Perspectives on the role and use

of indigenous knowledge systems

in rural and agricultural

development

Raymond Erick Zvavanyange

Zimbabwe

Amabhubhesi Training Centre

Randburg, Johannesburg,South Africa

November 15, 2014

Is this one continent?

•Afrika vs. Africa

Young people are the traditional

leaders of today and tomorrow

“When a knowledgeable old person dies, a

whole library disappears

(An old African Proverb)

Outline

• Introduction

• Types and sources of knowledge

• Science and knowledge

• Indigenous knowledge

• Summary

• Implications

Introduction

• Many types of knowledge in use in every day

life.

• Knowledge enriches people’s experience,

development, and progress as a society.

• Knowledge exists at the point of action

(Rukuni, 2014)

What is Knowledge?

• “Knowledge is a familiarity with someone or something which can include information, facts, descriptions, and /or skills acquired through experience or education.

• theoretical or practical understanding of a subject”

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knowledge

Types of Knowledge

• Episteme (Scientific Knowledge) – explicit

• Techne (Skills and Craft Knowledge) – tacit

• Phronesis (Practical Wisdom) – high quality tacit

Sources of knowledge Books Media e.g. newspapers

Sources of knowledge [Cont]

Conferences and meetings Technology

Features of Knowledge

• Practical aspect.

• Person bound or not

• Normative structure

• Internal networked

• Dynamic

• Institutional context

• External networked

Science (and knowledge)

• Science is the ideas that humanity uses to

understand the world around it (Tsao, 2012)

• Science is the human social community in

which those ideas exist and which has, at

least, for the time being conquered earth

(Tsao, 2012)

Science (and knowledge)

Of new believers and

beliefs

Of influence of believers and

beliefs

By shrinkage of influence of

believers and beliefs

Birth Growth Death

Source: Engineering the Ultimate Dynamical Social System : what we know and don’t know about how scientists do science, Jeff Tsao, December 5, 2012 Sandian National Laboratory, USA

Science (and knowledge)

• The History of Science and Technology (2004) By Bryan Bunch with Alexander Hellemans

• Philosophy, as a precursor to Science in the Western World – Francis Bacon and the scientific method

• Discovery of the Deoxyribonucleic acid [DNA] by Francis Crick and James D. Watson in the 1950’s.

• The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962) by T.S. Kuhn– Paradigms

• [Agricultural] Modern Science – Reductionist and interdisciplinary science

– Science of science

– Team Science

Indigenous Knowledge

• Indigenous knowledge is knowledge that is unique to a given culture or society (Manyatsi, 2011).

• Indigenous knowledge systems are defined in the context of innovation, technical knowledge, associated social organization and decision making processes (Brokenshaet al., 1980; Kidd and PhillipsHoward,1992).

Variants of Indigenous Knowledge

• Traditional Ecological Knowledge

• Traditional Knowledge

• Local Ecological Knowledge

• Knowledge of Living

• Rural people’s knowledge

• Ethnobiology, ethnobotany, enthnozoology

• Ethno science, folk science, indigenous science

Features of Indigenous Knowledge

• Collective rights and interests held by traditional communities.

• Close in interdependence between knowledge, land, and other aspects of culture in traditional societies.

• Oral transmission of knowledge in accordance with well understood cultural principles.

• Rules regarding secrecy and sacredness that govern the management of knowledge.

Uses of Indigenous Knowledge

• To sustain the community.

• To facilitate communication among people coming from different backgrounds.

• To maintain, uphold and preserve culture.– Social capital

• To free the minds of people from stereotypes.– Independence

• To maintain genetic resources necessary for the continued survival of the community. – Succession – Sustainability

Application of Indigenous

Knowledge • Traditional medicines

• Animal and crop production

• Education

• Hydrological disaster management

• Combating desertification

• Coping with climate variability

• Forest conservation

• Integrated pest management

• Plant and genetic resources management

• Fisheries management

• Environment management

Summary

• Knowledge is generated anywhere (and rural areas are no exception).

• Indigenous knowledge has wide applications in rural and agriculture development.

• Indigenous knowledge helps people to conquer their environment.

Implications

• The concept of K* is important in the creation

of new knowledge.

• The indigenous entrepreneur can explore the

options of wealth creation from indigenous

products.

• In order to assist farmers and give them

resilience, it is important to invest in new

knowledge, skill and practices.

Last word

“If we observe two forms of knowledge latest

science tries to understand a whole from the

pieces while indigenous knowledge sees things

as wholes”

(Mohammad Saeed Lodhi and Imran Naseem,

2012)