Week 41

Een wekelijkse selectie artikelen uit Zimbabwaanse kranten

Zim faces groundwater drought: WB

A latest World Bank Group (WBG) report has painted a gloomy picture of Zimbabwe’s key sectors such as agriculture, water, forestry and energy because of the devastating effects of climate change. 

The report said Zimbabwe was at high risk of groundwater drought. 

“In particular, groundwater recharge is highly dependent on rainfall and, therefore, decreases in rainfall will negatively impact groundwater availability,” the WBG said in the report titled Climate Risk Country Profile: Zimbabwe. 

“It was estimated that the percentage of population at very high risk of groundwater drought could rise from 32% to 86% without measures to adapt to the effects of climate change.” 

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Zimbabwe compensates foreign and local farmers over land invasions

The Zimbabwean government will this month pay an initial $20 million to foreign white and local Black farmers who lost land in farm invasions under former leader Robert Mugabe at the turn of the century, the finance minister said on Friday. 

The spending was allocated in the 2024 budget as part of a series of measures to restore the country’s once-thriving farming sector and help launch a long promised economic revival. 

Agriculture collapsed when Mugabe oversaw the seizure of highly productive farms in 2000. Most were owned by Zimbabwean white commercial farmers after colonialists forcibly took them from Blacks early in the 20th century. 

A separate and much larger $3.5 billion scheme for 4,000 white Zimbabwean farmers was announced in 2020, but the money has not been forthcoming owing to Zimbabwe’s financial woes. 

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Logistics ground Gukurahundi hearings

The Gukurahundi public outreach programme, launched by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in July this year, has been hit by logistical challenges that have grounded the process, NewsDay has established. 

But critics have accused the government of a half-hearted approach to resolve the emotive issue, the darkest chapter since Zimbabwe’s independence from British colonial rule in 1980. 

Key players in Matabeleland regions this week accused officials responsible for the process of allegedly lacking sincerity to push the agenda. 

They ascribed the challenges being faced by the traditional leaders in holding the hearings to the government’s reluctance to address the emotive issue. 

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Mnangagwa acknowledges currency crisis, defends gold-backed ZiG

Delivering his State of the Nation Address (SONA) as he officially opened the Second Session of the 10th Parliament to the joint sitting of the National Assembly and Senate at the Parliament Building in Mt Hampden, Wednesday, Mnangagwa reassured the nation of his administration’s commitment to supporting the ZiG despite widespread concerns. 

“The government remains committed to backing the currency by allocating 50% of royalties towards building reserves,” Mnangagwa said. 

This comes in the wake of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s (RBZ) decision last Friday to devalue the currency by over 40%, leaving many citizens, particularly civil servants, reeling from the loss of savings. 

The drastic devaluation has rekindled painful memories of the 2008 economic collapse when the Zimbabwean dollar disintegrated. 

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20% of Zim rural areas in water crisis: Unicef

Zimbabwe is currently experiencing an intense El Niño-induced drought, leading to water scarcity and further jeopardising access to safe water for many Zimbabweans.

“Because of drought, nearly 4% of the boreholes in the rural areas in Zimbabwe have dried up, particularly in Matabeleland South and Masvingo provinces,” Unicef said.

The United Nations agency also revealed that broken down boreholes rose to more than 6 000 by August 2024, while there was a growing concern over access to safe water in urban settings, including Harare and Bulawayo, where water production is insufficient to cater for residents’ needs.

The agency has appealed for US$34 million for the rehabilitation of water points to ensure people in need access safe water.

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Govt workers saddled with debt taking home US$80 per month –  union 

The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ says the majority of civil servants are taking home a paltry US$80 per month due to loan deductions. 

The workers group is blaming the government for the meagre salaries which are leaving civil servants with no choice except to solicit loans from their respective banks to make ends meet. 

