Zimbabwe's President Mnangagwa declares national disaster over drought - BBC News

About 3 million people are facing hunger as the drought wipes out crops across the country.

1 hour agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, AFPImage caption, The president has said the country needs $2bn to address the effects of the droughtBy Shingai NyokaBBC News, HarareZimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa has declared a national disaster to tackle the prolonged drought crisis.

Mr Mnangagwa said on Wednesday the country needs $2bn (£1.6bn) to tackle hunger caused by low rainfall which has wiped out about half of the maize crop.

The grain shortage has pushed up food prices and an estimated 2.7 million people will face hunger.

Neighbouring Zambia and Malawi have also declared states of disasters due to drought recently.

The drought is a result of the El Nino global weather pattern and has triggered a humanitarian crisis in southern Africa.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-68721078

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