Land Resource Regimes in Zambia: Implications on Local Food Systems

Abstract

Aims: To assess the significance of land resource regimes and their implications on rural food systems in Zambia. Methodology: Literature review of government reports, legislature, journal articles, books and any published material on land resource governance in Zambia. Findings: The country’s land resources are governed either through statutory or traditional/ customary regimes. Statutory governance is characterized by recipients having exclusive ownership rights to utilized resources while customary resources are under traditional authorities and recipients utilizing customary resources have no exclusive ownership to the resources. Land under customary governance is responsible for most of the food produced for rural and urban consumption. Sustainable governance of these land resources translates into sustainable management of food systems. The study identified allocation of exclusive land and resource property rights to local food producers, devolution of powers from the central government to locals, regulation of urban demand for resources, site-based resource governance, promoting conservation agriculture among local producers and building resilience of food systems towards shocks and stressors as means to improve management of land resource for sustainable food systems. Conclusion: Natural resource governance in Zambia needs to embrace approaches allowing for innovation, diversification and possible intensification in rural food production.