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Assessment of the food situation in Zimbabwe - October 2008
National NGO Food Security Network (FOSENET)
October 2008

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Executive Summary

Availability

Seed is still not available commercially and the few retail outlets that are selling are selling in foreign currency at USD$ 30 for 10kg. Fertilizer is is also reported to be unavailable on the commercial market but in the parallel market at USD$ 56 for 50kg. Many reports indicated that people want support for seed and fertilizer at this stage as well as for food handouts.
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Affordability

Commercial food availability is slightly better than at the same period last year, using maize meal and oil as indicator foods. High prices are reported to be the major obstacle in accessing commercial market food as retail outlets have been licenced to sell in foreign currency. Goods sold in local currency are exorbitantly priced on a cash and carry basis. The parallel market is also preferred to the formal market because people can buy maize meal and sugar in smaller quantities, thus needing less cash to meet requirements for a day's meal. The withdrawal limits of the month, being ZWD 50 000 which was then raised to $ 500 000 is still insufficien to purchase one daily food requireemt s on a cash basis.

Access

Insufficient supply and high demand has pushed the prices up. Maize seed prices are reported to have risen by a further 20% in less than thirty days and are now reported to be up to $60000/10kg in the formal market.

Many reports indicated that people want support for seed and fertilizer at this stage just as much as food handouts.

GMB deliveries are reported to have remained low or fallen in most districts.. The average number of reported deliveries to sentinel wards was 0.1 compared to 0.22 in September and 0.18 in August. Monitoring sites in half of the districts reported no GMB deliveries at all. While grain sales to GMB are reported to have stopped this month, there are some continuing sales reported to the parallel market, particularly as farmers try to secure cash for inputs.
Calls for the increase of food aid was reported from all provinces. Nearly half (40%) of districts reported some relief activities in the sentinel wards. These relief programmes are limited to the elderly above 60, children under 5 years, school child feeding for Grade 1-7 and people living with AIDS.

Reports indicate that relief organizations are operating at a lower scale, with reduced quantities of food and fewer beneficiaries. Fewer wards are being serviced than before. There are reports in some districts of poor people being excluded due to smaller quantities of food distributed and screening methods used. There was some dissatisfaction with people perceived to be eligible being left out of more limited relief efforts.

Coping Strategies

More frequent report is being made from both rural and urban monitoring sites of residents disposing of assets to raise money for food. The sale of livestock reported in most (45%)districts to buy food or inputs represents significant levels of asset loss for rural households. A goat can be exchanged for two buckets of grain (10kg).

In and out migration continues to increase, with over half of the districts affected as people move primarily to hunt for maize and jobs, to avoid the escalating urban cost of living and for rural youth, to do gold panning as the only way to raise money to buy food.

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