Online Reporter
Rutendo Nyeve, Victoria Falls Reporter
THE Meteorological Services Department (MSD) has predicted above-normal rainfall for the southern parts of the country in December, urging citizens to stay alert while assuring the nation of more frequent and detailed weather updates.
This comes as the Civil Protection Unit (CPU) has already noted isolated destruction of amenities, including areas in Gwanda District, Matabeleland South, with the Government moving in to provide immediate relief through repairs under the “Build Back Better” programme.
Director of the Meteorological Services Department (MSD), Mrs Rebecca Manzou, told Zimpapers in an exclusive interview that the outlook for the 2025-2026 rainfall season was positively unfolding as predicted.
“Concerning our 2025-2026 rainfall, the season is slowly starting as we predicted. You will find that in November, we are expecting and experiencing normal to below normal rainfall. In some places the season has started, but in others it is still to start,” she said.
Mrs Manzou, however, highlighted a significant shift next month.
“You will find that next month in December, there will be normal to above normal rainfall throughout the country and in the southern parts of the country, it is going to be actually above. There will be lots of rainfall,” she said.
“When that happens, we find that floods also appear in some of these places, especially in our flood-prone areas. This is why you will find that civil protection comes in. They know the areas that are prone.”
Mrs Manzou said the weather agency was implementing a new collaborative approach to disseminating weather information. The department will now issue monthly seasonal forecasts to keep the public and key sectors better informed.
“The good thing about the way we now operate, we work with our stakeholders. When it comes to agriculture, they interpret what this focus means to them. So, there is co-production now. We work together with them,” he said.
“What it means to the Ministry of Health might be different from what it means to tourism. So, for all of them, we have embraced them and we are working very closely with them. You’ll find that the focus we give you is general. When it rains, others will celebrate because it will fill their dams. But others will cry because it means floods.”
To enhance preparedness, the MSD has committed to giving more regular updates to assist the public and key stakeholders.
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