Crying the rain

This worrying report has just been received from our Health Help Zambia office in Monze, Southern Province, Zambia.

Hunger and Rain Situation: The high level of hunger is still high. Some people who live in far villages have shifted from villages to Monze town . They spend their nights at the market, railways and during the day, they go round residential houses and compounds, requesting work and food. They move around with their children. They also come to HHZ, and go to the District Commissioner’s Office requesting food and money to buy food. Many people go to sleep without food. In the past two weeks, we have had heavy rains resulting in damage to some bridges in some rural parts and some floods and lightning killing some people; in Monze High Compound a child was struck by lightning. The food relief given by World Food Programme was done in Eastern Province where people were affected with flood too. Even when there are calls by Civil Society organisations and some other stakeholders to declare hunger as a national disaster, the government has refused to declare hunger as a National Disaster. On the other hand, due to over rains in some parts, some crops may be affected and in some parts where it rained well at the start and farmers immediately planted , the maize was affected and died. There are also army worms in some parts of the country attacking maize fields.