ZIMBABWE grain manager Grain Marketing Board (GMB) should reopen all its closed depots in rural areas in order to speed up distribution of food to rural communities, deputy president of the Chiefs’ Council Chief Mtshane Khumalo has said.
BY MTHANDAZO NYONI
Chief Khumalo said the process of distributing food in hunger-stricken rural areas was being hampered by shortage of depots to store the imported grain.
“Drought is rife in the country this year and we would like GMB to reopen all its closed depots so that maize would be easily distributed to people,” Khumalo said.
“This is because in areas such as Bubi and Inyathi district grains are first delivered at Nkayi depot before coming back for distribution in the district yet people would be starving. If GMB opens those silos, distribution of food aid will be made better.”
GMB has over 80 depots dotted across the country, 12 of which are equipped with silos for grain storage, but the company closed a number of its depots, particularly in rural areas, after firing some of its workers on three months’ notice following the Supreme Court ruling of July 17 that allows employers to dismiss workers without benefits.
According to the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee, more than 1,5 million people are in need of food aid and government, together with the private sector, plans to import about 700 000 metric tonnes of maize to feed the population.
Zimbabwe — now a net food importer — according to Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa, is expected to spend more than $300 million in 2015 on grain imports.
