Zimbabwe: Food insecurity emergency appeal

The food supply situation in Zimbabwe has deteriorated significantly in recent years. The country has been facing stern socio-economic decline since 2000, a vulnerability compounded by the aggravated impacts of climate change such as drought, low crop performance and limited irrigation.

All these factors have combined to lead to severe shortages of basic food across the country. Estimates suggest that up to 5.1 million people may be without access to food by the end of 2008. In addition, Zimbabwe, like so many countries on the African continent is suffering appallingly as a result of HIV and AIDS. The pandemic claims an estimated 2,300 lives every day.

This preliminary emergency appeal, launched at the request of ZRCS, is therefore intended to provide vital support in responding to immediate humanitarian needs in the following areas across 25 districts of the country’s eight provinces:

· Procurement and distribution of basic food items;

· Agricultural support and livelihoods recovery;

· Water and sanitation (WatSan interventions).

This

Masvingo      1,572    1,699     3,271       4,910 5,542 10452 13723

Mat North     1,167   1,585     2,752       4,795 6,126 10921 13673

Mat South    1,192    1,663     2,855       4,542 4,580 9122 11977

Midlands      510 562  1,072     1,411       1,532 2943 4015

Manicaland     642 757 1,399    1,373       1,487 2860 4259

Mash Central   980       1,308    2,288      2,749 2,853 5602 7890

Mash East      424 731  1,155    1,349     1,464 2813 3968

Mash West    883         1,087    1,970    1,158 1,470 2628 4598

TOTAL 7,370 9,392 16,762 22,287 25,054 47,341 64,103

 operation is expected to be implemented over nine months, and will be completed by May 2009. A final report will be made available by 30 August 2009 (three months after the end of the operation).

The situation

The food security situation in Zimbabwe is likely to be the worst ever on record in 2008. By December, approximately 5.1 million people will not have access to food. This extremely worrying situation will only be addressed through the joint efforts of all relevant actors. The Red Cross – ZRCS and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) – is in this regard only one important player.

An exceptional accumulation of negative factors have created this unprecedented humanitarian situation. Unpredictable weather patterns, drastic socio-economic decline and a deepening humanitarian crisis have left millions of Zimbabweans without access to sufficient food, while the HIV and AIDS pandemic continues to ravage the country as it claims an estimated 2,300 lives every day (According to MoHCW1: Herald Newspaper on 1 November 2007). The country’s predominantly subsistence agriculture economy is particularly prone to the changing weather patterns induced by climate change. To worsen the situation, Zimbabwe is struggling with the world’s highest inflation rate (over two million per cent as of end July 2008). As most rural communities are dependent on agricultural production this financial strain has a significant effect on food security and livelihoods.

According to the 18 June 2008 Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and World Food Programme (WFP) joint crop and food supply assessment (CFSAM), the total number of food insecure persons in rural and urban areas will be 2.04 million persons for the period between July and September 2008, rising to 3.8 million people between October and December 2008 and peaking to 5.1 million people between January and March 2009. This is approximately 45 percent of the total population. The capacity of the government to import food will be constrained by soaring food prices, and unavailability of foreign currency in the country. The expected harvest may only reach 40 per cent of the needs for 2008/2009.

This dire situation comes on the back of a difficult 2007. The 2007 rainy season was characterised by inconsistent rainfall, a pattern that lead alternatively to droughts and floods across the country.

According to the Zimbabwe meteorological department, by January 2008, 95 per cent of the country had received 150 perent of average rainfall. These inundations in many areas of the country led to flooding, leaching, erosion, limited farming activities and late planting. This in turn affected national crop production.

A June 2007 CSFAM estimated that national cereal production for large grain (maize) and small grain (sorghum and millet) was 44 per cent lower than 2006 estimates. Maize production was 46 per cent below the 2005/06 level and 13 per cent below the 2004/05 level. National production of main season maize is estimated at 575,000 tonnes, which is 28 per cent lower than 2007 production (using CFSAM estimate of 800,000 tonnes).

