Rampaging hippopotamuses have destroyed crops of resettled and communal farmers in Masvingo in the past few weeks, Zimbabwe’s Herald newspaper reported on Thursday.
It said some farmers had now lost all hope of harvesting anything this season.
Worst affected were the Hwendedzo and Mazare resettlement areas near Mutirikwi River, and Zano in the Chikwanda communal lands in Masvingo Central.
The hippos also damaged irrigated maize and beans at Stanmore Resettlement Scheme in Masvingo, leaving most plot holders facing food shortages.
”In some of the plots the animals destroyed almost all the crops and now we do not know how we are going to repay the loans that we got last year to finance farming programmes,” said farmer Emmanuel Matuma.
Affected farmers accused the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority of not doing enough to tame the hippos.
”We have been informing the parks people about the problems here but they never came here as they were arguing that they did not have fuel,” said Charles Dzingirayi of Zano.
”We are now demanding compensation for our destroyed crops.”
Wildlife management spokesperson Edward Mbewe ruled out paying any compensation to the affected farmers, saying the authority was not liable to compensate farmers.
”Hippos are our national heritage like other wild animals and there is nothing which ties us to compensate those farmers whose crops were destroyed by these animals.”
He said patrols were being conducted in Masvingo and Chivi to contain the situation.
”Only last week, we actually shot one hippo in the area and this really shows our desire to contain the situation but we cannot be everywhere at the same time.” – AFP
