A Spatial Analysis of Household Grain Purchases in Zimbabwe's Liberalized Marketing System

In Zimbabwe, it was popularly believed that the rural areas were in grain surplus or at least self-sufficient. Therefore, after Independence, a subsidized and controlled public marketing system was developed to move all rural surpluses to urban households. This system, however, could not channel surpluses cheaply to deficit rural areas and therefore adversely affected rural food security. Recently, the Zimbabwean grain markets have been liberalized. More direct channels for rural consumers to access surplus production through the market have emerged which can potentially cut the marketing costs. These channels were studied in a food deficit area, Buhera District, and they are presented using a geographical information system (GIS) to demonstrate the spatial patterns in food purchases. The fieldwork took place during the first drought since liberalization and offers insights into the changing dynamics of this rural market at a time of food security stress.