“We are seriously concerned with the debt levels among teachers. A survey conducted by the Union has revealed that around 30% of teachers are earning incomes below US$ 80 monthly; around 70% lose over 50% of their income towards debt servicing. Less than 5% of teachers are not in unsustainable debt. 

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‘ZiG defence plan doomed’

Wrong buttons were pressed during the central bank’s initial efforts to map out a defence plan for Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), triggering an explosion of setbacks that have pushed the economy deeper into peril, according to a new report by the manufacturing industry.

Authorities scrambled to introduce the gold-backed ZiG in April, as they battled protracted carnage after bond notes chipped away over three quarters  of value during a first quarter marked by high inflation and instability.

Bond notes had been in circulation for about a decade.

Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Mushayavanhu told the Zimbabwe Independent this week he was exploring new ways of boosting demand for the currency.

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Bankers warn of price increases

Bankers have warned of prices increases and shortages of basic commodities following the devaluation of the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) last week by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) saying it is part of foreign exchange flexibility measures. 

The warning by the Bankers Association (BAZ) was contained in a leaked internal document with issues that were discussed when its constituents met RBZ governor John Mushayavanhu on Tuesday this week. 

Tuesday’s meeting was in response to RBZ measures introduced last week to support the ZiG after it was devalued by over 40%. 

“If market conditions remain unfavourable, such as high inflation, low investor confidence or trade imbalances, the ZiG will depreciate rapidly. This can lead to higher costs for imports and inflationary pressures on goods priced in foreign currency,” BAZ said. 

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Matabeleland South hard hit by livestock deaths

The El Niño-induced drought has hit Matabeleland South province the hardest leading to a high number of cattle deaths with 30 % of the households in the province recording losses, Southern Eye can report. 

According to the 2024 Zimbabwe Livelihoods Assessment Committee (ZimLAC) Rural Livelihoods Assessment report on agriculture related shocks, livestock deaths (20%) were the most reported. 

The report said Matabeleland South (30%) had the highest proportion of households which reported livestock deaths, followed by Masvingo at 28% and Midlands at 27% with Mashonaland West as the least with 12% cattle deaths. 

There was a sharp drop in livestock prices with Gwanda at 64% and Nkayi (60%) recording the highest proportions of households which reported a sharp drop in livestock prices. 

“Cattle prices ranged from US$119 to US$430 per average beast.

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Teachers in fresh US$1 260 salary demand

In a statement commemorating the day, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz) called for fair, safe labour practices and standards calling on the government to pay a fair and reasonable wage.  

Teachers are demanding a minimum salary of US$1 260 per month amid a deteriorating environment which has seen a sharp depreciation of the local currency, Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG). 

The demands, made during World Teachers Day commemorations held over the weekend, come amid rising prices of basic commodities which has left employees on the brink. 

They also come after government recently splurged US$16 million to buy top-of-the-range vehicles for traditional leaders. 

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Village Rhapsody: Why Zimbabwe is struggling to fix its currency conundrum

Zimbabwe’s currency crisis began with the collapse of its original Zimbabwean dollar in 2008. 

The country was experiencing hyperinflation on an unprecedented scale, with inflation rates peaking at 79.6 billion percent by November 2008, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The causes of this hyperinflation were multifaceted: economic mismanagement, land reforms that disrupted agricultural productivity, and a series of sanctions from Western nations that crippled foreign direct investment. 

The government’s response of printing more money only worsened the crisis. 

By 2009, Zimbabwe abandoned its currency altogether, marking the first major shift in its monetary system. 

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Bitumen secures cabinet approval for Beitbridge-Vic Falls road upgrade

Potholes on the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway which have caused countless major accidents and deaths.  

The government has agreed terms Bitumen World to begin reconstruction works on major parts of the heavily damaged Beitbridge-Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Road under a partnership that will see the renowned civil engineering company recoup its costs through road toll fees. 

This was announced Tuesday by Information Minister Jenfan Muswere at a post-cabinet media briefing in Harare after Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona had appraised cabinet on plans to rehabilitate the strategic highway. 

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