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Zimbabwe: UN human rights expert visits to assess the right to food

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Zimbabwe
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UN HRC
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GENEVA (14 November 2019) – The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Hilal Elver, will carry out a fact-finding visit to Zimbabwe from 18 to 28 November 2019.

"The objective of my visit is to engage in constructive discussions to identify good practices as well as challenges to the enjoyment of the right to food in Zimbabwe, and provide useful recommendations to the Government and others," Elver said.

"I will consider the increased challenges posed by the economic crisis, as well as the role of the private sector, the impact of climate change, natural disasters and drought on food security and people's livelihoods, and the issues related to nutrition and food quality in both urban and rural areas."

This is the first visit to the country by an independent expert on the right to food.

The Special Rapporteur will visit Harare and its suburbs, as well as some of the districts most affected by the drought. She will meet Government officials, independent institutions, representatives from the UN system, the international donor community, civil society organisations and local communities.

The Special Rapporteur will share the preliminary observations of her visit at a press conference to be held at the end of the visit at 12:00 local time on 28 November 2019 at: UN Information Centre (UNIC) - 3rd Floor, Sanders House, Corner of Jason Moyo and First Street. Access will be strictly limited to accredited journalists.

Elver's final report on the visit will be presented to the Human Rights Council in Geneva in March 2020.

ENDS

Ms. Hilal Elver (Turkey) was appointed Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food by the Human Rights Council in 2014. She is a Research Professor, and co-director of the Project on Global Climate Change, Human Security, and Democracy housed at the Orfalea Center for Global & International Studies and global distinguished fellow at the University of California Los Angeles Law School (UCLA) Resnick Food Law and Policy Center.

The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council's independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organisation and serve in their individual capacity.

UN Human Rights, Country Page – Zimbabwe

For press inquiries and information about the mission please contact: Ms. Alia El Khatib (aelkhatib@ohchr.org; +41 22 9178771)

To register for the press conference in Zimbabwe, please contact:

Sirak Gebrehiwot, UN Communications Specialist in Zimbabwe (sirak.gebrehiwot@one.un.org; +263 772 198 036)

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts please contact: Mr. Jeremy Laurence, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+41 22 917 9383 / jlaurence@ohchr.org)

Follow news related to the UN's independent human rights experts on Twitter @UN_SPExperts.