Food and City Planning Management in Zimbabwe

Abstract

This chapter examines the link between food and city management in Zimbabwe. The increase in the rate of urbanisation has set up unprecedented challenges for feeding cities with affordable and healthy food. Urban food security and food systems are receiving growing attention at global level both North and South. Although, the issue of food and city planning management is insufficiently covered and is limited in existing literature, there exists very few comprehensive planning books that properly consider food planning and the integration of food systems, some cities and regions have made huge progress over recent years. However, their practices have not been made visible to a wide audience and reflections on their limitations and successes deserve greater attention. The New Urban Agenda (NUA) places specific additional responsibilities for cities to include food in city management. Therefore, this chapter aims to improve the understanding of food and city planning management in Zimbabwe. The chapter illustrates emerging issues by addressing questions, such as: who manages food issues in cities in Zimbabwe? Is it a clear mandate? Is the management structure and skills set in urban councils appropriate and sustainable? What are the management experiences that can be shared from Zimbabwean cities? The findings indicate that over the years there has been a growing recognition of the persistence of food insecurity in urban areas mostly in developing countries, because food production was for a long time considered a rural issue, thus urban agriculture has emerged as a lucrative livelihood strategy used to curb food insecurity in urban areas. Urban planners also have paid little attention to food systems, emphasising ‘traditional’ urban priorities, such as public transportation and decent housing.