Red Cross appeals for $32 million for Zimbabwe food aid, most for vulnerable rural-dwellers
By APWednesday, December 9, 2009
Red Cross appeals for $32M for Zimbabwe food aid
JOHANNESBURG — The Red Cross says they need $32 million to feed 220,000 Zimbabweans who cannot access hard currency in the collapsed economy.
The Red Cross’ Zimbabwe representative Stephen Omollo said Wednesday the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is appealing for the money to help Zimbabweans living in rural areas without access to U.S. dollars in an economy that has switched from the Zimbabwe dollar to hard currency.
Omollo says markets have food, but people can’t afford to buy it. The Red Cross is distributing food vouchers that vendors can later exchange for cash.
The U.N. also appealed this week for $378 million in aid for Zimbabwe, but says the situation has improved somewhat under a 10-month-old coalition government.
