President Emmerson Mnangagwa has declared a State of Disaster following the devastating fire at Mbare Traders Market on 8th October 2024.
The blaze, which took hours to extinguish and whose cause remains unknown, has severely affected over 4,000 traders by destroying the entire retail section and parts of the wholesale market.
In a statement issued on 14th October 2024, the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works announced that this disaster declaration will aid in mobilising resources to rebuild the market and support the affected traders. Reads the statement:
<blockquote>
His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Cde Dr. E.D. Mnangagwa has, in terms of Section 27(1) of the Civil Protection Act [Chapter 10:06], declared A State of Disaster following a destructive fire at the Mbare Traders Market on 8th October 2024.
The unfortunate inferno, which razed down the whole retail section and parts of the wholesale market, affected over 4 000 traders whose livelihoods have been negatively impacted.
The declaration will thus assist in mobilising necessary resources, in cash and kind, to support rebuilding of the market as well as assist affected entrepreneurs resuscitate their businesses.
The nation is advised that Government in collaboration with the private sector and other stakeholders, is working flat out to build back better.
</blockquote>
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President Mnangagwa said a big fire at Mbare Traders Market is a disaster. The fire hurt over 4,000 people by breaking the whole retail part and some of the wholesale part. The government will help rebuild the market and help the traders. They will get money and other things they need. The government and other groups are working together to make things better.

Mnangagwa Declares State Of Disaster After Mbare Market Fire

Zimbabwe’s prominent opposition figure, Nelson Chamisa, strongly criticized President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa for the delayed declaration of the El Nino-induced drought as a State of Disaster. The drought wreaked havoc on crops and pastures during the 2023/24 rainy season.
On Wednesday, April 3, President Mnangagwa declared a state of disaster and urgently appealed for international assistance, stating that Zimbabwe needs more than US$2 billion to mitigate the impending famine.
Chamisa contends that recognizing a meteorological drought at the tail-end of the summer season reflects a significant “leadership drought” within the country. Chamisa said:
<blockquote>
Drought in Zimbabwe has become a perennial challenge evidenced by persistent extreme weather conditions. Poverty, disease, and cholera also characterize our national perils.
These all constitute major threats to our national security. It’s like we’re stuck in a time loop since ‘07/‘08. This points to leadership failure.
Declaring a state of emergency after the fact is too little too late, lame and lacking. We’ve ignored warnings from experts including the UN, WHO, WFP and our own meteorological teams who gave these warnings more than a year ago.
Our lack of preparedness shows that the drought of leadership and strategy is OUR BIGGEST DROUGHT HAZARD.
We’ve got dams but they’re underdeveloped, silting up with no de-silting plans. We have too many undeveloped dam sites. We lack the right water harnessing and harvesting plans.
</blockquote>
The former leader of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) issued a challenge to the Mnangagwa-led administration, urging them to draw lessons from other nations that have achieved food security even in the face of limited rainfall. He said:
<blockquote>
Other countries with less rainfall manage better. With the right leadership and proper governance, Zimbabwe would be evergreen. We have a great deal for Zimbabwe- the Green Agenda revolution.
Climate-smart solutions need a proactive strategy, not a reactive policy. Our water systems and land use need effective management for preservation and sustainability.
Declaring disaster late is no solution. Lives have been lost and continue to be lost the policies are floppy, sloppy, slow and weak.
We’re ready to provide the leadership that acts, not react. We must resolve the drought of leadership. Zimbabwe deserves better.
We must fix the broken politics, resolve the disputed elections conundrum, reverse the rigged elections scourge and restore majority rule.
</blockquote>
Mnangagwa announced that the anticipated grain yield for the 2023/24 agricultural season in Zimbabwe stands at 868,273 tonnes. However, this falls significantly short of the nation’s food requirements, resulting in a cereal deficit of nearly 680,000 metric tonnes.
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Zimbabwe's Leadership "Drought" Is Worse Than A Meteorological Drought - Chamisa

