Author's Name:	Edith Karimanzira
Subject Area:	Social Science and Humanities
Subject	Other
Section	Research Paper

Sustainable livelihoods, sustainable livelihoods activities, participation, involvement, reasons

Children undertake sustainable livelihoods activities (SLAs) for varied reasons. These reasons tend to vary according to circumstances. The current qualitative ethnographic paper examined reasons for the participation and involvement of children in SLAs. One hundred and ten (110) participants namely, 30 parents, 30 primary and 30 secondary school pupils and 10 primary and 10 secondary school pupils were selected using quota sampling. The data generation methods were in-depth face-to-face interviews and focus group discussions. Eleven measures to combat challenges associated with the participation and involvement of children in (SLAs) emerged from the study. Some of the reasons for the participation and involvement of children in SLAs that emerged from the study include food security, income generation; environmental management, self-reliance training, self-sufficiency training; and entrepreneurship training. The study’s first conclusion for the reasons for the participation and involvement of children in SLAs in Madziwa area was that they were diverse and situation-specific. The other conclusion was that reasons for the participation and involvement of children in SLAs in Madziwa area were also found to be inextricably interwoven. The researcher proposed that participation and involvement of children in SLAs in Madziwa area should not be based on flimsy and unjustified reasons.The other suggestion from the study was that more research in the studied area needs to be carried out throughout the Zimbabwean provinces so as to build a sound and grounded knowledge base in the realm of the participation and involvement of children in SLAs.