Zimbabwe’s devolution programme is largely founded on the principle of empowering provincial government councils to spearhead economic and social development projects in their areas by leveraging on local resources. The emphasis is on economic development and not political power, which remains in the hands of central government, under the country’s unitary state structure. Legal framework Devolution was adopted as a key component of the new Constitution of Zimbabwe of 2013 and is recognized as one of the Founding Values and Principles to the Constitution. Chapter 14 of the 2013 Constitution provides for provincial and local governments. It is the only Chapter of the Constitution that has a preamble of its own. The preamble reads: Whereas it is desirable to ensure: (a) the preservation of national unity in Zimbabwe and the prevention of all forms of disunity and secessionism; (b) the democratic participation in government by all citizens and communities of Zimbabwe; and (c) the equitable allocation of national resources and the participation of local communities in the determination of development priorities within their areas; there must be devolution of power and responsibilities to lower tiers of government in Zimbabwe. Devolution was seen as a necessary vehicle for doing away with the over-centralized system of government, for deepening democracy, promoting locally driven development, improving the delivery of public services, and promoting national integration and peace while recognizing diversity. How will devolution work? The 2013 Constitution maintains a unitary form of government, which means central government remains the main centre of power, although it devolves some power to lower structures. In the old Lancaster House Constitution, the levels of government were horizontal and were called “levels of administration”; each level was defined as an institutional setting that supports, administratively, the implementation of governmental policies in the regions, at the local level. These levels of administration did not make policies but only implemented them. However, the new Constitution seeks to organize government vertically at multiple levels; national, provincial and local. Each level is defined as a “tier of government” – “the part of the hierarchy through which state power is employed at a certain place in the vertical order of a country”. A tier of government is endowed with the power to make policies and also implement them. Composition of provincial and metropolitan structures The requirement for devolution in the preamble is further given effect by section 264(1). The provision provides that “whenever appropriate, governmental powers and responsibilities must be devolved to provincial and metropolitan councils and local authorities which are competent to carry out those responsibilities efficiently and effectively.” The Constitution recognises 10 provinces, namely; Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Manicaland, Masvingo, Midlands, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Bulawayo and Harare. Therefore, the provincial tier of government is to be constituted by eight provincial councils and two metropolitan councils namely, Bulawayo and Harare. The local tier of government – local government – consists of urban and rural local authorities. Provincial and metropolitan councils are to be constituted by a combination of elected and appointed officials. A total of 10 directly elected officials, all members of parliament, and the president of the council of chiefs and his deputy, make up the provincial council in the 8 provinces. The metropolitan council is constituted by all members of parliament, mayors, chairpersons, deputy mayors and deputy chairpersons in the province. The Constitution requires provincial and metropolitan councils to undertake social economic development in their respective provinces, including: Socio-economic development encompasses social related services, such as the provision of health, education and sanitation, and economic orientated activities including tourism, natural resources extraction and job creation. Composition of local government structures The Constitution makes provision for two categories of local authority: urban local authorities, for urban areas; and rural local authorities, for rural areas to be governed by councils constituted by democratically elected councillors. Section 276(1) of the 2013 Constitution provides generic powers whose boundaries or depth are subject to interpretation.