The International Journal Of Humanities & Social Studies (ISSN 2321 - 9203) www.theijhss.com 180 Vol 5 Issue 2 February, 2017 THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HUMANITIES & SOCIAL STUDIES Water Scarcity and Socio-Economic Development in Rural Communities of Zimbabwe: The Case of Bulilima District, Zimbabwe 1. Introduction Water is an indispensable, undoubtedly critically and paramount important natural resource that all countries around the world largely depend on to spruce their economies (Scheumann and Neubert, 2002). It contributes significantly to the various sectors of the economy namely: agriculture, transport, health, energy, mining and industry to mention a few (Malzbender and Earle, 2007). Communities and households in Africa rely on water supply for their various activities namely household chores, gardening and irrigation for farming. Their lives are centered on the availability of water for both social and economic benefits and gains. These mainly include poverty eradication as identified in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and food security (Malzbender and Earle, 2007). However, this can only be realised through efficient water policies that ensure adequate supply and distribution of water. Despite the formulation of legislative and policy frameworks by many countries on water governance and management, the resource is under a lot of threat due to factors such as climate change. Water scarcity has emerged as one of the biggest challenges to the availability of water. Urdan (2011) contends that a closer look at the recent past years shows that easy accessibility of water has emerged as one of principal problems that the world at large is facing which threatens the sustainability of the ecosystem as well as human survival. There is an emergence of an era of parallel freshwater profusion which is largely influenced by disproportions in water prosperity, protracted inadequacies and dilapidating ecological balance throughout the majority of the densely-populated areas on earth (Urdan, 2011). According to Ashton (2006) Africa chiefly depends on enormous river basins that are mutual divided among countries accounting to 85 percent of natural resources. Many countries in the Southern African region (Zimbabwe, South Africa, Lesotho, Namibia, and Zambia) share river basins with each other and are dependent on one another for the supply of water. In some cases, other countries sell their water to gain revenue and royalties and this is evident through water projects such as the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) where Lesotho sells its water to neighboring South Africa. However, water resources are facing several constraints especially with the alarming growth of the population. The enormous increase in terms of population in the continent has in turn influenced, an upsurge in the petition of water which has resulted in many countries reaching an ultimatum where by scarcity of water now acts as a Wayne Malinga Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Development Studies, University of Fort Hare, Eastern Cape, South Africa Whitehead Zikhali Senior Information Analyst, Research and Reports Officer, United Nations, New York City, New York, United States Buhe Nleya Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Development Studies, University of Fort Hare, Eastern Cape, South Africa Abstract: One of the most crucial natural resources which can make a meaningful contribution to the socio-economic development of rural communities is water. It is widely used for various reasons or purposes ranging from household chores to agricultural purposes. In Zimbabwe, water resources have faced various constraints due to the negative impact of climate change and unreliable rainfall patterns which have significantly contributed to water scarcity within the country. Policies on water in the country have been geared towards redressing the colonial imbalances of unequal distribution of water between commercial farms, urban areas and rural areas instead of increasing water availability and access to the poor households in the rural areas. Previous colonial policies abandoned the development of rural areas even through the distribution and access of water. This paper delves into this intriguing history of water policies in Zimbabwe and whether they have managed to benefit the disadvantaged rural communities. In addition, this paper links the relation between water and socio-economic development. It concludes that the availability of water is crucial in the survival of rural communities who are largely dependent on water for their agricultural activities which is the main source of the economy. Keywords: water scarcity, erratic rainfall pattern, climate change, socio-economic development