2024-01-17 18:18:02
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — The U.N. World Food Program said Wednesday it is working with Zimbabwe’s government and aid agencies to bring food to 2.7 million people as the El Niño weather phenomenon worsens a drought. in southern Africa.
With food shortages, almost 20% of Zimbabwe’s population is on the brink of famine. The shortage is the result of poor harvests in drought-affected areas, where food depends on small-scale agriculture. El Niño is forecast to aggravate the situation because rainfall will be below average, said Francesca Erdelmann, WFP director for Zimbabwe.
El Niño is a natural, recurring weather phenomenon that warms parts of the Pacific, affecting weather patterns around the world. It impacts each region in a different way.
The lack or delay of rain has a significant impact, Erdelmann said at a press conference.
January to March is the so-called lean season in Zimbabwe, when rural households have little food while they wait for the harvest.
More than 60% of Zimbabweans live in rural areas. Their lives are increasingly affected by a cycle of droughts and floods exacerbated by climate change.
Droughts are becoming longer and more severe. For decades, the rainy season stretched from October to March. In recent years it has become erratic, sometimes starting as early as December and ending earlier.
Zimbabwe, which once exported food, has come to rely on donations to feed its people. Agricultural production fell sharply following the takeover of white-owned farms under President Robert Mugabe starting in 2000, but had begun to recover.
The US Agency for International Development’s (USAID) famine early warning network estimates that 20 million people will need food assistance in southern Africa between January and March. Many people in Zimbabwe, southern Malawi, parts of Mozambique and southern Madagascar will not be able to feed themselves because of El Niño, USAID said.
Zimbabwe’s government says it has grain reserves until October, but recognizes that many people who did not harvest enough are too poor to buy food in markets and require help.
Prices of basic foodstuffs are rising across the region, affecting people’s ability to feed themselves.
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