This downward trend of cereal production has also affected the 2008 farming season. According to the Ministry of Agriculture’s agricultural food security briefs from December 2007 to February 2008, the fertiliser supply situation remained depressed throughout the season. Only seven per cent of the targeted 600,000 tonnes of basal fertiliser and ten per cent of top dressing fertilizer that was needed reached farmers on time.

The Ministry of Agriculture update on the 2008 winter wheat season notes that only about 12 percent of the targeted farming area had been prepared for planting by 16 May 2008 – itself only 43 percent of the area planted in 2007. Once again, limited availability of fertilizer is having serious impacts on planting prospects for the next harvest in November. Only 24 percent and 19 percent of required Compound D and top dressing fertilizers respectively are available. At the same time, high seed costs and slow disbursements of loans (Agribank has disbursed only three per cent of funds required by wheat farmers) are hindering preparations.

Ministry of Health and Child Welfare

There is continued contraction of economic activity in all sectors, infrastructural degradation (particularly in the agricultural sector including capital asset depletion – irrigation structures and equipment) and the loss of productivity and the higher social and medical care burden caused by the HIV and AIDS pandemic. Although economic decline and food insecurity impacts across all sections of Zimbabwean society, the sharpest impact will be felt by the most vulnerable communities, including those households affected by HIV and AIDS.

Coordination and partnerships

The ZRCS is initially targeting 12.5 percent of the estimated total of vulnerable people from July – September 2008. It is understood that other agencies will also carry some of the caseload.

WFP is for example planning to launch a USD 205 million food security appeal (214,000 MT).

WFP will probably, after the government, be the single largest provider of food in Zimbabwe during this project period. ZRCS and the IFRC will coordinate its own efforts in close collaboration with WFP and other partners to avoid overlap.

ZRCS works in collaboration with several partner Red Cross societies including the British, Danish, Japanese, Finnish, Swedish and Norwegian Red Cross Societies, in implementing the integrated CHBC programme and
complimentary programmes. With the support of partners, ZRCS has developed capacity to plan, deliver, monitor and report on programming. Partners have also provided additional in-country expatriate technical support to the ZRCS.

ZRCS has developed and will maintain various partnerships with key technical organisations including, FAO, WFP, Tree Africa and ICRAF, who provide technical input and support on implementation and training. Officers from the Zimbabwe government’s Agricultural Research and Extension Services (AGRITEX) provide training and information on improved farming practices, seed variety selection, and general crop production management. The officers are also involved in the monitoring and evaluation of livelihood projects. ZRCS is a member of the Agriculture Coordination Working Group (ACWG), which is made up of various agencies including WFP, UNICEF, AGRITEX and the Zimbabwe Civil Protection Unit (CPU) and the IFRC also participates.

There are a number of factors that could feasibly impact on the implementation of this emergency operation. An important concern, at present, is the accessibility to vulnerable communities in the light of the current political instability. In terms of procurement, delays could arise as a result of logistical challenges related to transportation, access to fuel and customs regulations. There could also be hiccups in the supply
chain: if the operation is not supported early enough in the planning process there is a risk that regional food supplier might run-out of food, forcing the IFRC to use continental or overseas suppliers, which would
invariably increase the price of food commodities and thereof delays in deliveries.

In the event of a rapid-onset disaster during this food security operation timeframe (e.g. floods), the implementation could be slowed down as focus and resources would, temporarily, have to be diverted to the immediate disaster response. In order to cope with the previous issues of capacity, this appeal includes the need for resource to cover temporary human resource support by recruiting a number of local staff.

The assumption is that the IFRC and the ZRCS will have full compliance from local authorities and also that most of the procurement will be done directly by the IFRC or through in-kind support from donors. Any in-kind donation will be well coordinated with the IFRC in-country team to avoid delays, consistent type of assistance and avoid breakages of the food-pipeline. The assumption is also that significant support for this
appeal will be received in August 2008 in order to ensure all necessary procurement is done by the end of August 2008, so that ZRCS is able to distribute to all beneficiaries within sufficient time for the next planting season in November.

