Reflections on government-led social assistance programmes under Zimbabwe's National Social Protection Policy Framework: A social contract lens

Social protection has gained global recognition for its role in addressing poverty, yet delivering social protection remains an intractable challenge for governments in the Global South. In this article, we assess the performance of government-run social assistance in Zimbabwe. Our assessment begins in 2016 when the National Social Protection Policy Framework (NSPPF) was promulgated to maximize returns on social investments. Utilizing a systematic review approach, we collated literature published between 2016–2023. We find that despite adopting the NSPPF, social protection programming remains a challenge in Zimbabwe. We find that the disbursement of transfers to beneficiaries are delayed, benefits are misaligned with market forces due to inflation, most programmes are run without monitoring and evaluation structures, funding in the sector remains inadequate to reduce poverty and vulnerability, and no grievance and redress mechanisms exist. Our synthesis underscores the need for the refreshment of the social contract in Zimbabwe, a renewal of political will to finance social assistance programmes, engagement to transform policy into action, the expansion of the civic space to ensure citizens effectively participate in calling for social assistance, as well as concerted efforts towards harmonizing existing social assistance programmes. We highlight the need to embed social protection within a human rights-based framework, and the need for robust monitoring frameworks along with predictable and dedicated financing.