Zimbabweans live in abject poverty: UNICEF

Painting a grim picture of the situation in Zimbabwe dwarfing the much vaunted success of the Harare power-sharing government in stabilising the economy, the report said a burgeoning HIV/AIDS pandemic has killed many breadwinners to leave large numbers of child-headed families and 55 percent of the population living below the bread line. “Currently approximately 78 percent of the population of Zimbabwe is absolutely poor and 55 percent live below the food poverty line,” the UNICEFs Child-Sensitive Social Protection in Zimbabwe report said.

“People living below the food poverty line cannot meet any of their basic needs and suffer from chronic hunger. It is estimated that approximately 6.6 million people including 3.5 million children suffer from this extreme form of deprivation.” Zimbabwes economy registered its first growth in a decade last year after the coalition government of President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai implemented measures, including the adoption of multiple currencies, that doused hyperinflation.

But incessant bickering between Mugabe and Tsvangirai over how to share executive power continues to scare away foreign investors whose funds are vital to any effort to rebuild Zimbabwes shattered economy. In addition rich Western nations, unconvinced by Mugabes commitment to democratic reforms, have refused to provide direct financial support to Harare demanding more political reforms and that the government acts to end human rights abuses before they can loosen the purse strings.

In the absence of robust support from Western governments, the International Monetary Fund and other multi-lateral institutions, Zimbabwes economic recovery has remained fragile, while the country also remains heavily dependent on foreign humanitarian assistance to meet the basic needs of its population.