President Emmerson Mnangagwa has urgently appealed for international assistance, stating that Zimbabwe needs more than US$2 billion to mitigate the impending famine caused by the El Niño-induced drought. The severity of the situation has led the government to declare a state of disaster.
Interestingly, this declaration follows a period during which President Mnangagwa’s ZANU PF party allocated substantial funds to electoral campaigns and generously rewarded ministers, judges, lawmakers, and chiefs. Said Mnangagwa:
<blockquote>
By this Declaration, I also call upon all Zimbabweans of goodwill, including those in the diaspora; the international community, United Nations Agencies, Development and Humanitarian Partners, International Financial Institutions; the private sector, churches and other faith-based organisations, as well as individuals to generously donate towards ameliorating this State of National Disaster…
Preliminary assessments show that Zimbabwe requires in excess of US$2 billion towards various interventions we envisage in the spectrum of our national response.
</blockquote>
Ironically, the declaration of a State of disaster comes as the government is pushing to pass a controversial law, the Private Voluntary Organisations Amendment Bill whose provisions are inimical to freedom of association.
In his address to the nation on Wednesday, April 3, President Mnangagwa revealed that a staggering 80% of Zimbabwe experienced below-normal rainfall.
The anticipated grain yield for the 2023/24 agricultural season in Zimbabwe stands at 868,273 tonnes. However, this falls significantly short of the nation’s food requirements, resulting in a cereal deficit of nearly 680,000 metric tonnes.
To achieve food security, Zimbabwe must secure a minimum of 2.2 million metric tonnes of grains annually.
President Mnangagwa reassured the nation that despite the cereal deficit, imports will play a crucial role in bridging the gap. He said:
<blockquote>
Top on our priorities is securing food for all Zimbabweans. No Zimbabwean must succumb to or die from hunger.
Adequate resources will, therefore, be mobilised and re-directed towards national food security, including through supplementary grain imports.
All available grain in the country will be secured through competitive prices and payment towards encouraging farmers to release and sell available grain, including to the Grain Marketing Board.
A robust and responsive mechanism has been put in place to guarantee that food reaches needy communities timely.
</blockquote>
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Zimbabwe Seeks US$2 Billion To Avert Famine

According to prominent Zimbabwean journalist Hopewell Chin’ono, Zimbabwe’s poverty is not inherent; rather, it stems from inadequate governance. This perspective emerged after President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa declared a state of disaster in response to the drought that severely impacted the 2023/24 summer cropping season on Wednesday, April 03.
Zimbabwe becomes the third African country to declare the current drought a national disaster, following Zambia and Malawi.
On his social media platforms, the prominent government critic Hopewell Chin’ono pointed out the irony of President Mnangagwa allocating trucks to traditional chiefs and ZANU PF social media propagandists while the nation grapples with a severe cereal deficit. He wrote:
<blockquote>
The President of Zimbabwe has declared a state of national disaster, a euphemism in this case for saying there isn’t enough food to feed the nation.
This ironically comes after the president distributed 100 trucks to traditional chiefs, and has started distributing cars to ZANU PF social media propagandists who helped in his election campaign.
A surrogate close to the president, convicted criminal, Wicknell Chivhayo, has also been distributing high-end cars to greedy musicians who support the ruling party, ZANU PF.
It is indeed strange that after this obscene public display of misplaced extravagance, the president is now asking ordinary citizens both at home and abroad to donate money towards something caused by his government’s lack of planning, yet he has been splurging on cars.
</blockquote>
Chinon’o boldly exposed the ZANU PF-led government’s deception, revealing that their claim of sufficient grain reserves in the country was far removed from reality. He said:
<blockquote>
The severe impact of the ongoing drought would have been mitigated by maize reserves, but the government lied that it had enough reserves when it didn’t, only to be exposed that it was buying maize weekly from South Africa by that country’s Head of International Diplomacy on Twitter.
Mnangagwa stated that over 2.7 million Zimbabweans need food aid. He added that Zimbabwe will face a grain deficit of 680,000 tonnes.
Zimbabwe’s agricultural industry collapsed when ZANUPF removed land tenure and embarked on its never-ending removal of commercial farmers, both black and white, from farms and handed them over to ZANU PF cronies who couldn’t farm.
</blockquote>
Chin’ono has emphatically stated that Zimbabwe currently grapples with the world’s highest inflation rate. 
Furthermore, the local currency has been rendered virtually worthless due to corruption within the central bank and the glaring incompetence attributed to ZANUPF’s legendary inability to govern, said Chin’ono, adding, “Zimbabwe is not poor, it is only poorly governed!”
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Declaration Of State Of Disaster: Zimbabwe Is Not Poor, But Poorly Governed - Chin'ono

