The government yesterday said that 38% of the country’s rural population, about 3.8 million people, will face hunger next year.
Speaking during a post-Cabinet briefing, Information minister Monica Mutsvangwa said projections by the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee (ZimVAC) for Rural Livelihood Assessment Results (2022) on the country’s food security situation were true.
Senator Mutsvangwa said all the 3.8 million people projected to be food insecure will be targeted as beneficiaries. She added:
The nation is assured that the country has 490 000 metric tonnes of grain in the strategic grain reserve. Thus, the
120 000 metric tonnes required to support the needy households will be sufficiently covered.Government will distribute food to all the needy households in provinces. World Food Programme and other development partners are expected to channel their food assistance through government structures as per
practice.
Mutsvangwa said distribution of grain would be undertaken through district drought relief committees.
Zimbabwe has for the past two decades faced acute food shortages due to a series of droughts and poor agricultural policies.
Hunger has been rampant in some regions and as a result, some politicians have been using food hampers to buy votes from the electorate.
Some Civic Society Organisations have recently expressed fears that the food aid from the government and other stakeholders might be weaponised as the country prepares for the 2023 elections.