Zimbabwe’s socio-economic situation has been on nosedive mode for the past 2 decades. This has exposed many people to threatening vulnerabilities. To this end,NGOs have been instrumental in cushioning the poor and vulnerable from falling hard into destitution.
Interventions by NGOs have played a pivotal role particularly during emergencies like the socio-economic shocks induced by the Covid 19 global pandemic.
According to the Zimbabwe Country Fact Sheet, World Vision has been in Zimbabwe for 47 years. Over the years it has worked with communities, partner NGOs, local and donor governments, and the private sector, to deliver high impact child focused programming. Its overall mandate is to respond to slow and rapid onset of emergencies.
When the eastern part of Zimbabwe was hit by Cyclone Idai in March 2019 ,World Vision was among the first to respond. In 2020 over 1 223 378 were reached through food assistance.
Most recently, after the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic, World Vision has provided safety net to more than 2 million people through its various Covid 19 interventions programs. It has focused on raising awareness across various communities, enhancing local health systems, including the distribution of PPEs, livelihoods and food security and advocacy, according to the report.
In Kariba Urban through the Urban Social Assistance program that is funded by World Food Program and World Vision 10 000 individuals including those in Charara and Quarry have benefited from the food security program.
The program started in 2020 as a way of helping people whose livelihoods had been eroded by the scourge of Covid 19 induced lockdown. The program seeks to target people with multiple vulnerabilities including the chronically ill, elderly, disabled, pregnant and lactating women.
Kudzanai A Njenjera