**8. Conclusion**

This paper provides a framework for systemic programming for community resilience and sustainable community development in Zimbabwe. It is not a step-by-step programming manual but rather provides key tenets for researchers and development practitioners. The building blocks proposed are neither exhaustive nor prescriptive. Rural development is highly contextual, *thus*, tools and approaches to implementing the framework are not specified. This calls for creativity in the empirical testing of the proposed framework. Two research questions are addressed; what are the critical components of a systemic programming framework for livelihoods and resilience? And, how is such a framework facilitated in practice? The components of the proposed systemic programming framework are systemic diagnosis, roots definition, and construction of conceptual models, systemic design, and implementation. These are supported by four strategic pillars; monitoring, evaluation, and learning; knowledge integration; action research, and dialogue. It is recommended that the systemic framework be tested empirically, and its components become part of resilience programming in Zimbabwe.
