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Community Assessment of the Food Situation in Zimbabwe June/July 2002: FULL REPORT
National NGO Food Security Network (FOSENET)
October 12, 2002

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Summary

Reports from 62 NGO field monitors from 43 districts of Zimbabwe for August and September 2002 indicate that:

1. Food needs are higher than in the July round. Almost all areas are reported to have less than one months food stocks,some provinces (Matabeleland North and South) have none while others (Masvingo, Midlands and Manicaland) are approaching this situation.
2. Food supplies are reported to be falling. The frequency of GMB deliveries is less than in the July round and least in provinces with least household food stocks. Reported GMB prices reached an upper range of 73% above the control price at up to Z$190/10kg.
3. Formal market supplies are low, especially for maize, oil and bread, although reported sugar supplies seem to be improved. Informal market supplies continue but with significant cost inflation at over 10 times the control price, at up to Z$1200/10kg particularly in provinces where both household stocks and GMB deliveries (and thus alternative food sources) are lowest.
4. Elderly people, people with disabilities, orphans, patients and young children were most commonly identified as vulnerable. These groups faced specific reported barriers in access to all sources of food, including relief food.
5. People with disabilities and the elderly were reported to be relatively poorly catered for by relief programmes relative to their identified vulnerability. Barriers in access to relief food due to procedures, mobility and school drop out were reported in children who have dropped out of school, people with illness or disability and orphan headed households.
6. The cash for work programme was reported to have variable levels of payment and target groups across districts indicating a wide latitude of decision making given to councilors on these issues or weak standardisation of procedures.
7. There has been a high level of population movement during August/ September with migration into districts primarily due to people returning after job loss or for informal trade and then moving onto resettlement land, and out migration primarily reported to be due to people moving out to seek resettlement land or farmworkers losing jobs. Few reports were obtained of permament movements for food. More frequent reports of displaced populations came from Matabeleland South, Masvingo, Mashonaland West and Mashonaland Central.

Several issues emerge from this report as fundamental to food security and food access:

• The groups identified as most vulnerable in terms of food needs are also those that appear to have least access to all sources of food, including relief food.
• Household food stocks are generally at less than one months supply, GMB deliveries are inadequate, food in formal markets almost absent and in informal markets unaffordable.
• The provinces that seem to have lowest household food stocks also appear to have least access to controlled price food deliveries from the state and face the largest markups on private markets, further undermining their food security.
• Speculation on food, largely through informal markets, is not being controlled and may be partly feeding from leakages from distorted access to controlled price food. Formal market food sales have dwindled substantially.
• The poorest have least resources to shift between (dwindling) alternative food sources and even GMB sales have become unaffordable to some.
• Political bias continues to be reported in food access.

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