Coronavirus constrain grain imports
COVID-19 has constrained grain importation, affecting Government’s food relief programme that benefits 735 455 households.
The restrictions have resulted in some rural communities going for more than a month without getting their monthly disbursements.
Government is providing relief grain to vulnerable citizens across the country following two successive years of poor rainfall. Rural vulnerable households receive a 50kg of maize on a monthly basis as a mitigation measure against drought-induced food insecurity.
The Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee (Zimvac) report estimates that more than 7 million citizens are food insecure and getting assistance from Government and its development partners.
Covid-19 could have also increased the level of vulnerability among citizens as some people lost their sources of livelihoods due to the changes caused by the pandemic.
Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Professor Paul Mavima said Government is in the process of addressing grain shortage caused by the global pandemic.
He was speaking in the National Assembly’s Question and Answer session on Wednesday last week, as legislators quizzed him on why some parts of the country had gone for more than a month without receiving relief grain .
“The Ministry is aware that some parts of the rural population have gone for more than a month without receiving their monthly allocation of grain due to the current grain shortages that the country has been experiencing. The Government is seized with grain importation which has been hampered by the Covid-19 travel restrictions which has witnessed slow movement of grain into the country. With the relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions, more grain will be expected in the country. To ensure no one dies of hunger, the Ministry is working with development partners to ensure that grain is readily available in all rural areas,” said Prof Mavima.
He said the social welfare department was also reaching out to the vulnerable who were affected by Covid-19.
“The Government of Zimbabwe through the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare is assisting food insecure households and individuals affected by the recurrent dry spells that have affected the country during the 2019/2020 farming season as well as those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.
“The Food Deficit Mitigation Programme has been rolled out to all the 10 provinces of the country. The eight rural provinces are receiving support in kind whilst cash for cereals is being paid to urban areas. The in-kind support where a household receives a 50kg bag of cereal is targeting 735 455 households on a monthly basis.” — chronicle.cl.zw
