Week 2
Een wekelijkse selectie artikelen uit Zimbabwaanse kranten
National dam water levels peak 59 percent average – ZINWA
Water levels in major dams in the country have risen to a national average of 59.1 percent, the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) has said.
This has seen a 1.59 percent improvement since December 30, 2024, thanks to the wet spell currently being experienced in different parts of the country.
Dams which supply water to Bulawayo however still remain low with Upper Ncema recording 12. 4 percent while Lower Ncema is only seven percent full.
Supply dams for Harare are doing much better, at above 70 percent full except for Harava which has 16.3 percent water.
Govt wins fight against malaria (The Sunday Mail, state owned)
Measures implemented by the Government to combat malaria have paid off, as the number of deaths caused by the disease dropped to just over 100 last year, compared to more than 300 in 2023.
Data from the Ministry of Health and Child Care also shows that 157 083 cases of malaria were recorded in 2023, compared to 39 907 in 2024.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health Dr Aspect Maunganidze told The Sunday Mail that the indoor residual spraying exercise in high-risk wards, distribution of mosquito nets to households and promotion of community malaria case management had contributed to the significant reduction in deaths.
60 cases of cholera reported in Mazowe (The Herald, state owned)
One death and 60 cases of cholera have been reported at Mazowe Flowers Farm compound, where a borehole feeds a single tap without a storage tank, and Glendale Highway suburb where overflowing sewage contaminated shallow wells.
In response, the Ministry of Health and Child Care has established oral rehydration centres in both locations and is conducting door-to-door awareness campaigns focused on health and hygiene and monitoring gatherings and food vendors.
In an interview, the provincial health promotion officer, Mr Takura Mzorodzi, urged councils and responsible authorities to ensure the provision of safe water to communities.
Zim’s food crisis set to worsen
The food shortages affecting more than half of the country’s population will continue during the lean period after Zimbabwe experiencing a delayed onset of the rain season with most areas receiving below-average rain.
A significant number of areas across the country are yet to receive meaningful rains, with some crops already a write-off due to high temperatures.
Some farmers have been forced to replant their fields and there has been a marked increase in the number of villagers failing to access more seed due to financial constraints, it has emerged.
The Meteorological Services Department has predicted that Zimbabwe will record normal to above normal rains during the current farming season.
Prepaid water for Victoria Falls, Bulawayo and Harare: minister
Local Government Minister, Daniel Garwe says the government is looking for investors to take over the country’s dysfunctional urban water supply system targeting, most importantly, major cities such as Victoria Falls, Bulawayo and Harare.
Garwe said while speaking at a ministers and media session that they have been given the greenlight to privatise the provision of water within a battered system that has, for decades, struggled to provide constant supply of portable water to rate payers.
“We were given greenlight to privatise, we are now in the process of inviting the private sector players, both local and international, to bring proposals of interest,” Garwe said.
“We want somebody with the capacity to engineer, procure, construct, manage and finance.
Law which barred safe abortions for girls under 18 and marital rape victims is unconstitutional – High Court rules
The High Court has outlawed the law which previously blocked safe abortion for minor girls and married women who are victims of rape in a recent ruling handed down by Justice Maxwell Takuva. The landmark ruling follows an application by Women in Law Southern Africa, Talent Forget, who sued Health Minister, Douglas Mombeshora, the Parliament of Zimbabwe and Attorney General Prince Machaya seeking to overturn the existing laws.
The applicants were represented by their lawyer Tendai Biti.
In his ruling, Takuva noted that the matter was significant in light of the massive instances of teenage pregnancies in Zimbabwe, and consequently illegal teen abortions and teenage mortalities.
El Niño crisis bumps up Zim’s financial requirements to US$36m
ZIMBABWE requires approximately US$36 million to assist half of the country’s 15 million people affected by the El Niño-induced drought to address food and nutrition crises, floods and public health emergencies, the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) has said.
In its report titled Humanitarian Action for Children 2025, the UN agency issued an appeal to raise US$36,5 million to assist 38 high-priority districts in Zimbabwe this year.
According to the UN agency, the funds are expected to address the needs of children and families in the areas of health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene education, child protection and social protection.
“Unicef is seeking US$36,5 million to address the humanitarian needs of 1,6 million people impacted by the El Niño-induced drought in 38 high-priority districts in Zimbabwe. The drought has caused water scarcity and a nutrition crisis,” the agency said.
Urgent call to fight gender-based violence in Zimbabwe (The Herald, state owned)
Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Minister Monica Mutsvangwa, has underscored the urgent need to tackle gender-based violence (GBV), which affects nearly one in three women in the country, which is significantly higher than the global average.
Speaking at a recent training workshop for female religious leaders, she emphasised the critical role these leaders play in addressing GBV within their communities.
She mentioned that the faith community has long maintained a culture of silence on matters of GBV, often attributing the acts to evil spirits.
“It is now time to critically reflect on these positions and ask ourselves pertinent questions about whether we are doing a service to survivors who are suffering in silence,” she said.
“We need to come up with practical solutions to these challenges and help each other to overcome this vice.”
Met Dept warns of heavy rains, flash floods (The Herald, state owned)
The Meteorological Services Department (MSD) has warned that most parts of the country will experience heavy rains, thunderstorms, and flash floods up to Saturday, urging the public to avoid crossing flooded rivers.
Heavy downpours exceeding 50 millimetres (mm) within 24 hours are anticipated across the country, with meteorologists cautioning that water as shallow as 30 centimetres can sweep away heavy vehicles.
While the persistent rains bring hope for farmers and contribute to rising dam levels, they also pose significant risks to communities. In Bulawayo, where residents have been grappling with acute water shortages, many have turned to water harvesting to ease their challenges.
In an advisory issued yesterday, MSD forecast heavier rainfall from yesterday until Saturday.
Ministers July Moyo, Edgar Moyo reassigned (The Herald, state owned)
President Mnangagwa has swapped Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister July Moyo and Energy and Power Development Minister Edgar Moyo with immediate effect.
The reassignment means Minister July Moyo is now Energy and Power Development Minister while Minister Edgar Moyo is now Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister.
The Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Dr Martin Rushwaya announced the reassignment in a statement issued on Friday evening.
Lack of jobs, tanking economy pushing locals out of Zim
Limited work opportunities and intensified economic hardships are among the highest drivers of immigration in Zimbabwe, a latest report by the Afrobarometer survey has indicated.
The development comes as the country continues to experience high levels of migration and brain drain, with the Zimbabwe 2022 Population and Housing Census report indicating that the primary reason Zimbabweans migrate is the search for economic opportunities.
According to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (2023), approximately one million of the emigrants counted in the census, a large majority — 84% — left the country in search of employment, while another 5% migrated for education or training.
“More than half (58%) of Zimbabweans say they have considered emigrating during the past year, including one-third (34%) who have contemplated it ‘a lot’. https://www.newsday.co.zw/local-news/article/200036573/lack-of-jobs-tanking-economy-pushing-locals-out-of-zim
‘You are just a comical noisemaker who can’t come back home’— exiled former minister told as Ian Smith, Mnangagwa comparison rages
Former opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Fadzai Mahere has taken to X to caution exiled ex-Cabinet minister Jonathan Moyo against giving political advice as he is not just making comical noise but also failing to come back home.
Mahere’s backlash follows attempts by Moyo to chastise opposition figure Nelson Chamisa for having supporters, who believe the colonial era was way better than both President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s ‘new dispensation’ and his predecessor Robert Mugabe’s regime.
Moyo is believed to be in Kenya, having fled Mnangagwa’s 2017 coup after attempts on his life were made by soldiers looking for him at his Harare home.
