**8. Composition of the rural population and livelihoods in Zimbabwe**

According to the 2016 ZimVac Rural Livelihoods Assessment (RLA) the 2015/16 and 2016/17 are projected to be the two poorest consumption years since 2009. During the first quarter for the 2016/17 consumption year, 987,000 people could not meet their annual food requirements which was an increase from last year when 151,000 people were estimated to be food insecure during the same period. A large share of the rural poor still depends on low-productivity subsistence farming for their livelihoods. The poorest rural households lack access to productive assets and often rely on income from wage employment. Of the 300–500 million wage workers in agriculture [18]. Concern among state legislators about rural development and rural land use is not new. In many states, agriculture remains an important feature of the economic, cultural, and political landscape [29].

Adopted from: NFP Co-ordination Unit [4].

From **Box 1**, it can be noted that development is rural areas is mostly centred on land use, environmental and physical planning. It has been stated previously that

#### **Physical planning in rural areas**


#### **Environmental planning in rural areas**


#### **Land-use planning in rural areas**


rural livelihoods mostly come from agricultural produce in Zimbabwe. Therefore, proper land use planning is the corner stone of sustainable social and economic development in rural areas. Physical factors mostly threaten the sustainability of rural livelihoods and way of life. Therefore, many factors threaten rural well-being such as urbanisation or urban growth. Urbanisation has been the major cause of rural to urban migration which has led to the loss of human resources for rural areas. More so, the relative decline of farm prices, for example, has eroded farm profitability and led to bankruptcy. Soil erosion degrades soil productivity and escalates the need for chemical additives. Nutrient and pesticide runoff degrades waterways and groundwater aquifers. Declining rural populations have closed rural schools, hospitals, and other public facilities. In short, eroding farm profitability, soil erosion, environmental degradation, and loss of public services represent far greater threats to rural health than urban growth [29]. High inequality in the rural sector, in particular in the distribution of assets such as land, water, capital, education and health is an obstacle that needs to be addressed to enhance food security. The underlying issue of discrimination in the rural sector, including against women and children is also another social aspect in need of planning to make rural areas sustainable communities.

Achieving sustainability in rural areas means entailing the integration of four pillars: social development, economic development, environmental management, and urban governance [40]. Therefore, planning is never a unilateral venture by one actor but involves many stakeholders, leaving no stone unturned on matters that matter (**Figure 1**).

Rural development aims to improve livelihoods by implementing comprehensive development for rural areas where a majority of people in poverty live. Pillars of sustainability are an accurate presentation of comprehensiveness in planning. Comprehensive plans have become common for many regions because development is complex, development decisions are interrelated, and the development process could be improved through careful analysis, foresight, and planning. These conditions now hold in rural areas, too. Successful rural development requires that agricultural infrastructure and property markets facilitate farming at its most efficient scale; that safeguards are in place to protect the integrity of environmental systems; and that critical education, health care, and other social services remain fiscally viable. Equally important is system interdependence. Large scale farms, for example, pose greater

#### **Figure 1.**

*Pillars of sustainable rural planning. Adapted from: The Department of Economic and Social Affairs [40].*

*No Sustainability without Planning for It: Scope and Dimensions for Sustainable Rural Planning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.101811*

threats to environmental systems, require more non-resident, high skilled labour, and place greater demands on social service and health care systems [29].

### **9. Planning approaches in rural areas**

Planning and sustainability are for the people'; therefore, many development programmes in rural areas have been seen to be participatory. That is planning by the government as well as NGOs have implemented projects using the bottom up approach. This approach as implemented after the realisation that the top don approach in rare cases met the demands of the rural people [41]. Therefore, many project plans in rural districts use the public participatory approach. When policies are evidence-based there is a greater chance of success [42].

### **10. The REDD+ project in Mbire district**

Planning is multi-dimensional and lateral. Therefore, Planning policies even though they are specific they should also consider the dimensions of society. This is so as the REDD+ plus project is an environmental project plan that was meant to help the people in Mbire District to conserve the environment, build their economic fabric through carbon sequestration as well as to give them a path to growing their knowledge in plant and biodiversity preservation. The REDD+ project is a bottom-up approach that allows local people to use their Indigenous Knowledge formulate ways to minimise deforestation and enable carbon sequestration to minimise the rate at which emissions affect the ozone layer.

