Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa has been significantly impacted by the ongoing coronavirus outbreak and is forecast to fall sharply from 2.4% in 2019 to -2.1 to -5.1% in 2020, the first recession in the region over the past 25 years, according to the latest Africa’s Pulse, the World Bank’s twice-yearly economic update for the region….
The government has intensified measure to combat COVID-19. This emerged as Cabinet considered and approved a report on the country’s preparedness and response to the Corona Virus Outbreak (COVID-19), which was presented by Honourable Vice President Mohadi, as Chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Task Force on the COVID-19 Outbreak. Cabinet commended the general public for positively…
The outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) has forced many countries, including Zimbabwe, to impose 21 to 30-day restrictive lockdown periods – some even longer, where the epidemic has been more widespread. The lockdowns are designed to protect citizens from the spread of the deadly and infectious disease by restricting contact among people. In Zimbabwe, the…
By Joyce Mukucha In a bid to strengthen the ability of African Union Member States to respond to in-country outbreaks and epidemics, reducing pathogens potential spread within and across national borders through better risk analysis, country preparedness, and improved planning and response, the African Risk Capacity (ARC) is preparing to launch an Outbreaks and Epidemics…
Elated Kenyan RnB group scoops $100 000 prize Wanavokali, a mega-talented RnB group from Kenya, took the top spot and won the grand prize of US$100 000 in the first season of the pan-African music competition, Old Mutual Amazing Voices. The competition is designed to discover unsigned singing talent from across the African continent –…
By Charles Dhewa Cushioning informal traders and vendors against the impact of COVID-19 is a very noble idea in developing countries. However, the devil is in the implementation details. For instance, African informal economies function more like ecosystems than a collection of disconnected traders and vendors. That is why before introducing social cash grants, the…
By Farai Chirimumimba This is the first of two-part series under the: “Letter from Locked Down Harare.” Look out for the second article under this series in the coming days. Nothing readied the Zimbabwean population for how disorientating this pandemic would be, or how isolating. The Republic is in a 21-day copy-and-paste lockdown. Each morning,…
By Greenline Africa Trust Access to food and water is an everyday reality for many vulnerable communities around the world. Greenline Africa cannot change the world, but we can help make a difference in the communities we work within Hwange Rural, 25-50km outside the town of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. 98% of rural communities in the areas we…
Member of the National Assembly for Norton, Temba Mliswa set up a constituency taskforce to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and on Saturday pooled donations from the stakeholders led by tile manufacturer Sunny Yi Feng Tiles Zimbabwe. “What we have done is to complement the government’s effort in ensuring that we combat COVID-19 together….
The African Development Bank estimates that COVID-19 could cost Africa a GDP loss between $22.1 billion and $88.3 billion in the worst-case scenario By Akinwumi A. Adesina – President of the African Development Bank Group These are very difficult days, as the world faces one of its worst challenges ever: the novel coronavirus pandemic. And it…
By Habakkuk Trust Information Rural communities have been plunged into vulnerability following the nationwide lockdown to combat the COVID-19 global pandemic. The lockdown comes at a time when most rural households are struggling with the effects of the drought. Most rural communities rely on subsistence farming but due to successive dry spells owed to climate…
Zimbabwe telecoms giant, philanthropist, and businessman Strive Masiyiwa has injected lifeblood into the fight against coronavirus by donating 45 Ventilator Intensive care units for use in combating the pandemic. The donation will come through the HigherLife Foundation that has been instrumental in bailing Zimbabwe’s educational and health sectors over the years. Below, Spiked Online Media…
The COP26 UN climate change conference set to take place in Glasgow in November has been postponed due to COVID-19. This decision has been taken by representatives of the COP Bureau of the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), with the UK and its Italian partners. Dates for a rescheduled conference in 2021,…
By Anyway Yotamu The government is targeting to increase the production of winter wheat hectarage from 24 186ha achieved in 2018 to 80 000 ha in 2020 winter season, with contract farming financed by a commercial bank and other private players and a target yield of 5 metric tonnes per hectare. Speaking at a media…
