Abstract:
Over the past decade, there has been increased attention in international development literature on the concept of ‘development through sport’. Sport has long been used in various capacities of development practice especially in lower income countries. Various studies on sport development in rural areas have been undertaken. However, they do not provide a clear explanation of the major factors that constrain the growth and improvement of sport in rural communities in most developing countries. This study focused on identifying the factors that limit sport development in the rural areas of Mutoko District in Zimbabwe. A mixed method approach was followed. The first phase was exploratory and qualitative in nature. In phase 2, quantitative studies, which were mainly confirmatory were carried out. Youth (males and females), men, women, disabled people, school heads, District administrators, club coaches, chiefs and headmen were the respondents. Focus group discussions, participant observation, semi structured interviewing and assistive devices were used to gather data in the first phase. The Thematic Content Analysis was used to analyse the data. A questionnaire containing both open and closed-ended questions was used to confirm the results of phase one. Frequencies were calculated using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0. Sport development in Mutoko District was found to be poor, mainly as a result of multiple challenges such as inadequate funding, poor sporting infrastructure, low stakeholder support, shortage of qualified coaches, and lack of appropriate attire and equipment. Schools played a significant role in providing sporting opportunities for the youth in the District. Male youth were reported to be more readily participating part in sporting activities compared to their female counterparts. This was said to be due to the existence of only one professional sport club for males in the District. Apart from this, there was poor awareness and appreciating of the benefits of participating in sporting activities. Based on these results, it was recommended that government support in terms of funding and availing sport infrastructure was crucial in promoting sport development. Grassroots community members and other local stakeholders could support sporting activities through schools.
