Growing pains: Zimbabwe’s female tobacco farmers struggle to compete Martin
Moreen Tanhara waits patiently for officials to inspect her tobacco. The 49-year-old has travelled nearly 100 miles (150km) overnight in an old lorry to reach Tobacco Sales Floor, an auction house in Harare. Tanhara sits quietly on one of the fragrant sacks she has brought from Guruve, a farming area north of Zimbabwe’s capital, while on the auction floor workers prepare tobacco leaves for the first sales of the season.
The auction house attracts farmers from across the country but this year, due to Covid-19 restrictions, only a few are allowed on the auction floor. Dozens more wait outside, among them Chinese tobacco dealers, the country’s main buyers.
The auction house attracts farmers from across the country but this year, due to Covid-19 restrictions, only a few are allowed on the auction floor. Dozens more wait outside, among them Chinese tobacco dealers, the countryâs main buyers.
Every year Tanhara, a widowed mother of four, comes here to sell her crop. If prices are low, she leaves disappointed but this year she is hopeful after a good rainy season. Her tobacco is given a high grade and opening prices are strong â $4.30 (£3.10) a kilo.
If she turns a healthy profit, it will be thanks in part to a
stokvel she and other women set up in 2020, to help them raise money and improve their farming techniques.
By Robert Tapfumaneyi
THE Government of Japan has contributed US$1.25 million through the World Food Programme (WFP) to support vulnerable, food insecure communities in Zimbabwe whose livelihoods have been severely impacted by climate shocks and Covid-19.
The support will assist 11 080 people in building community and household assets in the districts of Mount Darwin (Mashonaland Central) and Matobo (Matabeleland South).
Many Zimbabweans are still feeling the effects of the successive droughts and a dire economic situation which has been exacerbated by Covid-19.
Said Japan ambassador to Zimbabwe, Satoshi Tanaka Friday, “In collaboration with WFP, the Government of Japan continues to deliver support from the people of Japan to the most vulnerable communities in Zimbabwe, focusing on improving their nutrition and building their resilience.
Japan provides further support to improve food security in Zimbabwe
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The Government of Japan has contributed US$ 1.25 million through the World Food Programme (WFP) to support vulnerable, food insecure communities in Zimbabwe that have been severely impacted by climate shocks and COVID-19.
To address the root causes of food insecurity and achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 - Zero Hunger - WFP recognises that it is important to forge such partnerships in order to undertake long term strategies to secure a brighter future for these communities.
Japan’s contribution comes at a time when many in the country are struggling to feed themselves as a result of successive droughts and a dire economic situation which has been exacerbated by COVID-19.
Japan provides further support to improve food security in Zimbabwe zimbabwesituation.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from zimbabwesituation.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.