Acute food crisis looms in Matobo - villagers hunt for wild fruits

Matobo villagers in Matabeleland South are reportedly in serious food crisis which is prompting them to hunt for wild fruits for survival.

Women Institute for Leadership Development Trust (WILD) recently said when September began, this was no ordinary month for the people of Matobo, Ward 9.

The month, characterised by unavailability of food after the fields had not yielded any grains due to low rainfall and arid conditions, has seen villagers feeding from the tree's wild fruit to suffice their eating needs.

As Ward Councilor Sikhululiwe Ndlovu (42) relays the information, she says the Umkhuna tree fruits are now a source of food for many households who spend the day nibbling the fruit.

Umkhuna (Hissing Tree fruit/ Mobola Plum) is a yellowish-brown fruit indigenous to Zimbabwe "Kubuhlungu njalo kunzima kakhulu. Omama labantwana sebephila ngesihlahla esidliwa ngamadonki (ubabhemi) ngenxa yokuthi akula kudla. Uyathola besikha izithelo zesihlahla ukwenzela ukuthi basuthise izisu baziphilise. (It is painful and difficult that women and children now depend on wild fruits, which have a history of being fed on by donkeys. This fruit has become a staple food for some families in Matopo)," she told WILD.

During the economic forum meeting, women acknowledged that the country's economy was dwindling, but identified opportunities that could alleviate poverty.

Women formed Microfinance Clubs and resolved to establish income-generating projects as a means of improving their livelihoods.

As succession battles take centre stage within the ruling party and unending squabbles within opposition parties, citizens of Zimbabwe are dying of hunger and diseases that could be cured.

Members of Parliament have nothing to say and some are even avoiding public meetings.