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Fungai Lupande-Mash Central Bureau 

RUSHINGA District has been allocated 183 tonnes of maize grain by the Government to tackle food shortages in the area following a difficult season last year. 

This comes as President Mnangagwa assured the nation and no one will die of hunger as the country has adequate food stocks despite some areas experiencing poor harvests. 

Mashonaland Central Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Monica Mavhunga said deliveries of grain will start this month. An additional 250 tonnes would be delivered in Rushinga in January next year. 

Minister Mavhunga said the community should not pay any transport fee that has been previously demanded by some unscrupulous people entrusted with the distribution of grain. 

“We don’t want to hear that people are being asked to pay transport fees for the grain. It’s for free. Show no favour in the distribution of the grain, everyone must benefit,” she said. 

Rushinga legislator Cde Tendai Nyabani said people are surviving on the baobab fruit, while children are no longer going to school in large numbers due to hunger. 

He said the whole district was affected by the mid-season dry spell experienced in the last cropping season. Rushinga is a generally dry area characterised by low rainfall and high temperatures. Cde Nyabani said traditional grains tend to do well in the district but farmers received the inputs way into the cropping season resulting in poor harvests. 

“The whole district is affected save for only a few wards which are better including wards 1, 2, 3, 4, 19, 20 and 21 but they are not food sufficient,” he said. People don’t have another alternative for survival. Others have resorted to gold panning along Mazowe River but now the river has run dry. We are appealing for early distribution of traditional grains inputs so that communities are food secure. 

“Last season, we received inputs around March. We thank Government for the 183 tonnes and we are appealing for more grain to cater for our population.” 

Under refinements to the Pfumvudza programme, areas like Rushinga almost entirely in natural regions four and five will be getting traditional grain inputs early as the main part of their package. 

Maize will move to become one of the optional extras in these areas, for those willing to take the risk for variety after ensuring they have enough to eat.

Chief Rusambo said the bulk of his people were food insecure. 

“I am also affected by this drought. I don’t have a farm to implement the Zunde raMambo concept which is a safety net during times of drought,” he said. “There are vast tracts of land at Chesa and we are appealing to the Government to redistribute the land. 

“We thank Government for availing grains and we hope the maize comes early before people perish. We are still facing water challenges and women wake up at 2am to queue for water at boreholes.” 

Ms Mollen Masanzu from Zimbabwe National Network of People Living with HIV (ZNNP+) said hunger was a major cause of people defaulting on their antiretroviral drugs as they cannot be taken on an empty stomach. 

She appealed to the Government to allocate land to people living with HIV so that they can implement Pfumvudza/Intwasa and horticulture to ensure self-food sufficiency. 

“Mashonaland Central is number one in unsuppressed viral load and the leading district is Muzarabani. 

“The major challenge is that people cannot take their medication due to hunger,” she said.