adminFrom George Maponga in Masvingo
Government has been urged to allocate more food relief to Masvingo where over 500 000 people are urgently in need of food aid across the drought-ravaged province.
Masvingo is one of the provinces worst affected by food shortages following poor rains in the previous farming season blamed on the El-Nino weather phenomenon that left a trail of destruction in the southern Africa region.
The number of people in need of food relief in the province is expected to hit 650 000 by December this year, before spiking further to nearly 800 000 people by March next year.
Masvingo provincial affairs Minister Senator Shuvai Mahofa yesterday appealed to Government to allocate more resources to one of Zimbabwe’s most populous provinces.
“The number of people in need of food aid will peak to nearly 650 000 by December as more and more families continue to exhaust the little food stocks they have,” said Senator Mahofa.
from last year’s disastrous farming season,’’ she said.
“Our appeal to Government is to allocate more food aid to schools where some children are sleeping in classes because of hunger. There is need to allocate more resources because children are more vulnerable,’’ she added.
Senator Mahofa said Government remained the biggest source of food in Masvingo but also paid tribute to donor organisations for assisting Government.
‘’Our people are getting assistance under the Food for Work programme and Government should be commended for the work it is doing to help starve the food challenges. The provincial monthly allocations of food
have been increasing but they need to increase more because more people continue to need food.’’
Districts hardest hit by food shortages are Mwenezi, Chiredzi, Bikita and Chivi, traditionally arid because of perennial poor rains.
Minister Mahofa said Tokwe-Mukosi flood victims at Nuanetsi Ranch in Mwenezi continued to receive preferential treatment in the allocation of food aid as they are still to carry out meaningful farming activities since their relocation from the flooded basin in Chivi over three years ago.
The families require nearly 180 tonnes of maize monthly and they have been getting their allocations through the Department of Social Welfare.
Masvingo recently received a food boost after sugar producer Tongaat Hulett handed over nearly 1400 tonnes of maize to Government that was grown under a revived winter maize project.
The winter maize was distributed to all the 26 constituencies in Masvingo with each seat getting 44 tonnes.
A further 30 tonnes was allocated to more than 20 old people’s and children’s homes across the province.
Online Reporter