, and achieving some environmental goals like combating climate change. The study will look into what governments have done to move towards tourism sustainability and identify how these processes have been employed to create sustainably viable policies and processes in Africa. The study will explore the trends, challenges, and opportunities related to sustainability tourism practices in various settings across African countries and seeks to address the key research question: ‘What are the current sustainability assessment processes used in literature, and how effective are they in promoting sustainable practices?’ in a bid to uncover the various perspectives of sustainability and theoretically evaluate its holistic nature while gaining a deeper understanding of how African governments and stakeholders have customized the global understanding of tourism sustainability to create a more ‘home grown’ solution for enhancing sustainability within operations that fosters governments to enact policies to support this effect.

BackgroundFew interventions to reduce violence against children in Catholic Church affiliated schools have been tested for effectiveness. We describe learning from formative research on the development of a school-based behavioural intervention aiming to reduce teacher violence and bullying, which originated from and is embedded within Catholic-run primary schools in Zimbabwe. Specifically, we aim to (1) describe and document the process of intervention development and refinement, including efforts to design the Safe Schools Programme to be embedded into existing religious, child protection, and education structures; (2) reflect on the opportunities and challenges of developing a violence prevention intervention for integration within existing education and religious systems; and (3) discuss the implications for scale-up and sustainability of violence prevention interventions.MethodsWe conducted multi-method research to understand the context of intervention implementation, the acceptability of the intervention, feasibility of the delivery model and to refine both the intervention content and underlying intervention theory of change. This included Theory of Change workshops with all study partners at three time-points, and focus groups, in-depth interviews, participatory workshops at two time-points. Participants in qualitative research included school headteachers, teachers, school staff, priests, students, parents, local government education actors, and child protection NGO staff. Qualitative data were analysed thematically.ResultsFindings reveal several challenges facing schools including low motivation of teachers due to high workload and inadequate school-based referral systems for child protection. Views on the acceptability of corporal punishment are polarised with some parents and teachers supporting its use despite the recent ban, presenting an opportunity for the intervention to support teachers move towards alternative discipline. Findings suggest that aligning intervention activities within existing structures within schools and using familiar teaching methods is an effective way to support intervention uptake while addressing concerns about teachers’ workload and intervention acceptability. The intervention was refined in light of the qualitative findings and Theory of Change workshop reflections, which included: additional behaviour change engagement with teachers, an amendment of the school-based referral system, amendment of manual content for children, and streamlining of materials with existing workload.ConclusionsInterventions designed by ‘insiders’ at institutions such as the Catholic Church, have huge potential for implementation at a large scale due to systems and context expertise, pre-established relationships, and alignment with stakeholder priorities. However, such interventions should be mindful of power hierarchies and provide adequate support to equip actors with violence prevention expertise. Future research on violence prevention interventions designed by religious institutions and their implications for future scale-up and sustainability is recommended.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by microvasculopathy, extensive fibrosis, and autoantibodies. The disease affects mostly the female sex. In this review, we highlight sex bias in clinical manifestations in SSc, and the pathophysiological changes underlying this bias. Male sex is associated with the diffuse cutaneous form of the disease, digital ulcers, interstitial lung disease, and worse prognosis. These clinical differences can be attributed to sex hormones and sex chromosomes, as females differ from males in sex hormones (estrogens in females, androgens in males) and sex chromosomes (XX in females, XY in males). Estrogens in females generally have immunostimulatory and profibrotic effects, and androgens have immunosuppressive effects. The X-chromosome contains many immunity-related genes, but the double dose of X-linked genes in females is avoided by random inactivation of one X-chromosome (XCI). However, many X-linked immunity-related genes, including toll-like receptor (TLR)7, TLR8 and Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK), escape XCI resulting in a biallelic expression with pathophysiological implications. Also, autosomal genes are differentially expressed between sexes. Therefore, sex should be included in future studies on SSc to aid in forming predictive algorithms and helping therapeutic decisions in this difficult-to-treat disease.

This article explores the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on society through the lens of technological determinism and singularity theories. Technological determinism is the notion that technology shapes and controls society and human behaviour. Singularity is a theory that asserts that AI has already become a million times smarter than humans and can self-improve beyond what humans first taught AI applications and machines. The Singularity Theory predicts an intelligence explosion from Artificial General Intelligence soon, in which humans are likely to lose the dominion that they have enjoyed since creation, millions of years ago. AI, in its generative and autonomous or selfimproving state or form, may lead to the automation of many tasks currently performed by humans. This could lead to both benefits and challenges, such as increased efficiency but also job losses. In addition, the article discusses the impact of AI on privacy and raises ethical concerns about the potential misuse when in the hands of bad people. It also discusses ways to ensure that AI is used responsibly and beneficially. This includes governmental authorities developing ethical guidelines for AI development and implementation and ensuring that AI systems are safe, transparent and accountable.

Generally, osteoarthritis (OA) is considered to be a common degenerative joint disorder characterized by destruction of the articular cartilage, subchondral bone alterations and low-grade joint synovitis.Aging population and obesity are increasingly being associated with a concomitant increase in the incidence of OA and disability worldwide causing significant burden on the individual and society.The understanding of OA has evolved over years from a degenerative (wear and tear) non-inflammatory disease to a disease of joints that results from many predisposing factors including: aging, genetics, excessive exercise, obesity, genetic predisposition, inflammatory autoimmune disorders, poor nutrition, injury, metabolic disorders such diabetes mellitus, homocysteinaemia, joint trauma, hormonal imbalance, altered biomechanics, obesity and infection.All these factors contribute to an imbalance between catabolism and anabolism of joint cartilage leading to eventual joint damage and structural joint failure.This review focuses on the pathophysiological basis of OA highlighting the potential of specific targeted treatments.

Social media integration within small and medium enterprises (SMEs) has gained significant attention recently. This uptake is due to the growing recognition of the potential benefits of convergent digital technologies in enhancing customer information searching and improving customer experience. The research analyses how SMEs in developing countries use social media and identifies factors that affect its integration. Given the diversity in organisational performance, the research gap is attempting to understand how to integrate digital platforms in these contexts effectively. The study base theories are the technology-organisation-environment and diffusion of innovation. The technological aspects focus on the relative benefits, presence qualities, visibility, linkages, and interactivity. The organisational factors involve interdependent decision-making roles for support of operations and innovation. Competitive pressure and uncertainty increase are the study's environmental aspects. The study used a cross-sectional online survey to collect data from 938 business owners/managers in Harare, Zimbabwe. Thus, SmartPLS 4.0 software allows for data analysis and structural equation modelling. The results show no significant impact of social media integration and factors related to technology and organisation on small and medium-sized enterprises' performance. The empirical findings reveal that external pressure and environmental uncertainty affect social media integration in SMEs. There is still no clear evidence that social media integration significantly affects performance. The argument is that external environmental features are essential in predicting outcomes. We discuss the implications of this finding for theory, practice, and policy.