Planned Red Cross and Red Crescent action

A significant part of the Zimbabwe Red Cross Society’s (ZRCS) operational focus lies on its HIV and AIDS programming. Operating through its network of trained community-based volunteers, ZRCS provides community-based home care (CHBC) for 16,762 chronically ill people as well as 49,519 orphans and children made vulnerable by HIV (OVC). As a follow-up to this initiative, the ZRCS is at present piloting an antiretroviral treatment (ART) programme for 1,500 HBC clients in Chivi and Mount Darwin. The ZRCS has 25 CHBC project sites in the country’s eight provinces. In all, Red Cross volunteers assist 260,100 people through this programme including the 193,819 dependents of the target groups outlined above.

The CHBC programme will serve as an entry point for this emergency food security operation, in an effort to speedily capitalize on already established structures. The initial focus of ZRCS is therefore to provide food assistance to the 260,100 vulnerable clients – a caseload spread across Zimbabwe’s eight provinces. This figure represents approximately 12.5 per cent of the population that FAO and WFP estimate will require food assistance from July to September 2008. The ZRCS is willing to re-assess the situation as it evolves and is prepared to increase its reach if needed, depending on its own capacity, the needs of affected communities and work of other humanitarian and governmental actors. The prognosis is that the food security situation will reach its peak in January up to March 2009 with about 5.1 million food insecure people.

The largest food security operation previously conducted by the ZRCS was in 2006 – an effort that reached and supported 140,000 beneficiaries, a figure that will be almost doubled under this current proposed operation. Previously in 2002 and this 2006 operation, ZRCS distributed food aid in coordination with WFP. During the recent acute food insecurity situations, ZRCS has also distributed food aid to CHBC clients who received assistance through the Red Cross integrated HIV programme. The people living with HIV (PLHIV) and their dependents are particularly vulnerable to inadequate access to food.

The ZRCS livelihoods programme was established in 2004 with funding from the British Red Cross and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and the Finnish Red Cross. The funding support for the programme ended in July 2007. The ZRCS livelihoods programme hence has been
on of the five countries in southern Africa who received funding support from Finnish and Norwegian Red Cross Societies during 2007 and 2008. However, there are still gaps which are requiring long-term funding in-order to strengthen the livelihoods programme.

From precedent experiences, it has become clearer that longer-term interventions need to be addressed during emergency operation in order to mitigate the impact of food shortages in the future. This is partly achieved by building community-based coping mechanisms and strengthening the capacity of Red Cross volunteers at the very local level.

The needs

As outlined above, the 2008 CFSAM report indicates the total number of food insecure people persons in rural and urban areas will reach 5.1 million people by March 2009, which is approximately 45 per cent of the total population.

Table 1:  Projected National Requirements 2008/2009

08/09 Needs Expected Harvest 2008 Government Import Requirement Deficit

2,080 million MTs 848,000 MTs 850,000 MTs 382,000 MTs

Table 2: Estimates of food insecure individuals in rural and urban areas
2008/9

Province  Jul-Sep 2008 Oct-Dec 2008 Jan-Mar 2009

Manicaland                             285,400 535,100 713,400

Mashonaland Central                154,600 289,800 386,400

Mashonaland East                   187,000 350,600 467,500

Mashonaland West                  126,300 236,800 315,700

Masvingo                               252,200 472,800 630,400

Matebeleland North                127,500 239,100 318,900

Matebeleland South              148,500 278,400 371,200

Midlands                              243,800 457,200 609,500

Rural Provinces                    1,525,300 2,859,800 3,813,000

Urban & peri-urban              515,500 966,600 1,288,800

Total                                2,040,800 3,826,400 5,101,800

Source: FAO/WFP Crop and Food Supply Assessment Mission (CFSAM to Zimbabwe, 18 June 2008

With the total annual national utilization of cereals at about 2.080 million tonnes to cater for the projected population of 11.865 million, the shortfall of the national production is estimated at 1.232 million tonnes, of which the maize deficit accounts for about one million tonnes. Availability of maize grain is now restricted to making it difficult to access from the formal market. High transport costs are being borne by the communities since the grain is being sourced from distant markets.

Supplies from the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) have been erratic and some districts have not received any supplies.

