Week 12
A weekly selection from Zimbabwean newspapers
Global fresh water demand will outstrip supply by 40% by 2030, say experts | Water | The Guardian
Water is fundamental to the climate crisis and the global food crisis. “There will be no agricultural revolution unless we fix water,” said Rockstrom. “Behind all these challenges we are facing, there’s always water, and we never talk about water.”
The world is facing an imminent water crisis, with demand expected to outstrip the supply of fresh water by 40% by the end of this decade, experts have said on the eve of a crucial UN water summit.
Governments must urgently stop subsidising the extraction and overuse of water through misdirected agricultural subsidies, and industries from mining to manufacturing must be made to overhaul their wasteful practices, according to a landmark report on the economics of water.
Nations must start to manage water as a global common good, because most countries are highly dependent on their neighbours for water supplies, and overuse, pollution and the climate crisis threaten water supplies globally, the report’s authors say.
The UN water summit, led by the governments of the Netherlands and Tajikistan, will take place in New York on 22 March.
Bretheren in Christ donates to Mpilo Hospital
BRETHEREN in Christ Church has come to the rescue of Mpilo Central Hospital in Bulawayo by donating five refrigerators for the storage of drugs.
Mpilo Hospital principal nursing officer Phineas Sithole said: “The impact will be beyond measure. Some drugs when mixed need to be kept in a fridge or extremely low temperatures. The refrigerators will help us so much in this regard.”
CSOs meet ED over PVOs Bill
CIVIL Society Organisations (CSOs) on Friday met President Emmerson Mnangagwa in a last-minute bid to lobby him to stop signing the Private Voluntary Organisations (PVO) Amendment Bill into law.
The Bill is currently undergoing proofreading at the Attorney-General’s (AG) office after Parliament endorsed it.
Information secretary Ndavaningi Nick Mangwana confirmed that CSOs met Mnangagwa to discuss the Bill which has been viewed as oppressive as it criminalises their work.
Women take centre stage in agric sector | The Herald (state owned)
Over the past few decades, women have taken centre stage in farming and are now sustaining their families and communities through farming.
Zimbabwe, recently, joined the rest of the world to celebrate International Women’s Day, and here we return to some of the women we had reported on in the past — women in the agriculture sector that deserve special mention for their resilience.
Despite the challenges many farmers have faced, many women are now taking agriculture seriously and are doing very well.
Droughts bring disease: here are 4 ways they do it
To prevent drought-related disease outbreaks, pre-existing vulnerability (poverty, access to water, education) needs to be addressed. It is not the drought that causes the outbreak, but instead how society deals with these dry conditions.
Better water resource management is needed at a regional and international level, to treat large water sources as a common resource for all. Authorities need to act to provide drought assistance. This includes safe water to prevent the use of poor quality water sources, and agricultural and food aid to mitigate dehydration and malnutrition.
Civil servants get 100% salary increase
GOVERNMENT has approved a 100% salary increment for civil servants.
Finance ministry permanent secretary George Guvamatanga said Covid-19 allowances have also been increased from US$200 to $250 across sectors excluding the health sector.
“The increase in Cushioning and Covid Allowances from $200 to $250 across all sectors with exception to the health sector takes effect on March 1, 2023 for the Security Sector and April 1, 2023 for the rest of the civil service, taking into account March 2023 developments in the sector,” Guvamatanga said.
50% of rural population in extreme poverty: ZimStats
RECENT statistics released by the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) show that 63% of Zimbabwe’s 15,2 million population cannot afford a balanced diet and consume vegetables like covo and rape more than meat.
“In rural areas, 51% of the people were living in extreme poverty while 10% in urban areas were living in extreme poverty,” ZimStat manager Grown Chirongwe said last week as he presented the data based on a survey.
Chief calls on ED, Chamisa to talk
NATIONAL Council of Chiefs (NCC) president Chief Fortune Charumbira has called on President Emmerson Mnangagwa and opposition leader Nelson Chamisa to talk and end abject poverty affecting Zimbabweans. “President Mnangagwa and Chamisa both hail from Masvingo and are of the Karanga tribe, hence they can unite to assert Karanga ethnic dominance in a country whose politics was dominated by the Zezurus over the past four decades when the late former President Robert Mugabe was in charge,” he said on Sunday in Masvingo while speaking at the funeral of Harare mayor Jacob Mafume’s mother who died last week.
Byo residents resort to unclean water sources
RESIDENTS of some Bulawayo suburbs have resorted to unclean sources of water and face the threat of waterborne diseases like cholera.
Zimbabwe recorded 31 new suspected cholera cases last week, bringing the total to 98 cases.
Some suburbs in Bulawayo such as Pumula, Entumbane, Mzilikazi, Barbourfields, Makokoba and others have gone for two weeks without potable water.
This has forced them to use water from unsafe sources. Pumula South residents told Southern Eye that they fetch water from open sources at a nearby bushy area.
Renewable Energy Conference begins
THE fourth edition of the International Renewable Energy Conference and Expo 2023 kicked off yesterday in Victoria Falls with a tour of a Solgas Energy solar farm in Cross Mabale, Matabeleland North province.
Solgas, which aims to be a top producer of renewable energy services and products, partnered Old Mutual to build a five-megawatt (MW) facility close to Hwange.
The project’s first phase, in which Old Mutual owns a 50% stake, was valued at US$7,3 million.
Zim moves towards food, water security | The Herald (state owned)
ZIMBABWE has recorded an improvement in food security over the past few years, a development which dovetails with Vision 2030 prospects of ensuring the country becomes a middle-income economy.
According to the Zimbabwe Statistics Agency (ZimStat), the percentage of households with improved drinking water sources at national level stands at 84,4 percent.
This follows reports that crop conditions have significantly improved following favourable rainfall patterns in many parts of the country, a development which will see an improvement in access to food.
ED sets tough conditions for poll observers
Writing in his column in a local weekly newspaper, Mnangagwa said he would formally invite the international observers after proclaiming election dates, but warned that he would not tolerate ‘undue interference’ in the country’s electoral processes.
“Sometime this year, we will go for our harmonised general elections. As I write, everything is being done to ensure everyone who wants to vote in the forthcoming elections is facilitated. Our elections will be free and fair, and will be conducted in an atmosphere of space and tranquillity.