By Joyce Mukucha Following the Government’s ban on alcohol sales in retail outlets in light of the COVID-19 virus lockdown, the Southern African Alcohol Policy Alliance (SAAPA) Zimbabwe has applauded the bold step explaining that it was concerned about building a healthy nation and empowered communities. SAAPA is a national network of civil society organisations…
By Dumisani O. Nkomo Since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 as a global health emergency, Zimbabwe has since officially reported 9 cases and one fatality. The Zimbabwean government responded by putting in place a raft of measures to deal with the pandemic. I would like to suggest that over and beyond the Coronavirus pandemic…
During this unprecedented time, the United States continues to partner with the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and national public health institutions in Africa to support preparedness and response to the ongoing global public health emergency that spread out of China and is now engulfing the world. In a statement to the…
On February 24, 2020, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation1 with Zimbabwe. As the Board meeting and the policy discussions with the authorities on which the staff report is based occurred before the COVID-19 became a pandemic, the staff report does not reflect the implications of this…
Man-of-the-moment and popular traditional healer Sekuru Banda has added a voice in the medical field by vehemently refusing the use of Africans in experimenting with them on coming up with vaccines. Spiked Online Media learned this after getting the message on the Internet that American billionaire Bill Gates reportedly had intentions to use Africa to…
To contain COVID-19, many countries in Africa are implementing measures, which restrict gatherings and the movement of people With more than 6000 COVID-19 cases reported in Africa, the virus is threatening fragile health systems on the continent. Infections are increasingly spreading not only between African countries but within different localities in the hardest-hit countries. For…
The Anti-Domestic Violence Council (AVC) has joined hands with the Government of Zimbabwe in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and said the lockdown pronounced by President E.D Mnangagwa is necessary to win the battle against this pandemic. “The Anti-Domestic Violence Council would like to take this opportunity to encourage families to utilise this lockdown…
The 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan for Zimbabwe was launched yesterday, targeting 5.6 million people with food assistance and support in the areas of health, water-sanitation-hygiene, education, protection, nutrition, shelter, and camp coordination and management. The plan requests for a total of US$715 million from the international community. The Humanitarian Response Plan was signed by…
Business Reporter. The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) hereby wishes to advise its valued clients to stay safe and beň cautious by reducing visits to ZIMRA offices this season of the COVID-19 virus outbreak. As a mitigating measure against the spread of the COVID-19 virus, clients are encouraged to access and utilise the available ZIMRA online…
Business Reporter The Board and Management of CABS announced the appointment of Mehluli Mpofu as the Managing Director and Cecil Tanyaradzwa Ndoro as the Deputy Managing Director of CABS. Mehluli commenced his service as the Managing Director beginning 1 April 2020. He takes over from Simon Hammond who proceeds on pre-retirement leave effective 1 April….
By Anyway Yotamu The government has set up a COVID-19 National Disaster Fund to enable citizens and other well-wishers to contribute towards the fight against the deadly virus which has claimed over 40 000 lives globally. The establishment of the fund follows other measures that were announced by the Finance Minister on Monday this week…
By Strive Masiyiwa On his popular Facebook blog, Strive Masiyiwa proposes a solution to how African countries can address the shortage of critical hospital beds to nurse Coronavirus patients. He writes: “We don’t have enough hospital beds under normal circumstances. So what are we going to do if a lot of people get sick…
Pathogenic fungi pose a huge and growing threat to global food security. Currently, we protect our crops against fungal disease by spraying them with anti-fungal chemistries, also known as fungicides. However, the growing threat of microbial resistance against these chemistries requires continuous development of new fungicides. A consortium of researchers from the University of Exeter,…
By Rev Dr. Kenneth Mtata I am writing this as a GREEN PAPER to provoke debate. If you are allergic to debate, do not proceed beyond this point! Zimbabwe has been stuck in binary political conditioning where citizens are forced to think only in terms of black and white, good and bad, in or out….