Table 3:  National Estimates of required food assistance in 2008/09 (MTs)

Province July-Sept 2008 October-Dec 2008 January-March 2009 Total

Manicaland                        10,274 19,263 25,684 55,221

Mashonaland Central           5,564 10,432 13,910 29,906

Mashonaland East              6,732 12,623 16,830 36,185

Mashonaland West            4,547 8,525 11,366 24,438

Masvingo                         9,078 17,022 22,695 48,795

Matebeleland North          4,592 8,609 11,479 24,679

Matebeleland South         5,345 10,092 13,362 28,729

Midlands                         8,777 16,458 21,943 47,178

Rural Provinces               54,908 102,953 137,270 295,131

Urban and peri-urban      18,558 34,797 46,396 99,751

Total                           73,470 137,750 183,670 394,880

Source: FAO/WFP Crop and Food Supply Assessment Mission (CFSAM) to Zimbabwe, 18 June 2008

Needs identified through the on-going ZRCS assessments include urgent food aid for food-insecure households. There is also an urgent need of assisting poor households to resume crop production activities in the next agricultural season. ZRCS is appealing for a total of USD 26,837,020 for the operation to be implemented in nine months (the appeal coverage will extend to 12 months as some staff and costs will be required for activities before and after the actual nine-month distribution/implementation period), focusing on food aid and livelihood recovery programme; including water and sanitation and disaster risk reduction activities as well.

Beneficiary selection:

Surveys conducted by FAO/WFP and the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee (ZIMVAC) in the previous years have identified districts that have higher levels of food insecurity than others throughout the country. The districts identified are illustrated in the map below. The districts’ food insecurity is ranked from high to low. It is important to note that most of the medium to low insecurity districts now fall under highly insecure categories due to the lean periods and harsh economic environment.

Most of the ZRCS’ 25 target project sites are within areas of high food insecurity. The community home-based care (CHBC) clients and OVC will be targeted as the entry point as these groups comprise of extremely vulnerable households that will require food assistance since household food production has been compromised. However, there will be on-going assessments to include other vulnerable groups meeting the National Society’s selection criteria who also need food assistance.

These will be inline with the National Society’s capacity at hand.

The priority need of the beneficiaries as identified by surveys conducted by the ZRCS is food aid.

Most beneficiaries highlighted that they could not implement livelihoods activities or farming activities on empty stomachs. Food needs will be addressed through direct food distribution in rural areas and in urban areas. Food aid is the single largest budget line in this appeal – a result of the current global food crisis and soaring inflation within Zimbabwe.

Support for agricultural production and livelihoods recovery including water and sanitation activities will be conducted to address medium to long-term needs. The number of beneficiaries will vary depending on the nature of the activity, taking into account the capabilities of beneficiaries and levels of community effort to enable effective resource utilisation. Some activities although targeting specific households, will benefit the surrounding communities indirectly (model gardens, wells, dams etc).

The proposed operation

The strategic plan of the operation is guided by the IFRC’s four Global Agenda Goals2 and seeks to achieve two strategic objectives:

The IFRC’s activities are aligned with its Global Agenda, which sets out four broad goals:

1. Reduce the number of deaths, injuries and impact of disasters.

2. Reduce the number of deaths, illnesses and impact from diseases and public health emergencies.

3. Increase local community, civil society and Red Cross Red Crescent capacity to address the most urgent situations of vulnerability.

4. Reduce intolerance, discrimination and social exclusion and promote respect for diversity and human dignity.

1. The provision of timely emergency relief to meet the basic needs of the most affected by the food security crisis and,

2. The provision of early recovery support to restore and improve agricultural resilience of the most vulnerable people in target areas.

Food aid will initially be targeted towards CHBC clients, OVC and their household members in the eight provinces and 25 project sites that the ZRCS operates in (refer to tables 5 – 7 below for detailed breakdown of these groups). Direct food aid is more appropriate in Zimbabwe due to the national shortage of basic food commodities on the open market (the voucher system is viewed as not feasible under current socio-economic circumstances). ZRCS will continue to attend WFP coordinated food aid meetings where humanitarian agencies share information on areas of operation to avoid double dipping.

