Rapid floods and landslides triggered by the April Cyclone Idai destroyed large sections of corn fields in the agricultural provinces of Manikal and Masvingo in Zimbabwe, which exacerbated the food problem in this South African country.
The cyclone literally tore these regions on the eve of the harvest, destroying the already poor due to the drought caused by the El Niño effect.
According to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), at least 185 people died in a natural disaster in Zimbabwe and 270,000 are in dire need of humanitarian assistance.A month before the devastating cyclone, the UN said more than a million people in Zimbabwe “faced extreme food insecurity” because of the drought at the beginning of the year and the protracted economic crisis in the country.
Ringson Chitsiko, Zimbabwe's Secretary of Agriculture, said the country has stockpiled corn for up to seven months as a result of the drought, and grain needs to be imported right now to avoid grain shortages.Paul Zakaria, executive director of the Zimbabwe Farmers Union, said the country might need about 900,000 metric tons of imported grain this year to cover the deficit caused by drought and cyclonic disasters.