Abstract
The international community has recognised cities as important drivers of development and poverty reduction by including SDG 11 in the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. Even though the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) do not have any legal force, SDG 11 seeks to make cities and human settlements across the world "inclusive", "safe", "resilient" and "sustainable" by 2030. While cognisant of the interdependence of these qualifiers, this article focusses on the issue of "sustainability" in the light of the view that a city cannot be said to be sustainable unless it is inclusive, safe and resilient. Cities on the path to a sustainable future are expected in terms of SDG 11 to invest in public infrastructure to provide services to local communities in a sustainable manner. Due to limited fiscal space, urban local authorities in Zimbabwe, as elsewhere, would have to harness private sector participation in infrastructure investment through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) to transition to a sustainable future.
 This article interrogates the extent to which the constitutional, legislative and policy frameworks in Zimbabwe enable urban local authorities to adopt and implement PPPs in order to achieve their mandate and by extension to realise local sustainability as envisaged in terms of SDG 11. The analysis reveals varied results about the potential of PPPs to contribute towards local sustainability in Zimbabwe. It is further argued that the legal framework underpinning PPPs has some generic features that could enhance their relevance and potential in the pursuit of sustainable cities in Zimbabwe.
Highlights
Human settlements are overwhelmingly urban, and urbanisation is projected to increase
It is through a feasibility study that the council of an urban local authority can realise that there cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach to building Private Partnerships (PPPs), because the sectors generally considered by the Joint Ventures Act108 (JVA) as the most appropriate for PPP arrangements such as housing, water supply, treatment and distribution systems, solid waste management works, urban transport systems, roads and bridges, renewable energy works, and information and communication technologies (ICT)[130] have peculiar characteristics and requirements for success
To deal with the sustainability challenges continuously posed by rapid urbanisation, the international community fortified the role of urban local authorities as co-global actors in pursuance of the global sustainable development agenda by dedicating Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 11 of Agenda 2030 to cities
Summary
Human settlements are overwhelmingly urban, and urbanisation is projected to increase. More than half of the world's population currently live in cities, and this estimation is projected to increase to 60 percent by 2030 and 70 percent by 2050.1 Against this background, rapid urbanisation poses sustainability challenges to cities, including the growing number of slum dwellers, inadequate and overburdened infrastructure and services (such as waste collection and water and sanitation systems, roads and transport), worsening air pollution and unplanned urban sprawl.[2] Despite these challenges, the international community still recognises cities as essential drivers of development and poverty reduction, as is shown by the inclusion of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11 in the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.[3] Even though SDG 11 does not have any legal force, it seeks to make cities and human settlements across the world "inclusive",4 "safe",5 "resilient"[6] and "sustainable"[7] by 2030. An assumption is made that a city cannot be sustainable unless it is inclusive, safe and resilient. Strategies that may be employed to ensure the sustainability of cities must simultaneously address issues of their resilience, safety and inclusiveness.
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