Story by Bruce Chahwanda
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa says government has put in place measures to guarantee food security in the wake of the El Nino-induced lean summer cropping season.
He was speaking at the handover of 100 service vehicles to traditional leaders in Harare this Thursday.
The assurance that the country is food secure comes at a time when the entire Southern African region is battling a lean summer season because of climate change.
Addressing the traditional leaders, President Mnangagwa said despite the El Niño weather phenomenon, government has put in place measures to ensure there is adequate food for every citizen.
“Because of the dire effects of the El Nino weather phenomenon, I want to assure the nation that measures have been put in place to guarantee adequate food for all communities of our country. I appeal to you as traditional leaders to go and reassure our people that no communities will starve.
“As chiefs, you are all-embracive in the manner you deal with your people and I urge this spirit to continue, while the identification of vulnerable households, in particular, widows and child-headed families, should be undertaken timely. Let us continue to preach peace, love, unity, and hard work among our people,” he said.
The head of state said chiefs are a vital cog in government’s architecture by promoting peace, and unity, resolving disputes, and fostering development.
He added, “Given the role of our traditional leaders as custodians of our culture, traditions, history, and heritage, among other responsibilities, their dignity and conditions must be of acceptable standards. Besides being traditional leaders, chiefs are also public servants, who are mandated by the Constitution of Zimbabwe to preside over their people, promote sound family values, resolve disputes, and more importantly, champion the promotion and preservation of our culture and heritage.
“They are a critical cog in the national governance architecture. Our traditional leaders are indeed the collective embodiment of who we are as Zimbabweans and the descendants of the Great Munhumutapa.”
Government expressed its commitment to improving traditional leaders’ conditions of service through various initiatives.
“Further, my government will continue to provide medical insurance to our Chiefs, Headmen, and, Village Heads from all communal areas. At the same time, the government has put in place a funeral assistance package for Chiefs. Various ministries, departments, and agencies have been commissioned to provide additional services and utilities that uplift the livelihoods and standing of traditional leaders in general.
“These include the construction and maintenance of access roads to the homesteads of chiefs so that our people have access to the various services provided by chiefs. The electrification of the homes of chiefs; provision of water and sanitation facilities as well as the tillage programme, among other services, are equally designed to benefit our communities as a whole,” he said.
President of the Chiefs Council, Chief Mtshane Khumalo expressed gratitude to President Mnangagwa and his government for prioritising the well-being and capacitation of traditional leaders.
“The institution of traditional leadership is humbled by your government’s gesture in the provision of vehicles, allowances, and sinking of boreholes among other initiatives,” he said.
With Zimbabwe experiencing a lean summer season where most parts of the country have received low rainfall, the assurance by President Mnangagwa that the country is food secure indicates government’s commitment to citizens’ well-being
