Abstract
Zimbabwe has faced persistent droughts from around year 1990 to date posing a structural food security challenge to the populace. Recently, the government of Zimbabwe introduced a blue print to spearhead and map sustainable balance in tapping value from the available natural and man-made resources in the country. This is known as the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-economic Transformation Programme (Zim Asset). Amongst its prospects, agriculture and nutrition has been reckoned as a sustainable cluster for economic development. This study was undertaken one and half years after the implementation of Zim Asset as an evaluation mechanism on the successes and challenges faced in transforming the Zimbabwean economy with specific reference to the Food and Nutrition Cluster. The study employed both post positivism and interpretivism philosophies applying quantitative and qualitative approaches in gathering research data. The research instruments included documentary evidence, face to face in-depth interviews and focus groups. The in-depth interviews explored issues to do with resources allocation in line with the Zim Asset agriculture sustenance objectives. Focus was therefore, on the four Ministries supporting the Food and Nutrition Cluster. Eighty percent of the respondents reported that the economic blue print has not made any significant strides in improving the country’s agricultural performance and food security since the inception of Zim Asset in October 2013. It was noted that the country continued to import maize from Zambia and other countries in the region. The major reason for its lack of success was due to the unavailability of resources to support the programme and the fact that land was allocated to unproductive and cell phone farmers. There was consensus that land audit and recapitalisation of the agriculture sector were critical in achieving the desired outcomes. The study recommends that the programme be adequately funded, so that the country can become self-sufficient.
Highlights
Zimbabwe has undertaken a number of economic turn-around programmes since independence in 1980, with the aim of improving the socio-economic status of its citizens through equal distribution of resources
The government of Zimbabwe introduced a blue print to spearhead and map sustainable balance in tapping value from the available natural and man-made resources in the country. This is known as the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-economic Transformation Programme (Zim Asset)
This study was undertaken one and half years after the implementation of Zim Asset as an evaluation mechanism on the successes and challenges faced in transforming the Zimbabwean economy with specific reference to the Food and Nutrition Cluster
Summary
Zimbabwe has undertaken a number of economic turn-around programmes since independence in 1980, with the aim of improving the socio-economic status of its citizens through equal distribution of resources. Zim Asset is considered to be poised for success because it is designed to streamline development from household level to national level through concerted efforts by all stakeholders It is emanating as a government and key-stakeholder machinery oiled to favourably positioning the socio-economic development of the country towards equity and valuable returns. The land reform program of 2000 led to the land redistributed from the minority whites to the majority indigenous blacks with an equity-socialism agenda This ignited chaos and break of socio-economic ties between Zimbabwe and the Western communities restricting trade and identity of locally produced products in their traditional markets. These issues led to mystification as economic leaders formulated one policy to another haphazardly without any implementation. It has been given maximum publicity by government authorities, news agencies and educational institutions
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