The planned recovery activities will help beneficiaries to be more self sufficient in the future.

These will include the establishment of sand dams, protection and deepening of wells, micro-projects, conservation farming, piloting of treadle and elephant pumps. Results from ZRCS assessments and programme reviews indicated the need to strengthen integration of water and sanitation and livelihoods interventions. Most livelihoods interventions are agriculture-based and it recommended having reliable water sources to ensure high yields and sustainability.

Table 4: Summary Food Requirements for the Red Cross operation (MTs)

MT                  Aug     Sept     Oct       Nov      Dec       Jan       Feb      March    April       Total

Maize               2,601  2,601    2,601    2,601   2,601    2,601    2,601   2,601    2,601     23,409

Beans              468     468      468      468       468       468       468      468       468       4,212

Oil(1,000lts)     117     117      117      117        117      117       117      117       117       1,053

CSB                780     780      780      780         780     780       780      780       780        7,020

Grand Total   3,967   3,967    3,967    3,967      3,967  3,967    3,967    3,967    3,966     35,694

Table 5: Summary of Targeted Beneficiaries – HBC Clients

HBC Clients Household Members

 Province   M        F        Total HBC   M         F          Total household members    Total HBC+HH members

Masvingo   1,572   1,699   3,271       4,910    5,542           10452                               13723

Mat North 1,167    1,585   2,752      4,795     6,126          10921                                13673

Mat South 1,192    1,663  2,855       4,542     4,580          9122 11977

Midlands   510        562    1,072        1,411      1,532         2943 4015

Manicaland 642       757    1,399        1,373     1,487         2860 4259

Mash Central 980    1,308  2,288       2,749      2,853        5602 7890

Mash East   424      731    1,155       1,349       1,464        2813 3968

Mash West  883     1,087  1,970       1,158       1,470       2628 4598

TOTAL       7,370    9,392 16,762     22,287     25,054      47,341                             64,103

Key:

M - Male

F – Female 

Table 6: Summary of Targeted Beneficiaries – OVC Clients

OVC Province  Boys     Girls       Total OVC      Household Members      Total OVC & households members

Masvingo        1,212      1,321     2,533              7,599    10,132

Mat North      3,668      3,990     7,658              22,974 30,632

Mat South      3,929      5,895     9,824             29,472    39,296

Midlands         1,323      1,414      2,737             7,176    9,913

Manicaland      5,841      6,319      12,160           36,480                                 48,640

Mash Central   1,445      1,538       2,983            8,949    11,932

Mash East       1,498       1,568      3,066            9,198   12,264

Mash West      4,210      4,348       8,210            24,630                               32,840

TOTAL            23,126    26,393     49,519          146,478                             195,997

Table 7: Summary of All Targeted Beneficiaries (OVC plus HBC Beneficiaries)

Province           Total HBC + HH members     Total OVC + HH members    Total HBC + OVC + HH members

Masvingo                   13,723 10,132   23,855

Matebeleland North     13,673 30,632   44,305

Matebeleland South     11,977 39,296 51,273

Midlands                    4,015    9,913    13,928

Manicaland                 4,259                                 48,640     52,899

Mashonaland Central    7,890                                11,932     19,822

Mashonaland East      3,968   12,264     16,232

Mashonaland West     4,598   33,188    37,786

TOTAL                    64,103 195,997 260,100

The activities outlined below have been designed to meet the minimum standards demanded by the Sphere project’s Humanitarian Charter and minimum standards in disaster response.

Food Aid

Objective: To meet immediate food needs of 260,100 vulnerable people (52,020 households) for nine months through monthly food distributions in targeted areas until the next harvesting season.

Expected results Activities planned

· Improved nutrition status of beneficiaries.

· Safety-net provided for vulnerable households.

· Assisted children have improved capacity to concentrate at school.

· Distribution of food packs (maize 10kg, beans 1.8kg, cooking oil 0.5 litres and 3kg corn soya blend per individual per month) to 260,100 vulnerable people and their households in rural and urban areas.

