Colonialism and the traditional methods of soil conservation in Unyakyusa-Rungwe district, 1890 – 1950

This study explores the interaction between traditional and colonial methods of soil conservation in Rungwe District from the 1890s to 1950s. It examines the nature of the soil conservation methods introduced by colonial authorities in the district and the manner in which Africans responded to the orders to implement them. To achieve these objectives, the author sought the relevant historical information from archival and oral sources and used secondary sources to contextualize the study. The main analytic frame for the study is the African initiative paradigm as articulated by Terrence Ranger. The evidence presented in this study reveals that the colonial officials found the Nyakyusa practicing their own indigenous methods of soil conservation consisting mainly of controlling soil erosion and maintaining soil fertility. It is noted that the colonial authorities introduced the so called ‘scientific methods’ of soil conservation in Rungwe District, which were articulated in Europe in the early 20th century as part of the modernization narratives. The study also demonstrates that the Nyakyusa were not passive to the imposition of colonial soil conservation methods. It shows that the Nyakyusa often developed their own highbred methods, sometimes by adjusting the colonial soil conservation methods to fit their interests. The Nyakyusa resisted the colonial conservation methods which contradicted their traditional farming systems and accepted only those which fitted their interests. The study concludes that indigenous and colonial soil conservation methods in Rungwe District often contradicted, but also co-existed and sometimes complemented each other.