THE Zimbabwe Land and Agrarian Network (ZiLAN), on its traditional annual policy meeting held on November 24, 2022 deliberated on various policy issues and their implications on smallholder farmers.
As a network working with smallholder farmers in pursuit of land rights and the advancement of socio-economic status, we noted a disturbing trend of threats of evictions and/or actual evictions of smallholder farmers in communal and resettlement areas to pave way for investments in various forms.
Information received from smallholder farmers across the country points out that in most cases, the affected communities are excluded or inadequately consulted while in some, farmers have been displaced without receiving commensurate compensation.
More specifically, since August 2022, developments at Hopewell Farm in Chegutu East, where an estimated 3 000 people are facing potential land dispossession, are of concern.
This is meant to accommodate a proposed platinum project by a private firm (Global Platinum Resources).
Most of the farmers domiciled in the area were legally allocated this land as far back as 2000 under the fast-track land reform programme and have been farming on this land since then.
From our ongoing engagements with key stakeholders involved, the community in question has not been adequately consulted with regards to the development.
As we closely monitor the situation, it is our firm belief that this development infringes on the fundamental rights and freedoms of people as set out in section 72 of the Constitution.
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While cognisant of the fact that development will always result in the inevitable loss of land by communities, the network calls for the following to ensure that the land rights of people are protected and upheld:
lDue diligence, due process, transparency and accountability be followed in all land matters that have the potential to affect livelihoods.
lThere be speedy crafting and implementation of the National Gender-Sensitive Land Policy.
lIn cases of eviction, compensation should be agreed on and honoured through an inclusive processes for the benefit of all parties concerned.
lRespect for people’s cultural and spiritual practices be upheld.
lCompensation should not only be about resettlement but restitution
lMechanisms should be put in place and followed throughout to enable communities to gainfully participate and benefit from private investments that would have negatively affected them in one way or another. - ZiLAN
Zimdollar fragility largely emanating from low market confidence
ZIMBABWE lapsed into hyperinflation twice during the last decade.
As of November 2021, the nation was among the seven countries with three-year cumulative inflation rates exceeding 100%.
However, after reaching an annual high of 285% last August, price inflation seems to have reversed course.
The latest official statistics show the year-on-year inflation rate for October 2022 at 268,8%, shedding 11,6 percentage points from the September 2022 outturn of 280,4%.
Also, the statistics show a significant moderation of month-on-month price inflation since July 2022.
For the month under review, monthly prices fell by 0,3 percentage points to settle at 3,2% from the 3,5% reported in September 2022.
As alluded to earlier, the moderation of prices is largely credited to government policy actions that have managed to clamp excessive Zimdollar depreciation in alternative markets.
These include setting the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe policy rate at 200% (a global record), high statutory reserve requirements, the introduction of gold coins, increased relaxation of the willing-buyer willing-seller interbank market, entrenching multi-currency regime into law, tightening equity market trading rules, suspension of import duty on basics, and introduction of a value for money process to increase due diligence in public procurement processes.
Also, despite them starting to spike in November 2022, global crude oil prices which were suppressed in the previous three months largely helped to exert downward pressure on imported inflation through fuel prices.
Fuels constitute a lion’s share of Zimbabwe’s total monthly imports.
While the obtaining price situation in recent months is encouraging, it is worrisome to note that parallel market rates have started to uptick again showing that it is still a long way for the nation to attain a sustained stable price trajectory.
The fragility is largely emanating from low market confidence in Zimdollar and a lack of trust in policymakers.
Whereas the prevailing high-interest rates are reducing speculative borrowing tendencies, they are also ballooning the cost of borrowing which in turn subdues industrial activity.
This occurs at a time when savings uptake in Zimbabwe is dwindling as evidenced by an 11-percentage point decline in adults’ savings rate between 2014 (47%) and 2022 (36%).
As such, most businesses with antiquated production technologies are failing to retool hence being rendered regionally uncompetitive.
The situation risks cementing Zimbabwe’s position as a regional supermarket economy thus increasing US dollar demand at the expense of the Zimdollar.
