Foreign direct investment and socio-economic development of rural people

Abstract

This research study sought to investigate the widespread assertion that FDI has a positive impact on socio-economic growth and development of the rural communities in developing countries. The research study focused on MG Health project which is an agricultural investment dealing with medicinal cannabis farming at Ha Marakabei. The study sought to unpack the contributions of the project towards the social and economic emancipation of the local people for sustained growth and development. It concludes that one of the community barriers to development, unemployment, has been partially addressed through job creation for the local people. However, the majority of the people are still unemployed hence the prospects for long-term development still remain a challenge. The wage rate is too low to enable the workers to have better take-home salaries which can sustain their lives. However, findings suggested that the consistency and stability of income has a positive prospect for improved livelihoods and steady economic growth in the vicinity of Ha Marakabei. The study employed qualitative research method to investigate the community’s experiences and perceptions towards the MG Health cannabis project. Furthermore, the study used both primary and secondary data collection methods. In this research, face-to-face interviews, focus group discussion as well as interview schedule comprising of open-ended questions were used as data collection techniques. Stratified and purposive sampling techniques enabled the researcher to select and sample the seventy three study participants to represent the Ha Marakabei community with its differentiated clusters. Furthermore, the study concludes that the project has deprived the local indigenous smallholder farmers’ access to their agricultural land thereby stifling their household means of production and food security. The project has adversely affected the environment by destroying the diversified plant species used for medicinal purposes by the community. Additionally, the project has also brought negative behaviour (substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, stealing and theft) especially for the youth in Ha Marakabei community; this situation is not beneficial to the society’s upbringing. Finally, the study recommends that to fast track the long-term socio-economic development of the rural people, the central government should monitor and revise the wage rate for unskilled labourers and the compensation for the farmers’ land. It should ensure compliance and adherence to the governing policies (investment policy). There should be proper contract management strategies with clear time lines to enable a conducive win-win situation for both the project and the community.