Placing Climate Change in Wetland Conservation and Urban Agriculture Contestations in Harare, Zimbabwe

Abstract

This chapter qualitatively interrogates the impact of urban agriculture on urban wetland conservation in Harare, Zimbabwe, with reference to Monavale wetland. Specifically, the chapter unearths the role of wetlands in sustainable urban agriculture and further evaluates the challenges posed by urban agriculture on wetland conservation in a changing climate. Using in-depth interviews, key informants interviews, observation and secondary data sources, findings indicate that climate change has influenced urbanization in Zimbabwe. Rural-urban migration, catapulted by climate change, has culminated in the shrinkage of Monavale wetland area. Arising from this are serious contestations in the regulation of urban agriculture. The question on what takes precedence between conserving wetlands and sustaining livelihoods through the exploitation of wetlands occupies the epicentre of efforts to regulate urban agriculture.