SPECIAL FEATURE
RURAL FAMILIES BEARING BRUNT OF DROUGHT
ON 4 February 2016, Local Government Minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, acting on behalf
of President Robert Mugabe, released a statement declaring the 2015-16 agricultural
season a State of Disaster. This declaration set in motion a food mobilisation exercise
which saw government making an appeal of US$1.5 billion for assistance to enable it to
provide for the food needs across the country.
Three million people in Zimbabwe face hunger as a result of the El-Nino-induced drought
which has hit the Southern African region. Compounding the drought effects on
Zimbabwe is the perennial under production of the agricultural sector due to, among other
causes, the well documented uncertainties and challenges around the land reform
programme to ensure or at the very least maintain production levels obtaining prior to it.
The economic meltdown has had unrelenting dire effects on agriculture and other sectors.
All these dynamics have seen Zimbabwe under-producing since the turn of the
millennium and the country importing grain yearly, and other crops and products, from
neighbouring countries and from sources as far afield as the East, the Americas, for
example.
Against this background, this year’s El Nino phenomenon, which experts say is the worst
in 18 years has, in addition to rendering three million people food insecure, has also
caused a total of 16,681 (recorded) livestock deaths.
Section 27 of the Civil Protection Act (Chapter 10:06) Subsection (1) provides that if at
any time it appears to the President that a disaster is of such a nature and extent that extraordinary measures are necessary to assist and protect the persons affected or likely to be
affected by the said situation in any area of the country, the President may, in such a
manner as he considers fit, declare that, with effect from a date specified by him, a state
of the disaster exists within an area specified by him in the declaration.
By declaring 2015-16 agricultural season a national disaster, the President as head of
government acknowledged the magnitude of the problem and set the stage for
mobilisation of resources to alleviate food shortages. The declaration also enables the
tasks of ensuring and supervising the programme of effective delivery of relief supplies
for people and livestock as well as emergency irrigation programmes.
Further, the declaration seeks to nurture government linkages with the private sector,
development partners and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to ensure a wellcoordinated response to minimise distress and suffering caused by food scarcity.
According to government records, the order of severity of food insecurity across the
country is as follows: Matabeleland North 43 percent, Midlands 33 percent, Masvingo 32
percent, Mashonaland West 30, Matabeleland South 28 percent, Manicaland 27 percent,
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