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Rural poverty in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe’s statistical indicators for health and education were once among the best in Africa. But the political and economic crisis has brought rising poverty and social decline in its wake. The 2003 Poverty Assessment Study Survey II showed a substantial increase in poverty; between 1990 and 2003 the poverty rate rose from 25 per cent to 63 per cent.

As in most countries, rural households register a higher poverty rate than urban households. Most farm incomes and production are inadequate and food shortages are rising. Households are relying increasingly on remittances and emergency aid.

National infrastructure has deteriorated. About 40 per cent of the road network is in poor condition, water and sanitation coverage is very poor, and railway freight traffic has declined by more than half since 1990, effectively isolating rural communities from markets.

The prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe has declined, but the rate of 18.1 per cent remains one of the highest in the world. The sharp decline in the country’s population growth since the 1980s largely reflects the impact of the epidemic.

Who and where are the country’s rural poor people?

There are significant differences in poverty rates among the provinces. Matabeleland North has the highest poverty rate in the country, with 70 per cent of its inhabitants classified as poor or extremely poor. Poverty is also concentrated in the south-eastern provinces of Manicaland and Masvingo, which are among the driest and least productive areas in the country.

With the rise in unemployment and consequent male migration away from rural areas, households headed by women are increasingly common. These households are nearly always the most disadvantaged.

Other vulnerable groups in rural areas are families with small plots of land, or without irrigation in dry areas, or without access to animals for draught power.

Why are they poor?

Traditionally Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector was dualistic; on the one hand there was the commercial sub-sector comprised of large-scale farms producing cash crops such as tobacco and grain, on the other the small-scale producers who grew food crops, especially maize. This food fed the country and there was even surplus for export to other countries in the region. The government’s land reforms dismantled the existing system of land distribution and severely damaged the commercial farming sector, which was an important source of exports and foreign exchange, and which provided employment for about 400,000 people in rural areas. The old system was geared to large-scale production and the transition to smallholder production has been slow and painful.

The economic crisis of the past decades has prevented substantial capital investment, and new enterprises have been slow to emerge. Agricultural production in general has suffered as a result of weak support services, lack of credit, and acute shortages of essential inputs such as seeds, fertilizer and fuel. In drier areas water scarcity is a major challenge for farmers. Productivity can be improved only through investment in agriculture water management, particularly small-scale irrigation and water harvesting. Many smallholders are struggling to continue farming, and only a minority in some areas have been able to establish viable enterprises.

Drought has exacerbated an already difficult situation and has made it harder for farmers in dry areas to raise their productivity. Food insecurity continues to worsen both for urban and rural populations. Zimbabwe has become a net importer of food products and many millions of people are now dependent on food aid. Yet the strained relationship between Zimbabwe and large parts of the international community has also restricted donor engagement in the country.

It is estimated that at least 3 million Zimbabweans (over 20 per cent of the population) have left the country since the economic crisis started in the late 1990s. This decline in human resources has also made it more difficult for the country to recover from the ongoing crisis, and has slowed down the delivery of social and public health services.

Many environmental challenges make farming increasingly difficult, including deforestation, land degradation and soil erosion. In some areas poor mining practices have led to toxic waste and heavy metal pollution leakage.

Source: IFAD