A/HRC/43/44/Add.4 I. Introduction 1. The Government of Zimbabwe expresses its profound gratitude to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Ms. Hilal Elver, for accepting the Government of Zimbabwe's invitation to visit the country to assess the state of the application of this right in Zimbabwe. The Government's invitation demonstrates Zimbabwe’s commitment to the promotion, protection and fulfilment of fundamental rights and is a clear expression of the Government’s willingness to constructively engage with international human rights mechanisms. 2. The Government of Zimbabwe hereby provides responses to the issues raised by the Special Rapporteur in her report, which covers the food security situation in terms of the legal and policy frameworks, normative context, structural obstacles and the population groups requiring special attention, among others. II. General Overview 3. In the summary of her report, the Special Rapporteur noted that the difficult economic situation in Zimbabwe, which was compounded by the sanctions on the country, successive droughts and Tropical Cyclone Idai, had led to an escalating food crisis affecting the majority of the population, rendering them seriously food insecure. 4. While the Government acknowledges that there is need for food aid, it is, however, of the view that the population sampled by the Special Rapporteur was limited and less reflective of the broader context of the food and agricultural context in Zimbabwe. Her findings were limited to a few field visits, which at a minimum, are at the extreme end of the food situational spectrum as well as the ZimVAC report, whose findings she may have misinterpreted. The report by the Special Rapporteur does not take into account the interventions, safety nets and measures being implemented by the Government and how they are impacting on the food situation. 5. The Government considers the view that 60% of the population is now suffering from food insecurity as less reflective of the situation obtaining in the country. 6. Furthermore, the report does not take into account the agricultural policy interventions and initiatives aimed at responding to climate and global market shocks, the diversification of the agricultural sector as the economic backbone, and the empowering of small scale farmers, who are critical contributors to the food and economic security of the country. 7. In order to alleviate the projected levels of food insecurity, the Government has financed the importation of 900 000 metric tonnes of grain from Brazil. In the same vein, the Government has also liberalised the importation of grain by private players, who are also importing grain from countries such as Tanzania and South Africa to improve the food situation. The arrangement has seen the private players recently importing 100 000 metric tonnes of maize. 8. Furthermore, the Government continues to implement its targeted food hand-out scheme for the elderly and vulnerable food insecure households country wide, including in urban areas. The selection of the beneficiaries is transparently conducted by Government officials and traditional or community leaders. 9. The Government has initiated irrigation development programmes aimed at creating highly productive green belts. These include the construction of the biggest inland dam in Zimbabwe, Tugwi-Mukosi, which is designed to irrigate about 25 000 hacters of arable land. In addition, the Government is working on building, reviving and resuscitating other water reservoirs and small holder irrigation schemes across the country. These efforts are aimed at reducing reliance on rainfall fed agriculture and alleviating water shortages, whilst at the same time enhancing climate adaptation measures. 10. The Government has also adopted various policies designed to ensure that no Zimbabwean will die of hunger, including the distribution of subsidised maize meal and other 4