Introduction

Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe and is located in the southwestern part of the country at an altitude of 1370m above sea level. Its location was selected by Lobengula, last of the Ndebele Kings for his personal kraal. It was declared a municipality in 1897 and a city in 1943. The actual population is over 1 million inhabitants at an Municipal area of 630 km². The average rainfall is 575 mm per annum. The temperature varies from 14^oC in June to 22^oC in October.

Bulawayo exerts a strong influence over the western region of the country. Its hinterland consists of the dry and relatively underdeveloped provinces of Matabeleland North and South and significant parts of the Midlands province. Bulawayo functions as an important marketing and distribution centre for the primary produce of its region.

Bulawayo lies at the hub of a national and regional rail network but lacks good air links to other countries and to most centres in Zimbabwe, other than Harare. Its central geographical location, occupying a midway position between the powerful economy of South Africa and the potentially strong economies of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola may prove to be a strategic and pivotal position in the long run. Bulawayo’s strong communication and cultural linkage to South Africa is becoming a major advantage now that the apartheid era is over.

The immediate peri-urban area of Bulawayo is closely tied to the city in terms of social and economic factors but is administered by five separate Rural District Councils and the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Management

Urban Agriculture in Bulawayo

Urban agriculture in Bulawayo is as old as the City. It is practiced by people in various social and economic groups and for a variety of reasons including subsistence, economic development and hobby.

Historically, authorities and legislation have been hostile to the practice, regarding it as an insignificant and trivial activity. Recently, official attitude towards urban agriculture has changed from the negative one of the past to a positive one of recognition and attention. An urban agriculture policy for Bulawayo was adopted by the Municipal Council on the 5^th of July 2000.

Urban agriculture in Bulawayo takes place in designated zones within the city. These include residential areas in the peri-urban fringe and in both the low and high density areas. Agriculture in these areas is largely rain fed and water is usually a limiting factor. Reclaimed water is used to a small extent. Produce from these areas includes maize, vegetables, fruit, feeder crops, poultry, piggery, goats, sheep and dairy cows.

Urban agriculture is also taking place in special consent areas which are usually residential areas where special council permission has to be granted for urban agriculture activities. These are granted with special conditions that take into account the health and environmental conditions.

Also council farms using treated effluent can be encountered. The main activities on the council farms include the production of wheat, barley, maize and vegetables and also cattle production.

The City Council’s vision regarding urban agriculture calls for better integration of urban agriculture in land use planning. The City Council seeks to strengthen the policy document and involve all stakeholders in the process of redesigning the policy.

Unauthorized urban agriculture is talking place in certain residential areas.

Local RUAF Partners

Several partners are involved in the implementation of the RUAF Programme in Bulawayo. These include:

1. Bulawayo City Council (BCC) – beneficiary and implementation of the project on the ground.
2. Municipal Development Partnership for Eastern and Southern Africa (MDPESA) – the regional coordinator of the RUAF programme and providing training, technical assistance and funding support to BCC and other stakeholders.
3. Zimbabwe Environment Lawyers Association (ZELA), providing assistance in developing the legislative and policy framework.
4. Institute of Water, Sanitation and Development (IWSD), providing technical assistance in waste water reuse in urban agriculture in Bulawayo.
5. Environment Africa (E Africa), providing support regarding the environmental aspects of the project.
6. SNV, providing support regarding economic and social aspects of urban agriculture

These organizations formed a core team that leads the implementation of the planning process.

Bulawayo UPDATES

Exchange Visit

An exchange visit was undertaken from the 2nd to the 4th of April by a group from Harare to Bulawayo to learn from the experiences of Bulawayo in implementing UA projects. The group comprised the advocacy officer from Combined Harare Residents Association, a senior planner from Harare City Council, the Acting Town Clerk and a farmer from Musikavanhu group. The group was addressed by various speakers who included the Mayor, who pledged his support for UA, the chairperson of the UA Stakeholder Forum, the leader of the council interdepartmental committee on UA, and other council officials and representatives of UA farmers in Bulawayo. The group toured UA projects in the city and were exposed to the work done under the RUAF CFF UA project. They were particularly impressed by the review of the UA policy of the city and the role of the council in providing land and water to farmers. The formalization of the UA stakeholder forum through some committees of council was also one of the highlights which the visitors thought warranted further investigation for Harare. The official from Harare City Council agreed that it was necessary to plan adequately for UA and the setting aside of land and provision of water were important and would be followed up on return to Harare. The creation of a UA Unit within the City Council was also seen as a new innovation which the Harare delegation were desirous to replicate.

UA Strategic Agenda

The agenda produced highlights some of the major issues to be tackled in the coming five years. These include making water available for UA, improving access to land for water, institutionalization of UA, marketing of UA products and capacity development for UA in the city.

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Mapping of UA activities

The second phase of mapping UA activities has been completed. This involved the updating of UA activities in the city, including indicating new UA projects in the city and classifying existing projects by main funding partner. The updating of the maps is on-going.

Pilot Project

Activities at the Gum Plantation Pilot project site have began. These include the initial assessment of infrastructure at the site and the purchasing of seed packs for the farmers. The farmers have organized themselves into 17 groups for purposes of easy coordination. The next phase of the pilot will involve purchasing materials for the lining of the drainage.

Gum Plantation                                                                                           Farmer training at Gum Plantation

UA Policy Document 

The UA policy was approved by the stakeholder forum and council. The document can be downloaded here.

Review of UA By-Laws

A committee/working group is now working on reviewing the city by-laws with the intension of making them more facilitatory to UA. The legal division of the city council heads the committee. Results are expected in early February.

UA Tractor and increased UA applications

A tractor for urban tillage has been allocated to one of the councilors in the city under the government scheme for mechanizing the agricultural sector. This tractor is supposed to be used to assist urban farmers with their tillage requirements. Arrangements are being put in place to use the tractor at the Gum Plantation Pilot Project Site.

The city has experienced an up sage in applications for UA activities. The project is assisting the city council to put up a database on the applications so that they can be used in impact monitoring.

Key achievements

The project in Bulawayo has now matured. One of the major successes in the Bulawayo project has been bringing stakeholders together so that they work as a team on UA. This has been successful and the team has bonded properly. There is now a lot of cooperation amongst the various actors involved on the project.

The level of awareness on UA within the city has also increased. The city council is now inundated with applications for UA projects. Although on the political side, one of the councillors in the city council has been given a tractor for UA purposes under the current agricultural programme by central government, indicating that they recognized the high level of organization the activity in the city.

The revision of the policy in a participatory manner has been successfully accomplished. Although it took longer than anticipated, this has demonstrated council and other stakeholders’ commitment to facilitating properly the implementation of UA projects within the city.

The institutionalisation of UA within the city council structures has also received adequate attention. The council’s commitment to a UA section is a step in the right direction. At the moment, two officers within the Planning Department are now playing the role of UA officers. The recruitment of staff to the UA section has been affected by the current economic challenges being faced in the country whereby there is a serious brain drain.

Other cities like Harare now perceive Bulawayo to be a model in terms of how to implement UA projects. More cities are willing to be included in the project so that they can learn from the Bulawayo experience in organizing UA.

Contact
For more information on the RUAF-Cities Farming for the Future Programme in the region, contact the regional coordinator at RUAF Eastern and Southern Africa or see their website.

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