Alert note: Humanitarian Intervention for Zimbabwe's Drought Emergency

Ulandshjælp fra Folk til Folk - Humana People to People (UFF-Humana) has submitted an alert due to drought in Zimbabwe.

Throughout the country, the current El Niño phenomenon exacerbates these challenges, representing one of the most potent occurrences on record. According to OCHA, the targeted Masvingo Rural District in Masvingo Province is among the top 5 districts in the country (which are all situated in southern Zimbabwe) in terms of vulnerability to El Niño. The district is home to 238,103 people and falls under ecological region 5, characterized by an average annual precipitation of 57.17mm. Here, the convergence of water scarcity, agricultural challenges, and food insecurity necessitates immediate relief efforts.

The crisis unfolding in the region is characterized by a climate change-induced drought exacerbated by the El Niño phenomenon. This combination is leading to extremely high temperatures (8°C higher than three years ago) and a significant reduction in rainfall (25% below the seasonal average). These circumstances are severely affecting agricultural output and leading to adverse food and nutritional shortages. The consequences of this crisis are particularly dire for rain-fed agricultural-dependent smallholder farmers, who comprise approximately 70% of Zimbabwe's population. The dwindling water sources and soaring temperatures also pose significant challenges to livestock well-being. The slow or failed harvests have led to increased food prices and limited access to markets. Projections estimate that due to these circumstances 2.7 million people will be pushed into hunger. Due to pre-existing inequalities, vulnerability and poverty, women and children are particularly impacted by the emergency, as they face increased exploitation and abuse and growing rates of child labour, school dropout, early marriage, and gender-based violence (GBV). Moreover, the scarcity of safe drinking water poses a significant health risk, with the potential for outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as Acute Watery Diarrhea and Cholera. Already, over 800,000 rural people lack access to safe water, heightening the risk of disease outbreaks and further aggravating the humanitarian crisis.