Zimbabwe has launched a $200 million appeal for humanitarian assistance after thousands of people were displaced by heavy rains.
The torrential rains which started in December killed 2,510 people and left about 2,000 others displaced.
Cyclone-induced floods last month also caused heavy damage to infrastructure, with 72 dams and bridges on major roads damaged.
President Robert Mugabe declared the floods a national disaster, but the response has been slow, prompting the government to issue a second appeal inside a month.
Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa told foreign diplomats accredited to Zimbabwe that the country needed between $188 million and $200 million to repair infrastructure damaged by the rains.
“We are going to mobilise $35 million ourselves as government towards that effort,” he said.
“We’ve tried to take care of the immediate humanitarian needs such as food, blankets and sanitation.
“Our damage is worse than experienced in other SADC countries,” Mr Chinamasa added.
“The damage is extensive, it affects social institutions, clinics, hospitals, schools, it affects the entire road network.”
United Nations resident representative Bishow Parajuli said one of the most urgent tasks for the government and humanitarian organisations was to contain the spread of infectious diseases.
“What is critical at this stage is to prevent infectious diseases such as diarrhoea, which has started resulting in typhoid and in some cases cholera,” he said.
Mugabe’s government is struggling to raise enough revenue to finance its operations with 90 per cent of the national budget going towards civil servants’ salaries.
Source: Africa Review