By RFPosted on 09-08-2019Modified on 09-08-2019 at 01:04

In Zimbabwe, the humanitarian situation is deteriorating day by day. The UN and the World Food Program are sounding the alarm: the country is on the verge of starvation. The two organizations and the Zimbabwean government launched a call for donations on Tuesday, August 6th. $ 331.5 million is needed to help the 3.7 million vulnerable people between July 2019 and April 2020. There are many reasons for this.

Formerly considered as the bread basket of southern Africa, Zimbabwe is today in a situation of absolute food emergency .

The fault first to a major economic crisis that affects the country for twenty years. This has resulted in shortages of basic necessities such as bread, oil or flour. But the scarcity of these commodities has another consequence: the increase of their tariffs. With inflation, some foods have doubled or even tripled. They are therefore less accessible especially for the poorest.

Then, the country is hit hard in recent years by climate shocks. The current drought in southern Africa has devastated agricultural crops. Among them cornfields, the staple food in the country. Recently, the cyclone Idai ravaged the east of the country just weeks before the harvest.

Now, two and a half million people are threatened by famine. The UN fears that this figure will double by January 2020 if the response is not enough.

. @ WFP_EN: 5.5 million Zimbabweans🇿🇼affected by food insecurity in rural areas. 3 million are expected to need urgent humanitarian assistance between October and December 2019.https: //t.co/LtwHgs0PWR

UN Info (@ONUinfo) August 7, 2019

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