More than 11 million people are facing starvation in Zimbabwe. Sister Ivy Khoury, Caritas Australia’s Africa Program Coordinator, gives us a first-hand account of the massive task facing aid agencies.

 

The people of Zimbabwe are hungry. In fact, they are starving. The country is in a state of emergency with a cholera outbreak, a massive food shortage and a deteriorating security situation.

 

Caritas Australia has been working in Zimbabwe for more than 10 years yet has never seen anything like this. Its long-term development programs, implemented by four local partner organisations in the three dioceses of Gweru, Hwange and Harare, are on hold with all work focused on just keeping people alive.

 

When the government suspended humanitarian support during the 2008 election, good food went to waste. Food aid, donated with the best intentions, expired and therefore the partners were not permitted to distribute it. In the last year the people of Zimbabwe have gone through droughts and floods and the latest harvest has failed.

 

When I visited a village where 100 people had turned out for HIV/AIDS prevention workshops, the people thanked me. Even though they hardly have anything to eat, they gave me a type of drink that is made from fruit that grows on a wild tree. I felt humbled that the poor give so much when they literally have nothing for themselves. In Australia we have so much and are reluctant to share and yet the Zimbabwean people will offer the little that they have.

 

It has been reported that there may not be any more contributions to the World Food Program in Zimbabwe therefore food supplies will run out.

 

Food security is not the only concern. The whole country is at a standstill. Schools are closed. Children walk for miles to get to school only to find there are no teachers.

 

The health system is failing, with hospitals closing and medicine almost impossible to find. Our HIV/AIDS programs are becoming more difficult to implement. There are no antiretroviral drugs in the country and there are no supplies to replenish medical kits for home-based care.

 

The outbreak of cholera is exacerbated by the collapse of the health system. But it is also increasingly difficult to find water, let alone water safe for drinking. For 12 days, the capital Harare had no running water. Sewerage was draining down the street.

 

The sustainable agriculture program we support in Hwange has a dip tank for livestock to prevent them getting tick fever. But it is impossible to buy the chemical in Zimbabwe which is used for the dip tank. The last thing that people have is their livestock but now even they are dying. In the end people will have nothing to live on. This is the tragedy of this country.

It is a challenge to maintain these development programs in a country facing a humanitarian emergency.

 

Inflation is crippling. There is a daily withdrawal limit from banks of 50,000 Zimbabwean dollars which is about five American cents. People are coming to the city from rural areas and they are sleeping for nights on the street while they line up each day to get enough money to buy a loaf of bread. But there is no bread in the shops.

 

Working in Zimbabwe is difficult for aid and development organisations. Keeping money secure and programs operational is a challenge and some organisations are withdrawing their support.

 

The reality is that in a country that is falling apart you need to assess how you can meet the needs of the poor and at the moment that means keeping them alive.

 

There were many times when I was in Zimbabwe that I felt very sad. There was one Sunday in Church when I just couldn’t stop crying. I watched the faith of the people who were praying and believe that God will bring them out of their suffering. They certainly are a people of hope.

 

But it is during these hard times that the Caritas Australia mandate to reach the poorest of the poor can and does have the greatest impact.

 

The resilience, strength and inner resourcefulness of the Zimbabwean people is like nothing I have ever seen before. A seed to plant is enough to give them hope for the future.

 

We cannot afford to place Zimbabwe in the too hard basket. The people of Zimbabwe really believe that things can change and we all have a responsibility to do whatever is in our power to see that they are not holding onto false hope.