ABSTRACT
Zimbabwe has been going through an economic and political crisis since the late 1990s. This chapter explains the politico-social and economic factors underlying the crisis. Since the early 1960s, Zimbabwe has experienced a high rate of population growth, above 3.0 per cent per year, with a doubling time of twenty years. Zimbabwe has also experienced different forms of international migration including European settler migrations during the colonial period. Zimbabwe is relatively well endowed in terms of surface and groundwater resources, although supplies are unevenly distributed geographically. Today, much of Zimbabwe's wildlife is concentrated in the country's national parks, safari areas, recreational parks, sanctuaries and botanical gardens, of which Hwange National Park is by far the largest. At independence in 1980, the new African majority government set out to transform the economy and society in order to redress the socio-political and racial disparities of the colonial era. The land redistribution programme began in 1981, a year after independence.
