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Tawanda Mangoma in CHIREDZI
More than 34 000 households in Chiredzi are in dire need of food assistance, while over 50 000 cattle need supplementary feeding following a prolonged dry spell which is pointing to yet another drought.

Most parts of Chiredzi were severely affected by drought during the last farming season, with only isolated pockets in the district harvesting some grain which has since been exhausted.

The development comes as some communities have been rapped for failing to exploit their vast irrigation potential amid reports that over 2 000 hectares of potentially irrigable land was lying idle owing to a myriad of challenges.

Chiredzi district administrator Mr Lovemore Chisema yesterday said they had since convened an urgent meeting where a general crop and livestock assessment report was tabled.

“We held an urgent meeting where we received reports indicating that the general outlook for crops and livestock was extremely bad across Chiredzi,” he said.

“Most farmers have not started planting and those who managed to plant are watching helplessly as their crops wilt.

“Agronomists said if we don’t get rains in the coming two weeks, most crops will be a write off.”

Mr Chisema said communities should purchase stock feed to save their livestock in the wake of dwindling pastures and worsening water shortages.

“Reports are rife of livestock dying, especially in eastern and southern parts of the district, and the major causes of death are unavailability of drinking water and grazing, especially in Chikombedzi,” he said.

Mr Chisema said more households were requesting for food aid as their grain stocks continue to dwindle.

“Currently, 19 861 households are benefiting from the Social Welfare’s drought mitigation programme,” he said.

“The food situation has been prompted by this long dry and hot spell and is exposing many households.

“So, we are appealing and requesting for additional grain to cover about 34 000 households during this peak hunger period.”

Mr Chisema said the district should use all its community irrigation schemes to boost food security.

“We have over 2 000ha of irrigation schemes in the hands of communities which must be utilised to come up with a lasting solution to the hunger crisis,” he said.

“We must attend to our irrigation schemes as a matter of urgency as these are supplied with water from perennial rivers such as Runde, Mwenezi and Chiredzi.”

Besides turning to irrigation, which is reliable, communities here have been repeatedly challenged to grow small grains which are drought-tolerant.