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Walter Nyamukondiwa Kariba Bureau

THE World Food Programme is working with Government in piloting a planning tool for local authorities in urban areas to build resilience against natural and socio-economic challenges among communities.

This comes amid indications that more than seven million people are in need of food assistance due to Cyclone Idai and El Nino-induced drought with more than two million of them being in urban areas.

The planning tool known as the Three-Pronged Approach has been successfully introduced in rural district councils and helped to shape interventions to cushion communities.

It will lead to seasonal livelihood programming which looks at planning for resilience-building activities and community-based planning.

In an interview, WFP Three-Pronged Approach coordinator Mr Isaac Tarakidzwa said the approach has been piloted in Chipinge and was now being introduced in Kariba after several towns were identified as requiring assistance in planning.

“As WFP we are working together with Government to introduce the Three-Pronged Approach which is a tool to enhance the planning of local authorities,” he said.

“We have been introducing this tool in rural areas to assist them to plan their resilience activities but we are now piloting the same tool to urban areas to see how best we can adapt it. The ultimate aim is to make our communities resilient.”

The programme will see a context analysis of the whole country to identify areas of food insecurity an land degradation.

The pilot programme and research is being conducted with the assistance of the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) and has so far been implemented in Chipinge with Kariba being the second town to be piloted.