This Environmental Finance 2020 bond award was given by an independent panel comprising 30 of the world’s largest green, social and sustainability bond investors The African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) received on 30 March 2020 an award for its successful one billion Norwegian krone (NOK) social bond issued in 2019. This Environmental Finance 2020 bond award…
By Emma Wilson There are a lot of artists that struggle to promote their art. Artists want to connect with people so that they can sell the artwork to those who love and are passionate about art. For an artist who is new to the market, selling his/her artwork can be a little daunting. An…
By Kumbirai Mafunda The Constitutional Court of Zimbabwe on Tuesday 31 March 2020 delivered a landmark ruling wherein it declared as unconstitutional the legality of the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No.1) Act. The Act sought to amend Section 180 of the Constitution by giving the President sole powers to appoint the Chief Justice, his deputy…
The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) has implored members of the public to remain vigilant during the government imposed 21-day lockdown for prevention and containment of the Corona Virus pandemic to fight crime. ZACC chairperson Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo said in a statement that the Commission was aware that in such situations, criminals create opportunities to commit…
By Anyway Yotamu The government has welcomed the statements by the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet calling for the rolling back of international sanctions against countries around the world as an essential part of the global effort to contain COVID-19. The two leaders encouraged the waiving…
It is not easy to survive for the majority of people in Zimbabwe who live from hand to mouth in this highly informal market but prominent and wealthy traditional healer Sekuru Banda has come to the rescue of citizens by extending his philanthropy to senior citizens during the tough time of a government-imposed 21-day lockdown…
The National Social Security Authority (NSSA) has stepped in to complement government efforts in the fight against COVID-19 by availing two facilities for utilisation in combating the deadly virus. COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation and a national disaster by the Government. The former Beitbridge Rainbow Hotel will be used…
By Charles Dhewa African countries are called less industrialized economies for genuine reasons. If the majority of people in a country depend on more than 80 agricultural commodities and less than 10 can be turned into processed products, such a country is obviously less industrialized. For instance, in Zimbabwe, only maize meal, flour, sugar, wheat…
By Veritas Earlier this month the Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water and Rural Resettlement gazetted a set of regulations ‒ the Land Commission (Gazetted Land)(Disposal in Lieu of Compensation) Regulations, 2020 (SI 62 of 2020) [link] ‒ which provided for the return of farms to two classes of farmers who had been dispossessed during the land reform…
By Anyway Yotamu Zimbabwe Citizens Forum National coordinator Cde Taurai Kandishaya said his organisation stands ready to help the American government with their coronavirus plea which was announced by US President Donald Trump to the world for help in form of protective clothes for health workers due to shortage of supply in the United States…
By Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR) continues to monitor the coronavirus pandemic and national response in Zimbabwe. Globally, the pandemic continues to spread exponentially, and tens of thousands have lost their lives to this disease. In Africa, South Africa has become the epicentre of…
The Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) has told stakeholders that it has not yet issued Accreditation Cards for journalists and other media practitioners for the year 2020. This has been caused by the delay in the gazetting of accreditation and registration fees. The statement comes after freelance journalist Kudzai Musengi was arrested and detained at Gweru…
By Guy Ryder, Director-General, International Labour Organization The human dimensions of the COVID-19 pandemic reach far beyond the critical health response. All aspects of our future will be affected – economic, social and developmental. Our response must be urgent, coordinated and on a global scale, and should immediately deliver help to those most in…
By Anyway Yotamu and Tafadzwa Kufah The government is monitoring more than 13 000 Zimbabwean nationals who entered the country through Beitbridge Border Post after South Africa entered a three-week lockdown on Friday last week. Thousands of Zimbabweans came back home through Beitbridge Border Post after South Africa announced its three-week lockdown, as the number…
More than 4.3 million people in Zimbabwe are acutely food insecure or classified in IPC Crisis or Emergency phases. That equates to 45% of the rural population in need of urgent action. The situation would be worse if not for a large-scale humanitarian food assistance programme ongoing in the country. Currently, 45% of the rural…
European Union leaders have agreed that the bloc’s coronavirus economic recovery plan should take heed of its aim to fight climate change. Following a six-hour video conference, the 27 EU leaders agreed late on Thursday to coordinate a coronavirus economic recovery plan. Although the details of the plan itself still have to be worked out,…
Zee World Weekly Highlights 6th – 12th April 2020 Our Perfect Place Everyday @ 18h00 | Zee World Channel 166 Rahul is continually fighting his liver disease and an incident happens which makes things worse. Niranjan has been acting suspiciously during phone calls with some who Rita suspects is Maya. Thieves break in at Parimals…