Also, the embracing of command economics by the government amid high perceived public corruption and illicit financial flows is causing immense pricing distortions on the market. - Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development
Greater awareness, education needed with regards long COVID-19
THE World Health Organisation believes that there should be greater awareness and education for COVID-19 patients so that they feel heard and supported.
Many people resort to joining online support groups through platforms like Facebook.
They share their challenges and stories and give each other support when they feel misunderstood and frustrated that they can’t get well and doctors can’t help.
There needs to be help for patients’ individual needs because not finding solutions will add to mounting pressure on the healthcare system.
Because of COVID-19 disruptions, many cancers were now presenting at later stages.
There are cases of TB and other illnesses that were neglected. And now we have long-COVID-19 which requires diagnosis after diagnosis for exclusion, so all of this drives up costs.
There are other associated costs for people who cannot work or are performing sub-optimally as they try to work while unwell.
Children affected by long COVID-19 do worse at school and lose interest in sports and other activities they used to enjoy.
Last year, a South African publication reported on a dedicated long COVID-19 clinic at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. As far as it could establish, such specialised long COVID-19 clinics were very rare in South Africa.
Long COVID-19 remains inaccurately defined and as a result, standard treatment guidelines for the condition as a whole have not yet been developed.
Standard treatment guidelines to address the symptoms and conditions associated with long COVID-19 should be in place.
These guidelines guide assessment and treatment, and provide criteria for referral from primary healthcare to more specialised services.
The burden of disease is of enormous concern and needs to be better understood and quantified.
Although some data showed that visits by adults to public-sector primary healthcare facilities remained below pre-pandemic levels, which suggested that any increase in the burden of disease had not resulted in an increased burden on health services.
There is need to have up-to-date vaccinations and people who are vaccinated are less likely to develop long COVID-19.
It’s a positive development that as awareness is growing, so are studies, including by the Medical Research Council and many of the country’s universities.
Scientists are looking at everything from the role of green tea extracts and the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors that are commonly used to treat depression.
These are all ongoing studies, so we have to wait to see the data coming through, but it’s promising that everyone is trying to understand exactly what this long COVID-19 is, and the most important thing is that we continue making this a greater area of priority in healthcare. - Ufrieda Ho
IN response to We are broke, says Mthuli, SAMSON MASHAVA says: So government has made a decision to give Cabinet ministers, their deputies and Members of Parliament loans, yet it is on record that in the past, war veterans and teachers demanded a rise in their stipends and salaries, respectively, but without success. Funny how politics always finds a way to turn things upside down.
TENDAI CHIPANGURA says: Yesterday, the authorities were busy sharing the loot among themselves. They approved loans for ministers, their deputies and Members of Parliament, only to wake up and tell the nation government is broke. These guys are a real joke.
KENNETH BALOYI says: Finance minister Mthuli Ncube can borrow from Zanu PF. I remember a few weeks ago the ruling party’s information director Tafadzwa Mugwadi said they were too rich.
IN response to It may take one or more generations for Zim to finally be free, DERRICK NDLOVU says: Correctly put Tendai Mbofana. I agree with you there. We are divided and that creates vacuums, which lead us to deplorable situations that we find ourselves in.
HAMA DUBE says: Pride, too much I know, too much I’m learned, etc, the list is endless, and that is our problem. Until we address these issues, we will always find ourselves in a mess.
IN response to Farmers union calls for rethink on free inputs, GEORGE CHIPARA says: Very true assessment by Zimbabwe Farmers Union. How can someone perpetually get free inputs for years without paying back? Where does the government get this money from? But methinks its a way of looting by the chefs since they benefit a lot by getting free inputs to use and sell the produce at a huge profit.
TINASHE MBURUMA says: If farmers were getting or are getting free inputs, are we talking about all the inputs required by a poor farmer to get a harvest or we are talking about a 10kg bag of Pannar seed given to the entire family? However, let’s also look at the tobacco farmers who get inputs, where a kilogramme will be sold at US$1 or less. That farmer will not be able to go back to the fields using their personal resources after the harvest.
