_{2008-05-06 issue:}

MCC ships food to Zimbabwe amid tensions

by Mennonite Central Committee

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AKRON, Pa.—Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) is shipping 77 metric tons of wheat and soybeans to Zimbabwean communities where food is scarce due to drought and economic turmoil.

The shipment comes at a time of heightened uncertainty as Zimbabwe’s main political parties dispute the results of national elections on March 29. The country has faced economic difficulties for years, and political tensions are creating new hardships, according to Prosper Dube, a food relief coordinator for Zimbabwe’s Brethren in Christ Church.

In Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second largest city, Dube says many residents are stocking up on groceries out of anxiety over the political situation.

MCC’s food shipment is intended to provide daily lunches for about 2,500 high school students in Matobo district, a rural area of Matebeleland South province. There are several Brethren in Christ Church congregations in Matobo district, according to Marcellin Danhouno, an MCC Zimbabwe representative.

Dube, who is organizing the distribution, says food shortages have worsened in Matobo district in recent years. Farmers lost their crops due to drought last year, and many do not have seed to replant, he says.—MCC

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