Author's Name:	Reniko Gondo, Patricia Kefilwe Madigele, Goemeone E.J. Mogomotsi, Tapiwa Tokwe, Chakuya Jeremiah & Harrison Chirefu
Subject Area:	Social Science and Humanities
Subject	Other
Section	Research Paper

Food security, economic hardships, pariah state tag, rural-urban migration, sustainability.

The imposition of targeted sanctions on Zimbabwe brought with it bad publicity, a record low credit rating and a pariah state tag. Investors willingly pulled out of the country, avoided making new investments, or were commandeered by their countries not to make new further investments. The targeted sanctions led to sustained disinvestments and deindustrialisation which severely weakened the Zimbabwean economy with negative consequences for the citizens’ welfare. Economic hardships opened the flood gates of rural-urban migration. Adopting a descriptive research design and case study approach, this study explores the sustainability of urban agriculture in Zimbabwean urban areas with specific reference to Karoi. In addition to the desk-based review, informal interviews and structured questionnaires were the key data collection tools for this study. The findings revealed that the sustainability of urban agriculture in Zimbabwe is under threat from a myriad of challenges which encompass political and environmental issues. This paper argues that the role of urban agriculture in Zimbabwe urban areas must not be underestimated and policymakers should address issues confronting this sector, most importantly legalisation of urban agriculture would be a step towards securing land for the urban poor. The illegal status of urban agriculture has left a vacuum which should be filled through policy formulation and regular institutionalised management in a particular manner, including all relevant stakeholders if food security in Zimbabwean urban areas has to be increased and environment improved in an urban development context.