The REDD+ Conservation Project I aimed at providing sustainable livelihood opportunities for poor communities. This is aimed and reducing forest deforestation, land degradation, poverty and drought. This strategic plan involves the education of techniques that increase their productivity substantially and reduce the need to cut down more trees. This initiative involved a multiple stakeholder approach as it is community based. It used the participatory approach as it worked there was community participation from the local people, the rural district council, the government as well as the carbon asset management. The multi stakeholder approach in planning is critical in promoting sustainability as it allows many stakeholders to have a multifaceted view of social, economic and physical issues of a specific problem or solution. Carbon credit s are an economic solution to an environmental problem and they boost the social life of the community. Carbon credits from the REDD+ program also help to physically develop the Mbire District. Therefore, planning is everything in sustainable rural development.

### **11. WASH programmes in Runde district and Chivi district**

Water is essential for life. Without water, humans can survive only for days. Water comprises 75% body weight in infants to 55% in elderly and is essential for cellular homeostasis and life (World Health Organisation 2013) Water represents a critical nutrient whose absence can be lethal to humans in days [43]. Water is important in framing sustainability in rural areas as it also has a direct impact on women and children as they are responsible for etching water in rural areas as well the health of the community. The importance of incorporating a gender-based perspective in WASH programmes is vital based on the fact that women and girls are the primary users of water in their households and are guardians of household hygiene. The government and NGOs such as the World Division have been implementing various wash projects. This has been seen through the construction of boreholes and wells. Areas such as Chivi experience dry spells more than other rural districts. Therefore, supplying water assists in eradicating the issues of dehydration and promotes good health and sanitation. Irrigation schemes have also been introduced in these districts. Most of the water comes from the Runde River. This River has helped supply rural districts with water that has helped them increase their agricultural produce. They have booted economic independence of various villages in these districts as it gives them food and a source of income.

An improvement in rural livelihoods has a direct impact on the increase of the Gross Domestic Product Of the country. These sentiments are in line with those of [43] when he states that The establishment of new water point sources has improved the livelihoods of the Runde as they can now access a basic right to clean water. In addition, the availability of water for productive purposes has increased the incomes of households that rely on agricultural production as a form of livelihood. It can be seen that development programmes are important in promoting sustainability in rural areas. WASH programmes in Zimbabwe are important as most rural areas are facing frequent drought spells due to the ever-changing climate change. This is also evidence that the linkages and causal relationships between the pillars of sustainability show that planning is important in achieving sustainability it allows the planning for all dimensions of rural livelihoods. Taking the case of rural communities' access to water resolves gender inequality issues, economic livelihood, and health as well as sanitation problems.

### **12. Discussion and recommendations**

The rural economy holds significant potential for creating decent and productive jobs and contributing to sustainable development and economic growth. This is why the government adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development embraces the three dimensions of sustainability economic, social and environmental [18]. However, much remains to be done to adequately adjust the Britishmodelled urban and rural planning system to suit local conditions. Rural planning should be iterative with a balance of top-down and bottom-up approaches with clear national policy guidelines coming down and local needs and priorities filtering up [44]. A broad-based rural development strategy has to include infrastructural investments to better connect producers to output markets, including in rural-urban linkages and the improvement of distribution systems and storage facilities. Social protection mechanisms, including social safety nets, must also be part of a broader rural development strategy to facilitate access of low-income households to food [40]. They are also required to better connect producers and smallholders to output markets, including rural-urban linkages. A broader rural development strategy should also include social protection mechanisms, including safety nets, to facilitate access of lower-income groups to food, in particular during economic shocks. Agricultural extension services need to be further supported, with a particular focus on growing crops appropriate to the land, and on sustainable environmental management [45].

*No Sustainability without Planning for It: Scope and Dimensions for Sustainable Rural Planning… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.101811*
