A GIS and remote sensing aided assessment of land use/cover changes in resettlement areas; a case of ward 32 of Mazowe district, Zimbabwe

Abstract

The research assessed land use/cover changes and their socio-economic impacts on local resident farmers in ward 32 of Mazowe District. A mixed method research design that combines both qualitative and quantitative approaches was adopted. Questionnaires, interviews and observations were employed to gather data from the field. GIS and Remote sensing techniques were used for land use/cover change detection and calculations. Data collected from the field was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.0 and Microsoft excel. Arc map 10.5 was used to analyze Remote sensing data. Four major land use/covers namely forest, grassland, water and cultivated were identified as baseline land covers of Mazowe ward 32 in 2000. The research revealed that there has been significant loss in forest, grassland and wetland/water cover and gain in cultivated and bare land cover between 2000 and 2018 in ward 32 of Mazowe District. Scarcity of high energy tree species, fruit trees, construction poles and extinction of wild animals are some of the observed impacts of forest cover loss. The study recommends that Mazowe EMA, RDC and Forestry Commission should cooperate in monitoring natural resources in Mazowe District to ensure sustainable utilization.