My Food is Zimbabwean Alliance keeps right to food in check

STEVE EPHRAEM

In a world where citizens expect sufficient meals as written into the highest law of most lands, stark reality might persists on the ground.

It is against this background that civil society are putting heads together to bridge the gap between legal promise and the daily plate.

For instance, Zimbabwe’s 2013 Constitution is clear on food mattera. Article 77 enshrines the right to “sufficient food” and obligates the state to take reasonable measures to achieve food and nutrition security.

This domestic commitment is strengthened by a web of international treaties and supported by detailed national policies aimed at everything from sustainable farming to strengthening grain reserves.

To check on the gap between policy commitment and tangible outcome, civic societies under the banner of ‘My Food is Zimbabwe Alliance’ convened in Harare on November 27, 2025 to discuss tools that are available for giving citizens right to food, advocating for fairer and more effective policy implementation, and running community-level programmes that build resilience and improve nutrition.

The agenda focused on interpreting policy and also training participants in social accountability tools like budget analysis and community scorecards.

The ultimate goal was to forge a united front for evidence-based advocacy, transforming the right to food from a legal concept into a lived reality for every Zimbabwean.