HOW MEANINGFUL IS THE NOTION OF PEOPLE FIRST IN POLICY MAKING
1. Policy making is the process by which governments translate political vision into programmes and actions which are meant to deliver desired change in the real world. Governments in the world are adopting people first approach to policy making. Policy making which is implemented in the best interest of the society is one of the major functions and responsibility of governments. (Issa Shivji, 2003). For all policies (urban or rural) to be effective there is need to take into consideration people who are going to be largely affected by the policies. This would involve the development of policies from the grassroots level going up.
2. The people first notion in policy making is a feasible and noble idea that seeks to eradicate poverty among citizens as it seeks to reduce the gap between the rich and the poor, developed and developing countries, rural and urban areas, large enterprises and small enterprises and to restore human dignity (Baum 2010). Ideally policies should be designed with the needs of the people at heart while policy formulation process be carried out with the objective of improving socio economic well being of citizens.
3. The policy making process does not start from a vacuum. Normally the process starts with the public or people becoming aware of an issue as a problem and because of demands made by certain groups and dominant values in a society the problem is then defined as one that requires action. This then becomes the problem identification stage. Inversely the government, civil society or organisations that represent groups of people can perceive a need in the community that can be answered by formulating and implementing a certain policy or policies. This then becomes the agenda for policy formulation. The government cannot come up with a policy that is not responding to a need in its citizens. The whole policy making process cannot proceed if a need or an issue has not been identified.
4. One of the countries that have implemented the people first approach is China. China, which commands the second largest growing economy, is one of the countries that has tried the people first approach and has realised outstanding socio economic results. From as early as 1949 China had started a deliberate people first approach to policy making that was aimed at raising personal income and consumption and to make the country economically self sustaining. Its development strategy hinges on investment, consumption and improvement of standard of living and savings. The government has made a deliberate policy to eradicate corruption both in private and public sector. Funds have been made available to construct shell factories and for working capital, so that the ordinary people will be able to run small businesses. By 2005 the poverty rate had fallen from 53% to 2.5%. China has promoted small businesses to the extent that by 2010 there were over 10 million functional registered small businesses.
5. According to Richard Baum, a former Director of the centre for Chinese studies at the University of California, “China’s central government has done a good job in defining what people’s rights are. A decent standard of living is necessary to make people lead more fulfilling lives. The first thing is to make sure poverty is eradicated. China has made a lot of effort in that area”. By 2006 china’s economic growth rate stood at 10.7%. The government has since adopted a policy of slowing economic growth in the cities and boosting development in the country side tohelp create a more balanced consumption driven economy. As the Premier Wen Jiabao said in 2006 “we must pay closer attention to promoting social development and improving peoples well being. We must put people first”. Surely China has done this and succeeded.
6. Zimbabwe has not been an exception in utilising this approach to policy design and implementation. In Zimbabwe the people first approach is addressing the historical injustices where the black indigenous people were socially and economically marginalised. Settler colonial rule from 1890 to 1979 was characterised by racial land dispossession and political and economic discrimination (Mlambo 2000; Moyana, 2002), which defined Zimbabwe’s land question and mass nationalism. With the attainment of independence in 1980 the Zimbabwe central government started pursuing the people first approach. At independence the key development challenge was to promote redistributive strategies to reduce racial inequality and poverty, and broadly based economic growth, focused on the domestic needs, particularly of the of poor (GoZ, 1982).there was therefore every need for the central government to address the land issue
7. The agrarian reform policies in Zimbabwe have been instituted with the needs of the people at heart. In 1980 the need for land redistribution had already been identified since the land was in the hands of a few white commercial farmers whilst the indigenous people were cramped in unproductive land, mostly in region 4 and 5. At that time the government respected the Lancaster house agreement and constitution that had recommended the willing buyer willing seller approach. After this approach failed to work out, and in response to the issue of poverty in rural areas that was being exacerbated by land pressure and overuse of resources, the Zimbabwe government introduced a land resettlement policy in 1983. The government bought farms and resettled people from communal areas. This programme was discontinued in 1990 due to shortage of funds but later resurfaced in 1997.
8. Demands for a poverty oriented land reform grew in 1997 when the ‘international community’ rejected land expropriation and the deracialisation of commercial farming, in favour of small scale settlers and at a slow redistributive pace (ODA, 1996). According to a national human development report (Zimbabwe NHDR, 1999) 60% of Zimbabwe’s population was earning less than a dollar a day, 80% of whom lived in the rural areas while 25% were unable to meet basic needs as a result of the structural adjustment programme (ESAP). Due to frequent droughts 1.5 to 5 million people required food relief every 3 to 5 years.(Moyo S, 2005).70% of Zimbabwe’s population resides in the rural areas(CSO 2002)and their livelihoods are agro based and depend on access to land and related resources(water, woodlands ). It is against this background that by end of 1999 demands for land by Svosve villagers and the subsequent land invasions by land hungry war veterans and other Zimbabwean citizens led to the radicalisation of the land reform. The resultant state driven land transfers between 2000 and 2004 were significantly induced (in terms of land acquisition allocation), by popular mobilisations of land occupations (Sam Moyo, 2005). Although the Land redistribution was frequently hijacked to fulfil political motives the fact still remains that when the policy was instituted the government was responding to the needs of the citizens. At present , the poverty reduction gains owing to the agrarian reforms are still low due to fall in production. However this is set to change for the better as the new land owners gain experience and access to agriculture resources improves. What remains is for the government to continue to create a socio economic environment that is conducive to agriculture production.
