A1 settlers re-selling grain donated by NGOs in Chiredzi

By Tererai Karimakwenda
28 February 2006

The profits being made by some A1 settlers who are selling grain in Chiredzi are staggering, but what is even more staggering is the fact that the grain they are selling was donated by Non Governmental Organisations (NGO’s). And while these “A1s” (as they are known) continue to prosper, hungry villagers in drought stricken areas are receiving very little, if any grain at all from the NGO’s. It is not clear whether the organisations are aware of this diversion of the very scarce food, but farmers in the area say some basic facts about this year’s harvest should give them a clue as to who really needs to be assisted.

Chiredzi farmer Gerry Whitehead told us that A1 farmers in the area just 60 kilometres south of Chiredzi had a good harvest due to ample rainfall this year. He said these people can actually feed themselves, yet for some reason, NGOs are sending grain to the area which is intended to help villagers who cannot survive without it. According to Whitehead, the grain is sold at an extremely low price to the needy with the understanding it is for their consumption. However, as soon as the trucks are out of sight these A1’s begin re-selling the grain at up to 6 times the cost.

Whitehead told us that grain was recently delivered to a shop called Wasara Store and sold to some A1s for about Z$160,000 for a 20kg bag. These people did not need it as they had harvested enough to feed their families this year. After the NGO vehicles left, most of the grain was loaded onto trucks and moved to Chiredzi. In this new location, it was sold for over double the price, and in some cases for as much as Z$600,000.

Meanwhile, villagers in the Chikombedzi area, which is about 100 kilometers south of Chiredzi, are reported to be starving because the area was drought stricken. Whitehead said there are many areas like this in the Lowveld where the crops have failed completely, and he wondered why the NGO ’s are not concentrating on them. The local farmers have suggested that the ZANU-PF was directing the NGO's operations.