The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) on Thursday said it had signed an agreement with President Robert Mugabe’s government to deliver food to three million Zimbabweans.
”The memorandum of understanding, which was signed after several weeks of discussions with the government of Zimbabwe, sets out the framework under which food aid distributions take place, including clarifying government and WFP responsibilities,” the food agency said in a statement.
This comes after Mugabe last year rejected the possibility of food aid, saying in an interview with Britain’s Sky News: ”We are not hungry. Why foist this food upon us? Do you want us to choke?”
In October this year, however, Mugabe’s government acknowledged that some Zimbabweans might be in need of food aid and promised to provide assistance to about 2,2-million people in the population of close to 13-million.
WFP estimates put the number of hungry Zimbabweans at 4,3-million.
”WFP welcomes the signing of this agreement, which will certainly assist in meeting our plans to deliver food aid to hungry people across Zimbabwe,” said Kevin Farrell, the WFP’s country director for Zimbabwe.
”This memorandum of understanding sets out the modalities for food aid deliveries and we are encouraged by the commitment to ensure procedures are formalised and followed,” he added.
The statement said the WFP provided food aid to two million Zimbabweans in November, and that it was now gearing up to give food to three million people until June when the situation would be re-assessed.
”WFP is particularly concerned about the limited availability of maize at the village level as well as the fact that an increasing number of people cannot afford it,” the statement said.
Zimbabwe is in the throes of severe economic crisis, with about 80% of the population living under the poverty threshold, more than 70% are jobless and inflation is over 400%.
Mugabe’s government has attributed the food shortages to drought, denying that it was the result of its controversial land reforms which saw agricultural productivity grinding to a near halt after about 4 000 white farmers were forcibly removed from their properties. – Sapa-AFP