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Rumbidzayi Zinyuke in Bulawayo
Bulawayo residents have expressed gratitude for the Government’s cash-for-cereals programme, which provides money to buy basic food for vulnerable urban citizens.
The initiative is a direct response to the findings of the 2024 ZimLAC report which showed that over 1,7 million urbanites face food insecurity this year. It is a counterpart of the rural programme that provides direct rations of grain while the urban programme provides money to buy mealie-meal.
The cash-for-cereal programme involves providing vulnerable individuals with a cash stipend, which they can then use to buy grain from designated retailers.
This approach is designed to empower recipients while also supporting local millers, wholesalers and the broader economy.
Bulawayo Metropolitan is finalising the registration process which will give the final number of people to benefit from the initiative.
Mr Felix Mpofu Chidori, a resident from New Luveve in Bulawayo, said the programme had come at an opportune time when he and his family were struggling to make ends meet.
“I am the sole breadwinner for my family of nine. I stay with my five children, two nieces and my sister who has mental health challenges.
“I provide for the family through selling secondhand clothes but business has been low. I cannot afford to take my children to school, pay for medication for myself and my sister as well as provide food for them. I am looking forward to getting this assistance from Government,” he said.
Another resident Mrs Muriel Dube, a pensioned widow, said she had found taking care of her 99-year-old mother using her pension difficult.
“We are surviving on my paltry pension but it is not enough especially to cater for my mother’s special dietary and medical needs. I am hoping to get into the programme because it will help me to provide adequate food for her,” she said.
Said Ms Catherine Nyathi: “The economic situation is very difficult at the moment and for those of us who are self employed, we have not been earning as much as we used to. While we might be able to put food on the table, it is not enough because we still have to pay rent, school fees and many other expenses.
“We are happy that this initiative has been brought to us by the Government and we believe it will help us to feed our families.”
Permanent Secretary for Bulawayo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Mr Paul Nyoni said the ZimLAC assessment had shown that 41 percent of the people in Bulawayo were food insecure.
“We calculated this using the ZimStat figures and it means that just over 58 000 households should get this support. This translates to around 219 000 people out of the 659 000 people that are in Bulawayo as per the 2022 Census,” he said.
Mr Nyoni also took time to allay fears that some beneficiaries might divert the money towards other uses.
“In any well-meaning programme, there will be some abuse, but we are trying to use our targeting really to go to the most vulnerable families where the priority is food on the table.
“It does not preclude the possibility that someone might still split that money between the table and other uses,” he said.
Government, through the Department of Social Development, partners and the local authority was putting emphasis on educating the public on the importance of food nutrition and using the cash transfers for the intended use to minimise abuse.
Mr Nyoni said priority groups for the programme included people with disability, child-headed families and the elderly.
“I think with that kind of targeting, we are really trying to talk to people who really are vulnerable food-wise and would prioritise food most of the time,” said Mr Nyoni.
While rural communities often receive more attention in terms of food security initiatives, the ZimLAC report underscored the growing challenges faced by urban dwellers, including job losses, economic instability, and limited access to affordable food.
As the cash-for-cereal programme continues to be rolled out, it is expected to have a significant impact on reducing hunger and improving the overall well-being of the vulnerable population in the country.
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