Hospitals send food SOS

Michael Magoronga Midlands Correspondent
Kwekwe District Civil Protection Unit (CPU) is making efforts to ensure that the three hospitals within the district — Kwekwe General, Silobela District and Zhombe Mission Hospital — receive food aid after they raised a red flag over the shortage of food for patients.

The CPU chairperson, who is also the Kwekwe District Administrator, Mr Fortune Mpungu told a food security meeting recently that the three institutions had indicated that they were in dire need of food aid.

“Our major health institutions in the district, Kwekwe General, Silobela District and Zhombe Mission Hospital are set to receive food aid. This is after they indicated that patients were in dire need of food aid. Modalities that the institutions receive food aid are already in motion and very soon, they should be able to start receiving the food,” said Mr Mpungu.

The outcry comes amid indications that 41 000 households require food aid in Kwekwe district with Zhombe and Silobela being the worst affected.

“Kwekwe has about 41 254 farming households requiring food assistance as a result of the extended dry spell coupled with the armyworm menace has contributed to the food deficit. The most affected areas are wards 25, 32, 19, 20 7, 8, 9 and 6. We however await the ZIMVAC research that will inform us of the extent of the drought situation in the district,” said Mr Mpungu.

He urged residents to approach either Kwekwe or Zhombe Grain Marketing Board (GMB) depots to purchase maize meal.

“Both our depots received consignments of maize meal, we urge the residents to visit either depots to purchase it. I am reliably informed that the price has increased slightly from $20 to $37 but the maize meal will be readily available,” he said.

During the same meeting, the district’s remedial officer Mr Ardmore Shava called upon Government to quickly extend the schools feeding programme to secondary schools.

“Currently the schools feeding programme is going on well in primary schools, but we are calling on government to expedite the extension of the feeding programme to secondary schools. The programme has been going on well at primary schools abut we have been facing a challenge in relish and those with nutritional gardens have been finding it easy,” said Mr Shava.