%0 Thesis
%9 Doctoral
%A Wilson, K.B.
%B Anthropology
%D 1990
%F discovery:1317940
%I University of London
%P 664
%T Ecological dynamics and human welfare: a case study of population, health and nutrition in Zimbabwe
%U https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1317940/
%X This thesis examines the impact of seasonal and inter-annual variations in  rainfall on food supply and disease environment, and hence the biological  welfare of savannah populations in southern Zimbabwe. Ecological dynamics  are thought to determine the impact of rainfall, and this hypothesis is  tested through the comparison of populations either side of a major  ecological boundary between heavy clay rich and sandy soils.  Due to differences in soil-moisture productivity relations, and the level  and form of ecological heterogeneity, the sandveld environment shows much  less seasonal and inter-annual variation in agro-ecological productivity  than does clayveld, and this is reflected in food supply and consumption.  Child anthropometric and birth weight data from several years shows  opposite seasonality, and weight-loss in a serious drought was most  marked on clay-rich soils as predicted. Differences in soil-moisture  relations also influence disease environment dynamics; child morbidity  shows the same seasonal and inter-annual contrasts between the zones as  found with nutritional status. Furthermore, infant mortality is increased  following dry years on clay-rich soils whilst high rainfall leads to  increased infant mortality on the sandy soils. These differences in  welfare dynamics between sandveld and clayveld appear to typify conditions  in other moist and dry savannah areas respectively.  Variability in grain production results from unequal access to livestock  for ploughing and manure, but urban wage labour derived remittances also  affect wealth. The extent and nature of socio-economic differentiation  varies between ecological zones for historical reasons, and its impact on  welfare (together with that of religion and maternal education) is variable  and complex, operating at several levels in household and lineage.  Maternal education has a marked impact on child well-being, particularly  upon infant mortality. Dramatic improvements in Infant mortality and  declines in fertility since Independence (1980) reflect upgrading of  medical services and education provision for women, Indicating the limits  of ecological welfare determinants.
%Z Thesis digitised by British Library EThOS