President Emmerson Mnangagwa has declared a State of Disaster for Harare Metropolitan Province due to the deplorable state of cleanliness in the province.
The Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has been tasked with coordinating the removal of waste dumps that have been accumulating in business and residential areas in the province.
The notice for the declaration of a state of disaster in Harare Metropolitan Province has been published in the Government Gazette and reads in part:
<blockquote>
Civil Protection (Declaration of State of Disaster: Emergency Solid Waste Management Harare Metropolitan Province) Notice, 2023
Declaration of State of disaster
2. As a result of the failure to properly manage waste within the Harare Metropolitan Province, a state of disaster exists in that province with effect from the promulgation of this declaration.
Conferment of powers and duties by Minister on Minister of Environment and Agency
3. It is hereby notified, in terms of section 38 of the Act that the Minister has-
(a) for the purpose of this declaration, conferred his powers in terms of the Act upon the Minister responsible for Environment, including any power or duty conferred or imposed by or in terms of this Act upon the area civil protection officer for the civil protection area concerned;
(b) for the purpose of paragraph (a), authorised the Minister responsible for Environment to confer upon the Agency, and every employee of the Agency designated by it for that purpose, any power or duty conferred or imposed upon an area civil protection officer or other person by or in terms of this Act.
Remedial work to be done
4. For public information it is projected that, to ensure emergency solid waste management is undertaken efficiently during the period that this declaration is in force, the Agency shall-
(a) co-ordinate the use of materials and services made available by local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province during the state of disaster;
(b) endeavour to remove illegal solid waste dump, by means of a range of activities including mapping, quantification and clearing of illegal waste dumps and direct local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province to establish appropriately designed and designated waste transfer stations;
(c) direct local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province, under its supervision, to undertake periodic  refuse collection, consisting of street by street waste collection including sanitary lanes;
(d) direct local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province, under its supervision, to install bins in streets and public places;
(e) undertake, together with local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province, awareness campaigns through roadshows, radio and television programs and sector specific cluster meetings;
Cost recovery
5. In addition to such reimbursement as the Agency may be entitled to under section 25 of the Act from the National Civil Protection Fund, the Agency shall, to the extent that local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province do not make good the expenses of the Agency directly incurred as a result of carrying out the remedial work described in section 4, be entitled in terms of section 40 of the Act to recover, in the name of the Minister responsible for the Environment, the whole or any part of such expenses from the local authority concerned by action in any court of competent jurisdiction.
Enforcement of Agency’s directions
6. To avoid doubt, any direction of the the Agency made to another person for the purposes of this declaration is an order for the purpose of section 43 of the Act.
</blockquote>
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Mnangagwa Declares State Of Disaster For Harare Province

The President of Malawi, Lazarus Chakwera, on Monday, declared a “state of disaster” in the southern region of the country after floods caused by Tropical Cyclone Freddy killed at least 99 people.
Heavy rains and strong winds destroyed houses, washed away roads and bridges, flattened crop fields and disrupted power generation.
Chakwera also appealed for help locally and globally for the tens of thousands of people who have been left without food and shelter. He said:
<blockquote>
Government is already responding to the emergencies, rendering urgent assistance to all affected districts, and appealing for local and international support for all the families affected by this disaster.
</blockquote>
The state of disaster has been declared in the following districts: Blantyre City and District, Chikwawa District, Chiradzulu District, Mulanje District, Mwanza District, Neno District, Nsanje District, Thyolo District, Phalombe District, and Zomba City and District.
Malawi’s Commissioner for Disaster Management Affairs, Charles Kalemba, told <a href="https://www.hmetro.co.zw/tino-vomits-in-dressing-room-scare/">CNN</a> that rescue efforts have been compounded by the rains that have continued to pound the country. He said:
<blockquote>
We are still having a lot of rain coming down. We are now experiencing landslides, flash floods, and stones rolling down some hills. Because of the weather, rescue efforts are not easy.
In some of the places we have to go and rescue people, it’s not easy to get there. It’s tough but we are making sure we do the job that we need to do.
</blockquote>
Schools in the 10 southern districts will remain closed until Wednesday, Malawi’s education ministry said in a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/malawigovernment/posts/pfbid0sZ5ZkoJzzYm4M94M8ZQvGBuLqmNG4Tq8Gw3etcPFqneYCn5j9h18aJTDVoC9Q5RTl" rel="noopener" target="_blank">statement</a> Sunday
Tropical Cyclone Freddy has broken records for the longest-lasting storm of its kind after travelling thousands of kilometres since it emerged on 6 February.
The cyclone has been described as a “very rare” storm by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), which called its journey so far “incredible and dangerous.”
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