Besides the agrarian reform policies there are many more people oriented policies that the Zimbabwe government has put in place over the years. The Indigenisation policy is one of such policies whereby the Zimbabwe government is saying the resources that belong to Zimbabwe should benefit black Zimbabweans. Whilst some people might say it’s a politically driven process, but the fact still remains that it gives indigenous Zimbabweans a chance to own property and businesses. It addresses the historical imbalances whereby economic resources were in the hands of a privileged few. According to the Indigenisation and Empowerment Act, foreign owned companies operating in Zimbabwe should allow locals to get a minimum of 51% of shares within five years.By the same legislation non- indigenously owned businesses operating in Zimbabwe should cede at least 5% shares to employees, including management. The policy is already in operation and companies have started to comply. According to the Sunday mail of 19-25 February “the government has ordered Impala Platinum to cede its share holding in Mimosa mining company so as to loosen its grip on the platinum sector and allow a window for participation of locals” The process for employee share ownership has already started.
Speaking on VOPradio on 19 October 2011after the launch of the Zimplats Community Share Ownership Trusts Minister Kasukuwere said “It is planned that more Community Share Ownership Trusts will be launched in the next few weeks, namely the Marange Community Share Ownership Trust, Hwange Colliery Community Share Ownership Trust and Mimosa Community Share Ownership Trust,”

In response to public need Zimbabwe in 1994 adopted a policy framework entitled Poverty Alleviation Action Plan (PAAP) which was a strategy to combat poverty. The basic thrust of the PAAP was to invest in people as the countries key resource. Some of the strategies to achieve the goal of poverty alleviation were targeted social expenditure, decentralised decision making so the poor can effectively participate, move the poor from welfare to income earning productivity and finally to continue to monitor social policy and poverty indicators.
Governments all over the world have a responsibility to create an environment where citizens can be able to enjoy their rights. The communities of today of which policies have to be designed are now enlightened and are aware of their rights and the obligation that their governments have to fulfil these rights. Key policies of each government should therefore be tailor made to address their citizens’ socio-economic rights like education, wealth, shelter, clinic, water etc. Since the world today is now a global village, governments have to craft policies that not only addresses national concerns of their countries but also international concerns e.g. issues of global warming, free trade etc. at international level , lobbying is being done for governments to adopt a people first policy making process. The Put People first Movement in the United Kingdom is one such lobby group and is supported by 150+ organisations some of which are Action Aid , Oxfam, Plan UK, Help age International, Breton Woods Project etc. They are calling on the UK government to show its commitment to putting people first by signalling a historic break with the failed policies of the past and the start of a new system that seeks to make the economy work for the people and the planet. There demands on the UK government are that the government should ensure democratic and transparent governance of the economy, decent jobs and services for all, end global poverty and inequality and building a green economy (The Put People First Platform).
In a people oriented policy making process policy makers try as much as possible to mitigate the negative impact of policies on people. Policy makers therefore engage in extensive consultations and researches on both domestic experiences and other countries experiences on similar policies. For the policy making process to be effective it has to be inclusive of all stakeholders including the citizens who will be directly or indirectly affected by the policy. This participatory policy making process enhances the notion of people first and this has its own benefits. Extensive consultations ensure the formulation of better informed policies, more equitable policies, strengthens ownership and support of policy, strengthens transparency and accountability and enhances capacity inclusion of marginalised people in the policy making process.
The participatory process can either be top down or bottom up. (Jennifer, Reitbergen, McCracken). In the top down approach to policy making the government or institution initiating policy formulation engages all the people, corporate bodies, NGOs, government departments, citizen representative bodies etc who will be directly or indirectly affected by the problem, as relevant stakeholders in consultation forums. This becomes necessary because the people affected are the ones who can give a clear explanation of the magnitude of the problem or issue under consideration. During policy formulation the affected people and other relevant stakeholders can give suggestions on how the problem can be solved basing on their previous experience on how the problem was solved before. Interaction also continues during policy implementation. The citizens and other stakeholders are given opportunity to give feedback on the implementation process and policy evaluation, with a view of taking corrective action or to improve on policy. All this is done with in an effort to make policy address the relevant needs of the people. In the participatory policy making approach the representatives of stakeholders and citizens may become part of the team of analysts. Hence people feel they are part and parcel of the policy making process.
