Alliance urged to put food rights on UPR agenda

BY STEVE EPHRAEM

CIVIL society groups under the My Food is Zimbabwean Alliance have been urged to seize a rare opportunity to place the right to food at the heart of Zimbabwe’s upcoming human rights review by the United Nations.

At a training workshop held in Harare on March 5, 2026, members learned how to effectively contribute to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a peer-review mechanism of the UN Human Rights Council. Zimbabwe is scheduled for its review in early 2027, with the deadline for stakeholders to submit inputs tentatively set for June 25, 2026.

The workshop equipped participants with critical knowledge on the UPR process, report-writing standards, and strategic coordination.

In his opening remarks, Mr Andrew Mushita, Director of the Community Technology Development Organisation (CTDO), stressed the importance of acting now.

“This UPR review is crucial because it occurs every four-and-a-half years. Missing this cycle would delay My Food is Zimbabwean Alliance’s ability to submit written contributions for another four-and-a-half years.

“To ensure that our contribution to the 2027 Universal Periodic Review is undeniable, we must move beyond mere participation and ensure the Zimbabwean voice is captured with precision and power. This means elevating the right to food from a footnote to a national priority, backed by the lived experiences of our communities,” he said.

Senior Human Rights Advisor in the office of the United Nations Resident Co-ordinator, Ms Fiona Adolu, urged the Alliance to actively participate in the UPR process including the national consultations.

“It is important that civic organisations participate in the UPR process by contributing inputs. Since Zimbabwe is going to be reviewed in January 2027, this is a very good opportunity for the Alliance to make inputs on how the right to food has been implemented in Zimbabwe.

“It is important for civil society to participate as the Government  is being reviewed for the purposes of advocacy and purposes of implementing the rights that Zimbabwe has commited itself to under the various human rights treaties,” she said.

A key outcome of the workshop was the development of a shared roadmap to facilitate drafting of submissions for the UPR process.

The proposed plan includes forming a steering committee, stakeholder mapping, reviewing existing policies, consulting other food security groups, designing data collection tools, and holding community engagements. A timeline was also drafted for each task.