(Food packs are based on WFP standard of 2,100 Kcal per person per day)

· Monitoring and evaluation of relief activities and reporting on relief distributions.

Agricultural Production and Livelihoods Recovery Objectives:

1. To build agricultural recovery and stabilise household food production of 100,930 people (20,186 households) through distribution of agricultural inputs, strengthening community seed banks and supporting agricultural management for nine months

2. To establish sustainable systems that protect livelihoods through diverse interventions to improve household income, food security, nutrition status and self sufficiency of 128,500 people (25,700 households) for nine months

Expected results Activities planned

· Increase in area under agricultural production

· Improved access to agricultural inputs in the next farming season

· Increase in household food production.

· Livelihood projects are implemented in line with country strategic plan

· Cost effective input usage

· Significant  increase in yields

· Improved nutritional status of beneficiaries

· Improved household income

· Improved household food security

· Distributing recovery seed packs consisting of 10kg maize, 10kg sorghum, 5kg beans, 5kg groundnuts, 100kg ammonium nitrate and 50kg compound D fertiliser to 20,186 rural households (100,930 people)

· Training beneficiaries on seed preservation and seed storage.

· Training beneficiaries on better farming techniques.

· Conservation farming trainings with technical support from AGRITEX benefiting 2,500 people (500 households).

· Training 60,000 people (12,000 households) in nutrition promotion.

· Distributing vegetable seeds (five varieties) benefiting 128,500 people (25,700 households).

· Installation of low cost water pumping technologies i.e. 500 treadle pumps and 20 elephant pumps

· Conducting a total of 50 training sessions in market linkage and vegetable processing benefiting.

· Providing 200 families (1,000 people) with three goats each.

· Training the recipient households on animal husbandry. Goats are passed on to an additional 200 households (who in turn will do the same), three months after their first set of kids.

· Implementation of specific projects such as bee keeping, mushroom production, aquaculture and crafts, based on viable project proposals and feasibility assessments benefiting, 100 projects benefiting 1,000 people in total in each region.

· Provision of 100 water troughs at water points for domestic animals.

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Promotion

Objective: To improve access of households to safe water and health and hygiene promotion for 3,000 vulnerable households (15,000 people) in 25 project sites

Expected results Activities planned

· Access to sustainable safe and adequate water for both human and animal consumption.

· Improved behaviour change through hygiene promotion activities.

· Rehabilitating 200 water points (hand pumps and apron).

· Conducting a total of 50 Participatory Hygiene and Sanitation Transformation (PHAST) training targeting 15,000.

· Training 200 water point committees in community-based management (CBM).

Logistics

The IFRC southern Africa Zone logistics department in close collaboration with the ZRCS logistics department have extensive experience working with other organisations based in Zimbabwe, such as WFP and European Commission Humanitarian Office (ECHO). The IFRC southern Africa Zone logistics department in collaboration with the regional logistics unit (RLU) in Dubai is experienced in providing services in major operations and is conversant with customs clearance and other requirements in Zimbabwe.

The food distribution points (FDPs) will be monitored by ZRCS provincial officers and trained volunteers. In conducting all these logistics component processes, the ZRCS logistics structures from the headquarters to the IFRC zone level will be strengthened in order to ensure adequate support to the operation

The food is delivered to FDPs and distributed on the same day to identified representatives of registered CHBC clients and OVC. Care facilitators are on-site at the distribution points to ensure accuracy of the process. Monitoring is undertaken at FDPs to ensure that ration sizes are maintained, and to investigate issues such as travel distances, modes of transport and statistics related to household members sharing the food.

Capacity of the National Society

ZRCS is a volunteer driven organisation, which depends on community-based volunteers (approximately 30,000 at present) working with the most vulnerable. ZRCS has a long standing experience working with communities across the country. The community-based approach will be enhanced through the capacity building of staff and volunteers to monitor and evaluate projects and to participate in data collection. Community consultation will take place through the participatory approach exercise to identify ways of supporting the entire community’s food security and to strengthen the social protection around the most vulnerable.

