Understanding Government Drought Mitigation Programme and the Quest for Survival in Labour Constrained Households in Rural Zimbabwe. Case of Mhondoro - Ngezi Rural District

Abstract

Droughts induced household food insecurity in Zimbabwe has presented new complex political, social and economic challenges threatening national security and peace in addition to development and growth of the economy in the context of social vulnerability of labour constrained households. Free Food Distribution has been the most common approach of mitigating food insecurity among labour constrained households in times of drought. Coping with the effects of drought has not only proved to be a mammoth task for the government but a complicated mix of policy, strategy, capacity and political will. The research is a case study using mixed methods to examine the complications of household food security and mitigating effects of drought in labour constrained households in rural Zimbabwe at the same time examining the social construction of vulnerability by labour constrained households, role of state and non-state actors. The resilience and coping mechanisms of labour constrained households are also extensively examined in the context of household food security. The opportunities for transforming government drought mitigation interventions in to sustainable livelihoods base for household food security are examined. The government acknowledges that droughts have had varied impact on household food security depending on the nature of vulnerability of households. Labour constrained households have been regarded as the most vulnerable compared to the non-labour constrained households hence they have maintained an automatic qualification for free food whose effectiveness and sustainability has not been fully examined. Social vulnerability is complicated and not homogenous thus labour constrained households have an untapped potential, state and non-state actors have struggled to understand household food insecurity and social vulnerability in the context of community and household resilience and coping strategies.