ZIMBABWEAN President Emmerson Mnangagwa declared a ‘national state of disaster’ due to a severe ‘El Nino-induced’ drought.
According to Mnangagwa, more than 80 percent of Zimbabwe received below-normal rainfall during the agricultural season and his country needs two billion dollars in aid to help millions of people who are going hungry. Let’s hear his remarks at his press conference in Harare.
“While we have been able so far to fend for this food insecurity in the population, the El Nino drought has now compounded our current situation with food insecurity levels raised beyond the projected 2.7 million people.”
“I do hereby declare a national state of disaster due to the El Nino-induced drought.”
“Top on our priority is securing food for all Zimbabweans. No Zimbabwean must succumb to, or die from hunger.”
“By this declaration, I also call upon all Zimbabweans of goodwill, including those in the diaspora, the international community, United Nations agencies, development and humanitarian partners, international financial institutions, the private sector, churches and other faith-based organisations, as well as individuals to generously donate towards ameliorating this state of national disaster.”
“One of the critical methods of mitigating against the droughts or food insecurity is two-pronged, one is the construction of dams so that we can have more hectares of land under irrigation and this we’ll begin to do so. Also, benefiting from countries such as the Russian Federation, which has vast experience in irrigation,” Emmerson Mnangagwa, President of Zimbabwe stated.