Specific volunteers have been identified for the agricultural recovery programme. These volunteers and lead farmers will continue to reach the targeted households, cascading information and assisting in monitoring projects and are key facilitators of community action. Volunteers will receive inputs to use in their own plots as model gardens and they will continue to work closely with AGRITEX officers to train lead farmers in each project site.

ZRCS staff members are committed at all levels (national, provincial and district) to ensure effective and efficient implementation of all programmes. The national food security team is made up of a food security
and livelihoods programme officer, programme assistant and a secretary, skilled in programme management, agronomics, and research and data management. There are also food security and livelihoods officers in all
provinces working with the district and ward levels.

In some provinces there are also district officers who help to coordinate and monitor projects.

ZRCS has also established a monitoring and evaluation (M&E) unit at national level. The department is focused on building the capacity of staff and volunteers to effectively monitor programmes. This will help in the production of quality, impact-based reports through the development of indicators, M&E plans, and development of data bases and mapping of strategies to meaningfully involve beneficiaries.

The National Society will continue to work with existing government structures such as AGRITEX to ensure sustainability of projects. AGRITEX will assist in monitoring and providing technical support to beneficiaries in implementing and managing agricultural projects. Technical partners such as FAO, WFP and the Ministry of Agriculture will assist through joint monitoring and evaluation visits with ZRCS staff and volunteers. Evaluations conducted at the mid and end points of the operation’s phases will enable to identification of programme weaknesses as well as successes which can then be captured as best practices. Partners have also provided additional in-country expatriate technical support to the WatSan, HIV AIDS and livelihoods programming.

Cognisance must be given to the challenges that a large scale operation of this kind can place on the ZRCS. This appeal caters for capacity issues through the engagement of temporary staff such as finance and logistics officers, dedicated solely to this programme.

Capacity of the IFRC

A Federation Country Representation office (FCR) was established in Zimbabwe in January 2008 following a request from ZRCS. The FCR is dedicated solely to the support of the ZRCS and will enhance the capacity of ZRCS staff to manage this integrated programme. The IFRC has coordinated the development and implementation of past food security operations in Zimbabwe.

Food insecurity has been the major humanitarian challenge in southern Africa as a whole since 2002 and the IFRC has strengthened capacity in response and sustainable recovery programmes.

The objective of the FCR is to coordinate and capacitate the National Society to effectively respond  to disasters such as the food security operation, to provide technical advice and training in priority areas on request and as and when necessary. Back-up is also available from partner Red Cross societies based in Zimbabwe such as Danish and Norwegian Red Cross.

For this specific operation, the IFRC will engage two technical delegates and one local officer to strengthen logistics, procurement and finance and provide continuous technical support. One driver will also be recruited under this programme. Two delegates will comprise of the relief coordinator who will counterpart with the ZRCS national food security and livelihoods officer, while the logistics delegate will counterpart with ZRCS logistics officer. They all report through the national programmes coordinator. The third will be a finance person directly relating to the finance officer and reporting through the finance manager while the forth will be a driver for the operation.

Due to the strong emphasis on logistics and finance most purchases will be made directly by the IFRC and finances will be closely monitored to minimize exchange rate losses.

The relief team will be supported by IFRC Southern African Zone disaster management, health, water and sanitation, finance, logistics and planning, monitoring, evaluation and reporting (PMER) departments. The zone was established in Johannesburg in 2008 as part of the IFRC’s recent global restructure. Assuming many of the responsibilities previously handled by the IFRC secretariat in Geneva, the zone office is responsible for directly supporting the development of Red Cross society capacity in Southern Africa as well as for providing strategic and technical assistance.

