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Richard Muponde, Gwanda Correspondent
MORE than 33,000 households need food aid in Matabeleland South to cushion them from the effects of the drought.

The number of vulnerable households in the province jumped from 20,345 before the drought was declared a national disaster by the government two months ago, to 33,061 as of last week.

This was revealed during a recent Civil Protection Unit meeting held in Gwanda.

Giving a report on the food situation, the provincial head of the Social Welfare Department in the province, Totambirepi Tirivavi, said the distribution of grain would be speeded up to mitigate the effects of the drought.

He said the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service (ZPCS) had pledged to help in the distribution of food.

“Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service has offered to provide labour. We should advise them in time as they can only help up to 4PM before inmates retire,” said Tirivavi.

A Grain Marketing Board official used the meeting to explain how people can access grain after the parastatal was directed by the government to reduce the price of a 50kg bag of maize from $23 to $15.

“If that allocation is used up before a month, the family will have to go to the depot and buy it at $23. But if they are buying in line with their monthly allocation they buy at the subsidised price. A register of all affected villagers should be submitted to the Depot Manager who will oversee the equal distribution of the maize,” said a representative from the GMB.