In the bottom up policy making process the citizens together with CSOs and citizen representative bodies bring to the attention of the government issues or problems that needs to be addressed by putting certain policies in place. Civil society organisations (CSOs) play an important role in facilitating the people first policy making approach. CSOs ensure that that the people take part in the policy making process and that there views are incorporated. As Issa Shivji, 2003 correctly says in the paper on reflections on NGOs in Tanzania “NGOs cannot substitute themselves for people. They are neither the representatives of the people or mandated to represent them. Peoples participation in the institutions of the state is there democratic right. As pressure and advocacy groups, our prime duty is to pressurise the powers that be to create conditions enabling the participation of the people themselves in the institutions of policy making”. Once the CSO operating within a particular community perceive a need within the community they are operating in they play an important role of raising awareness of the issues at stake. Through a participatory approach they help citizens become aware of their rights and help the communities to organise themselves to claim their rights. The CSO also advocate with and on behalf of the citizens for government to adopt a participatory policy making process.
Once the lobbying process becomes successful the government then sets the policy making process in motion. For example in Zimbabwe AIDS levy was a result of policies that were put in place after intense lobbying by people living with AIDs (PLAs), CSOs and organisations representing PLAs for government to provide ARVs and other health facilities targeted at addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
To ensure successful implementation of a policy the government also does careful consideration of resource requirements for successful policy implementation. Government supports policies with resource allocations so as to make policy implementation a success. A policy will not benefit its citizens if it’s abandoned amid implementation due to shortage of funds. In most developing countries many good policies have been formulated but have remained on the shelves or partially implemented due to lack of funds. In short, for citizens to benefit, rural development policy implementation needs clear priorities and effective delivery backed up with adequate resources. In Zimbabwe a number of policies aimed at alleviating poverty among rural communities have remained partially implemented due to shortage of funds. For example the Give-a-dam programme in the early 90s in which the government was aiming at constructing a dam in each district. This was aimed at boosting agricultural productivity of the rural poor. Up to the present day such dams like Tokwe Mukosi dam that has been under construction since the mid 90s are still under construction. The construction of the Zambezi water project that also started in the 90s is also still in progress. These projects are vital to the well being of the citizens and they deserve urgent consideration.
In order for the EU to achieve sustainable rural development in all its rural areas, it has come up with a common Rural Development policy for the period 2007-2013. To ensure that the Rural development programmes are adequately funded the EU has set aside funds from the Central EU budget (the European Agriculture Fund) and partly from individual member states or regional budgets. The EU countries decided to have a common policy financed partly by a central fund because not all countries would be able to afford the policies with they needed. Furthermore most of the issues on the policy agenda cut across national boundaries. The EUs rural development policy is all about meeting the challenges faced by the rural areas and unlocking their potential. The conference on (Europe’s rural areas in Action: facing the challenges of tomorrow 16-17 October 2008 Limassol Cyprus) aptly summarises the people first concept of policy making when they said “the European Union has an active rural Development policy because this helps us to achieve valuables goals for our country side and for the people who live work there.”
In people first policy making governments also look into long term benefits that can accrue to the citizens upon successful policy implementation. Environmental policies aimed at sustainable development are examples of such policies. In Zimbabwe the National Environmental goal is linked closely to the development goal of Zimbabwe which is “to alleviate poverty and improve the quality of life of the people of Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwe National Environmental goal is to avoid irreversible environmental damage, maintain essential environmental processes and preserve the broad spectrum of biological diversity so as to sustain the long term ability of natural resources to meet the basic needs of people, enhance food security, reduce poverty and improve the standard of living of Zimbabweans through long term economic growth and the creation of employment.”(GOZ: National Environmental Policy and Strategies, 2009)This policy goal shows how the environment issues are key to creating economic opportunities for Zimbabweans.
In conclusion, the notion of people first in policy making is meaningful and produces positive lasting results. It’s true that along the way the process of policy making maybe hijacked by other elements like politics but in the end the will of the people should prevail so as to enable development to take place.

1. Richard Baum University of California Xinhua Newspaper 6 march 2010 2. Moyo s. 2005. Land policy, poverty reduction and ublic action in Zimbabwe. Research rojecttural development, environment and population studiesGroup institute of social studies. 3. Issa Shivji 2003 – extract from: reflections on NGOs in Tanzania: 4. RadioVoP Zimbabwe 19/10/2011 10.30a.m 5. Issa Shivji, 2003 correctly says in the paper on reflections on NGOs in Tanzania 6. See all participatory policy making 7. EU Rural Development policy 2007-2013 8. (ec.europa.eu) 9. .”(GOZ: National Environmental Policy and Strategies, 2009)