Budget summary

Budget Item Priority Cost (CHF)

Food relief (maize, beans, CSB, oil) 1 16,836,593

Seeds, plants, fertilizers 1 3,447,255

WatSan 1 246,250

Vehicle procurement (cars, motorcycles, bicycles) 2 108,150

Livelihoods training 1 111,720

Computers/ telecommunications (cameras, laptops, printers, fax) 2 30,765

Warehousing and distribution (rental, customs fees, loading etc) 2 3,966,645

Vehicle maintenance costs (fuel, service, insurance, spare parts) 2 143,911

Federation personnel  3 292,920

NS personnel 3 599,328

Consultants fees 3 9,975

Workshops and training (capacity building, evaluation) 1 47,250

Travel 2 5,195

Information materials (visibility / publicity) 2 11,550

General expenses (administration) 3 21,263

Communication (postage, courier, telephone, internet) 3 40,950

Professional fees (audit) 3 31,500

Programme Support Recovery  1,804,095

Total  27,755,314

Resource Mobilisation and Alternative Strategies

In the event that funding is received late or the appeal is under-funded, there are several strategies, which could be applied to modify this appeal. The first of these could be the reduction of the appeal time frame to six months thus cutting the budget while covering the entire targeted population in all project areas. Priority until August 2008 will be given to agricultural starter packs taking into account the planting season (November) after which increasing vegetable seed procurement could be an option as these are not as time-bound as cereal crops.

Thomas Gurtner            Bekele Geleta

Director                       Secretary General

Coordination and Programmes Division

How we work

All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s) in Disaster Relief and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response (Sphere) in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable.

The International Federation’s activities are aligned with its Global Agenda, which sets out four broad goals to meet the Federation’s mission to “improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity”.

Global Agenda Goals:

· Reduce the numbers of deaths, injuries and impact from disasters.

· Reduce the number of deaths, illnesses and impact from diseases and public health emergencies.

· Increase local community, civil society and Red Cross Red Crescent capacity to address the most urgent situations of vulnerability.

· Reduce intolerance, discrimination and social exclusion and promote respect for diversity and human dignity.

Contact information

For further information specifically related to this operation please
contact:

· In Zimbabwe: Emma Kundishora, Secretary General Email zrcs@ecoweb.co.zw;

ekundishora@comone.co.zw ,  Phone: Tel: +263.4.332638; +263.4.332197;

 Fax +263.4.335490

· In Zimbabwe: Peter Lundberg; Country Representative, Zimbabwe Country Representation, Harare;

Email peter.lundberg@ifrc.org .Phone: Tel: +263.4.705166; +263.4.720315,  Fax +263.4.708784

· In Southern Africa Zone:  Françoise Le Goff, Head of Zone Office, Johannesburg;

 Email francoise.legoff@ifrc.org; Phone: Tel: +27.11.303.9700; +27.11.303.9711;

 Fax: +27.11.884.3809; +27.11.884.0230

· In Geneva: John Roche, Operations Coordinator, Email: john.roche@ifrc.org;

Phone: +41.22.730.4400, Fax: +41.22.733.03.95

APPEAL BUDGET SUMMARY

Zimbabwe Food Insecurity Appeal No.

ORIGINAL

RELIEF NEEDS

Shelter 0

Construction Materials 0

Clothing & Textiles 0

Food 16,836,593

Seeds & Plants 3,447,255

Water & Sanitation 246,250

Medical & First Aid 0

Teaching Materials 111,720

Utensils & Tools 0

Other Supplies & Services 0

Total Relief Needs 20,641,818

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT

Land & Buildings

Vehicles Purchase 108,150

Computers & Telecom Equipment 30,765

Office/Household Furniture & Equip.

Medical Equipment

Other Machinery & Equipment

TRANSPORT, STORAGE & VEHICLES

Storage – Warehouse 510,405

Distribution & Monitoring 3,456,240

Transport & Vehicles Costs 143,911

PERSONNEL

International Staff 292,920

Regionally Deployed Staff 3,300

National Staff 236,880

National Society Staff 359,148

Consultants 9,975

WORKSHOPS & TRAINING

Workshops & Training 47,250

GENERAL EXPENSES

Travel 5,195

Information & Public Relations 11,550

Office running costs 21,263

Communication Costs 40,950

Professional Fees 31,500

Financial Charges 0

Other General Expenses 0

PROGRAMME SUPPORT

Programme Support – PSR 1,804,095

Total Operational Needs 7,113,497

Total Appeal Budget (Cash & Kind) 27,755,314

Available Ressources

Net Request 27,755,314 —

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