Lerato Mbhiza
Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa has declared a national disaster to tackle the prolonged drought crisis that is affecting a number of SADC countries including Zambia, Angola, Malawi and Angola among others.
Mnangagwa said on Wednesday the country needs $2bn to tackle hunger caused by low rainfall which has wiped out about half of the maize crop.
The grain shortage has pushed up food prices and an estimated 2.7 million people are facing hunger.
“Preliminary assessments show that Zimbabwe requires in excess of $2 billion towards various interventions we envisage in our national response,” Mnangagwa said adding that his government would prioritise winter cropping to boost reserves, and work with the private sector to import grains.
Mnangagwa’s announcement follows similar announcements from Zambia in late February and Malawi in March, as drought induced by the El Nino global weather pattern intensifies, triggering a humanitarian crisis in Southern Africa.
Zimbabwe now joins the regional scramble to find enough maize on the international market to feed its population.
Authorities said that the number of people needing food aid will be higher than the initial projection and the country has warned it may be forced to import corn for the first time since 2017 because of the drought.
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