Economic shocks, poverty and household food insecurity in urban Zambia: an ethnographic account of Chingola Mutale Chileshe CHLMUT001 Town Cape of Thesis Presented for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Environmental and Geographical UniversityScience University of Cape Town September 2014 Supervisor: Dr. Jane Battersby-Lennard The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No quotation from it or information derived from it is to be published without full acknowledgement of the source. The thesis is to be used for private study or non- commercial research purposes only. Published by the University of Cape Town (UCT) in terms of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author. Univeristy of Cape Town DECLARATION I, Mutale Chileshe, hereby declare that the work on which this thesis is based is my original work (except where acknowledgements indicate otherwise) and that neither the whole work nor any part of it has been, is being, or is to be submitted for another degree in this or any other university. I authorise the University to reproduce for the purpose of research either the whole or any portion of the contents in any manner whatsoever. Signed: ___________________________ Date: 18/09/2014 ii DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my husband, Kelvin Chola Chibangula, for his unwavering encouragement, patience, and support of every kind. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Completion of this doctoral dissertation was possible with the support of several people. First and foremost, I would like to thank Dr Jane Battersby for her patient, highly critical and equally encouraging supervisory role. Her dedication to my work is very much appreciated. I thank Dr. Bruce Frayne and Dr Owen Sichone for continuous guidance through the early stages of my thesis. I am also indebted to the staff in the Department of Environmental and Geographical Sciences (EGS) at UCT for their continued support, especially Dr. Pippin Anderson, the post-graduate co-coordinator, Professor Sue Parnell, Sharon Adams and Shahieda Samsodien. I am equally indebted to many student colleagues for providing a stimulating and fun environment in which to learn and grow. I am especially grateful to Dr. Godfrey Tawodzera, Dr. Gareth Haysom, Dr. Ndeyapo Nickanor, Dr. Samantha Williams and Ntombini Marrengane, for shared ideas, insightful discussions and encouragement at every stage of the dissertation. A deep debt to Jean Hunleth for all the shared ideas and to Hellen Mahlase Manku, Juliana Come, Mphangera Kamanga and Shakirudeen Lawal for editorial comments, stories and the last minute favours. The EGS list is endless because many staff and students contributed towards my work in their own special way. I am grateful to Carol Hartley for her support and editorial comments. I acknowledge the financial and technical support provided by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) through the Programme in Urban Food Security (PUFS) at the University of Cape Town. During data collection, my research assistants (Mubanga Chileshe, Brain Chisulo, and Limbisani Tembo) worked tirelessly to make this work possible; I thank them for their help and contributions. I also acknowledge Harry Banda’s assistance with focus group discussions. I extend my sincere thanks to all the respondents and informants for taking time to answer my questions and for time spent with me and the research assistants during participant observations. Without their warm hospitality and eagerness to discuss their experiences, this study would not have been possible. iv I would like to to thank my friends; especially Petronella Mulenga, for opening her home and for the countless hours spent listening to my research. I am indebted to the following good friends in Cape Town for their support and motivation during the happy and hard moments: Thumelo Mambwe, Dr. Judith Mwansa-Kambafwile, Abigail Kabandula Muyeba, Moonde Kabinga, Dr Singumbe Richard Muyeba and Sithabile Mbambo. In addition, I am grateful to Mutale Mulenga and Eva Liliane Ujeneza for providing needed encouragement and prayer. I also want to thank the many other friends that I met along the way who made this journey easier. I would like to thank extended family (brothers, sisters, nephews and my in-laws) for their love and continuous support; both spiritually and materially. Bwalya, Mulenga and Mubanga Chileshe; principally supported me emotionally and were sources of strength. Chileshe Chino Chileshe was particularly helpful in providing priceless editorial comments and for keeping me company and motivated during the course of the thesis. His wonderful cooking kept me healthy and fit for the PhD journey. I also thank Mwaka Chileshe for her comments and “special English skills” and for the countless hours spent on skype trying to figure out the best ways of “phrasing.” Saviour Chisanga Mwansa, Methodius Chishimba and Calistus Chilwa Chishimba; thank you for encouraging me and for keeping Kelvin Company in my absence, and for the delightful meals you prepared. I owe a lot to my parents, Sylvester Chileshe and Beatrice Chileshe who encouraged and helped me at every stage of my personal and academic life. They have contributed immeasurably to the person I have become. My father particularly drew the map of the study area, and I thank and appreciate his efforts. I deeply miss my mother, Mary N. Chileshe, who I know would have been proud and happy to share this joy. Lastly, but by no means the least, I thank Kelvin Chola Chibangula my dearest husband who has the patience of a saint; and he was a constant source of support and encouragement during this process. I thank him for putting up with my absences. For the missed birthdays and anniversary, I say sorry and will surely make up. Thank you for understanding and for being the best husband. I am grateful, and thank God for you. v Economic shocks, poverty and household food insecurity in urban Zambia: an ethnographic account of Chingola Mutale Chileshe CHLMUT001 Thesis Presented for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Environmental and Geographical Science University of Cape Town September 2014 Supervisor: Dr. Jane Battersby-Lennard vi ABSTRACT Research on poverty and food insecurity in sub-Saharan Africa has tended to focus on rural households and urban areas known to have concentrations of low-income households. However, consequences and effects of the recent global economic crisis such as retrenchment coupled with increasing food and fuel prices have played a major role in generating many newly poor households. The economic crisis came at a time when most developing countries were still struggling with impoverishment mainly caused by Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP). SAPs laid bare the acute vulnerability of the urban dwellers to the slightest additional shock such as economic shocks or high food prices. In view of these effects, this study was conducted in Chingola in the Copperbelt Province of Zambia to examine the impact of economic shocks on the food security of middle class households in urban areas. Focusing on one aspect of the economic shock (retrenchments), the thesis shows how once middle class households in Chingola perceived, experienced and grappled with retrenchment in the context of increasing urban poverty and high food prices. The central thesis is that due to the rising pattern of urban risk, it is not only the rural or structural urban poor that are vulnerable to food insecurity but middle class urban households too. The study employed a mixed-method approach, which took place in two main sequential data collection phases - the quantitative component served as a basis for the sampling of cases for the qualitative component. The findings revealed that food security of the retrenched households was compromised by the economic crisis with approximately 7.4% food secure, 4.2% mildly food insecure, 19.1% moderately food insecure and 69.3% severely food insecure. A compounding factor was that there were insufficient social protection services by government and NGOs to assist households to increase resilience to food insecurity. To survive, households employed close to thirty different strategies and tactics such as letting their houses, limiting their consumption and engaging in lucrative but unlawful activities - illegal mining, prostitution and theft. In light of these findings, the study makes a contribution to urban development and specifically to the emerging field of urban food security as it departs from the more traditional focus on the ‘old poor’ by giving specific attention to previously middle income households’ food security in the context of widespread economic shocks within the formal economy. Furthermore, it contributes to the debate on retrenchment literature by providing new information, for example, on how urban dwellers deal with shocks and the mechanisms used to help them survive in a globalised environment. Lastly, the study contributes to literature on the livelihoods of Copperbelt residents as very few scholars have explored the lives of the residents since the implementation of SAPs and the subsequent economic decline in the area. vii ABBREVIATIONS ACF Agricultural Consultative Forum AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome AVF Asset Vulnerability Framework AFSUN African Food Security Urban Network CBO Community based organisation CSO Central Statistics Office DFID Department for International Development DWAC District Welfare Assistance Committee ECZ Environmental Council of Zambia FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation