By Virginia Njovo
The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), through the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), has joined hands with the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries Water and Rural Development in providing stockfeed to drought affected areas in Bikita district.
Bikita district is among the most drought affected areas in the region where there is shortage of stock feeds and those who cannot afford supplements feeds are losing their livestock.
Speaking to TellZim News, livestock specialist for Masvingo province Joseph Chipuri said they received stock feed from their implementing partner FAO and seven wards in Bikita district were benefiting from the program.
“Due to prolonged drought, Bikita district has been affected by drought for almost three seasons with inadequate rainfall in the region, but thanks to our implementing partner in the stock feed programme who chipped in with mitigating measures.
“Seven wards in Bikita District, which are wards 1, 2, 3,27,21,22 and 20 benefited from the programme. These are the wards we distributed stock feeds since there are no grasslands left in those areas,” said Chipuri.
As the El Nino induced drought has already been declared a state of disaster by many countries in Southern Africa, Zimbabwe is making significant progress in developing and implementing drought mitigation strategies to combat its impact.
Bikita South Ward 3 Councillor, Mary Beancer Mukweya said the programme came at the right time since livestock was dying from lack of stock feeds.
“In my ward, about sixty–two families got ten bags each and this came as a relief to our livestock, though we have water challenges where we are supposed to walk to Turwi River which is fifteen kilometres away to water the cattle.
“We were fetching water for our livestock in containers since they could not walk fifteen kilometres but now it’s better since they have food,” said Mukwenya.
Mukwenya added that the mortality of livestock increased in Bikita where small scale farmers were losing their cattle due to drought.
“We no longer have enough draft power due to increased deaths of cattle which we use for farming as the rainy season is approaching,” she added.
Due to its geographical location, Bikita is a Red Zone where livestock diseases spread at a high rate hence the programme will assist in containing diseases since livestock won’t move from one place to another.
