Displaying items by tag: Zimbabwe

In the town of Musina, Portie Murevesi, heavily pregnant, has found refuge after a brutal assault. She is one of many migrants undertaking perilous journeys to reach South Africa. Tales of violence, including rape and murder, are commonplace, but many people, driven by desperation, are risking their lives to seek better opportunities in South Africa. Officially, there are more than 2.4 million foreigners - nearly half of them Zimbabwean - living in the country, accounting for just over 3% of the population. But that figure does not include those who have entered illegally, and with a general election scheduled for the end of May, this has become a highly charged political issue. Although the authorities say they are tightening security, it is an enormous task. John epitomises the struggle for survival as he resorts to smuggling watermelons across the porous border because they fetch a far higher price than in Zimbabwe.

Sixty-two death row inmates in Zimbabwe could have their sentences commuted to life in prison when the government abolishes the death penalty in 2024. This was revealed after a cabinet meeting chaired by president Emmerson Mnangagwa on 6 February. The abolition is due to come into effect through a private member's bill. At present, the constitution states that the death penalty may be imposed only for murder committed under aggravating circumstances, and only on men aged between 21 to 70. The last inmates to be hanged were two notorious criminals in 2005. Zimbabwe at present does not even have a hangman, despite interest in the job by applicants in 2022, two of whom were women. As of last year, the death sentence was still used in thirty countries on the continent - but the death penalty has only been used regularly in fourteen of those. Capital punishment has now been abolished in 26 African countries.

On 23 August citizens will vote in presidential and legislative elections. President Emerson Mnangagwa is seeking re-election; Nelson Chamisa is running for the newly created Citizens’ Coalition for Change. The presidency is decided by absolute majority; for the legislature, the National Assembly, 210 of the 270 total seats are single-member constituencies. The remaining 60 seats are reserved for women parliamentarians and are awarded proportionally. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) is responsible for administering the vote. With no meaningful reforms to ensure ZEC’s independence and the uneven playing field for political parties, international rights groups are expressing concerns over whether the country is capable of holding credible and fair elections. The president misuses state resources for campaigning, and last year relatives of ruling party politicians and loyalists were appointed to the ZEC as election commissioners. Police block opposition party meetings and rallies, and public broadcasters give preferential coverage to the ruling ZANU-PF party.

The word cholera doesn’t strike much fear in countries with vaccines and clean water. However a Zimbabwe cholera outbreak is serious, often killing within hours. Cholera is a bacterial disease contracted by ingesting contaminated water or food. It is prevalent in places with poor sanitation, unclean water, and inadequate hygiene. Symptoms of acute watery diarrhoea, vomiting and leg cramps appear within two or three days of infection, leading to severe dehydration and shock. Unless fluids are replaced quickly, death occurs within hours. In the week beginning 9 July there has been a spike in cases and a spread of outbreaks in known hotspot areas in Harare Province. Robust response measures, particularly for strengthening surveillance, risk communication, case management, and provision of clean water, sanitation, and hygiene services are urgently needed to control the outbreaks On 28 June 3,000+ cases were reported: updated totals are not currently available. 

Craig's farm was seized by Zimbabwe’s government in 2003, forcing his family to move to Harare. He joined a Foundations for Farming group and began teaching the new owners and other small-scale farmers a unique way of farming revealed by God - farming without tillage or burning. He immediately got a 10% increase in yield. He started to grow it bigger, but he knew that God had given him this revelation not for himself but to share across Africa to the rural farmers, the hurting, the poor ones. Zero-tillage technique caught the attention of the government, which endorsed the method. In 2020 Zimbabwe experienced its first food surplus in two decades and now Foundations for Farming teaches the technique all over the world, with the main goal of sharing the Gospel. ‘80% of what we teach is the heart, using agriculture as an entry point for the gospel.’

The southern African nation's 15 million people are faced with shortages, inflation and other economic woes, conjuring memories of economic chaos under Robert Mugabe's near four-decade rule of hyper-inflation. Zimbabwe will start selling gold coins from July 25th in a bid to tackle runaway inflation which has hamstrung the local currency. Gold "Mosi-oa-tunya" coins - named after Victoria Falls - will contain 31 grams of gold and can be converted into cash and traded both locally and internationally. Gold coins are used by investors globally to hedge against inflation and wars.

Since its independence in 1980, Zimbabwe has experienced low-intensity conflict marked by periods of escalation and political violence. Once an economic powerhouse, Zimbabwe suffers from a worsening currency and economic crisis, leading to a rise in protests with some turning violent. Peace Direct and its partner, Envision Zimbabwe Women’s Trust, work in Murewa and Hurungwe districts to address the deeply embedded culture of violence by training traditional local leaders and the national police force in non-violent conflict resolution. They prevent violence against women by providing gender training and supporting women who have been victims of sexual violence or domestic abuse. Their local peace committees defuse community tensions through an ‘early warning early response’ network monitoring flashpoints of violence, so they can be quickly identified and calmed. Nationally unresolved conflicts remain rooted in disputes over national power and economic hardship.

A shopper grumbled while returning a loaf of bread to a rack - the price had jumped by a third. Nearby a half-mile queue of cars waited at an empty petrol station hoping for a delivery. Zimbabwe has an economic crisis. Basic goods prices rise weekly as the value of the Zimbabwean dollar tumbles. Inflation was 785.6% in April, and poverty is deepening. UN aid agencies reported that 7.7 million people, half of the population, require food assistance. A loaf of bread went up 36% last month, and last week a 22-pound sack of cornmeal jumped 30%. Fuel soared by 152% recently; a similar rise in 2019 sparked national demonstrations and deaths. ‘Things cannot continue this way. These people should just admit they have failed,’ said a Harare resident, referring to President Mnangagwa’s government which took power pledging to revive the economy. Pray for food aid to reach the hungry.

Coronavirus could not have come at a worse time for millions of Zimbabweans struggling with a deepening economic crisis, soaring food prices, stagnant salaries, water shortages and daily power blackouts. Early on 29 March Stewart Dzivira, his wife and their two-year-old son left Glen View to travel into Harare. For days now he has been unsuccessful in trying to get maize meal, a staple that has been in short supply following devastating droughts two years ago. He was not alone: hundreds of others were queueing on the eve of the three-week lockdown to contain coronavirus. Frequent thorough hand-washing with soap and water is the basic weapon against coronavirus, but in Harare alone one million people are without running water. Electricity is also scarce. Stewart said that without food ‘we’ll die of hunger.’

Somalia has declared a national emergency as desert locusts destroy vegetation. An average swarm containing 40 million insects can travel 150 km in 24 hours, devouring enough food to feed 34 million people in that time. The UN said it is a race against time to tackle this invasion amidst ongoing humanitarian challenges. A spokesman said, ‘We do have a chance to nip this problem in the bud, but that’s not what we’re doing at the moment.’ Kenya’s food security is threatened, particularly communities keeping livestock on endangered pastures. Swarms crossed into Uganda on 9 February, and Tanzania and South Sudan are now on the UN’s ‘watch list’. Also, insufficient rain means that over two million Somalis will need emergency food aid this year after the worst harvest in 25 years. 300,000 were displaced in eight months; many have headed for the capital, Mogadishu. Six million Kenyans are food-insecure, while seven million Zimbabweans need aid after successive droughts and an inflation rate of 300%. Urban families are feeling the pinch of soaring prices. See