GAPWUZ empowers Cyclone Idai survivors

BY DICKSON CHAERUKA

 The General Agriculture Plantation and Allied Workers Union (GAPWUZ) has joined forces with the corporate world in extending the much needed assistance to the survivors of Cyclone Idai which caused an intense humanitarian crisis after it struck the eastern part of the country in March 2019.

The union, which has a large membership base in the affected areas of Chimanimani and Chipinge Districts plying their trade in the surrounding farms and estates, had over 500 of its membership affected by the disaster.

‘’It is sad news that our membership stationed in the Districts were also part of the 270 000 people affected by the disaster. The most affected were around 400 members at Dhombera and Chizengu Estates under Allied Timbers. They lost their homes and were left with virtually nothing,’’ said the GAPWUZ Eastern Regional Coordinator, James Goneso.

The union, in partnership with the Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) recently donated hordes of basic commodities and construction materials to the survivors at the two estates.

‘’We went to Chizengu and Dhombera Estates with a 12 tonne truck load of a variety of goods for the survivors. This was in partnership with the CWGH and also with the consent of the government. We donated goods which included building materials, utensils, lightening gadgets and some basic commodities,’ said Goneso.

He said the union in partnership with its funding partners has also donated some blankets, sanitary ware to the survivors and have funded a poultry project being implemented by some woman at Chisengo Estate in Chimanimani.

The donations he said were an ongoing program by the union until a time the survivors are fully empowered to manage self sustainability.

‘’In our environment, farm workers have long been vulnerable given their meager income and difficult working conditions hence they have little or no capacity to fully rehabilitate themselves from the effects of this disaster. It was thus imperative for us to extend our humanitarian arm to assist our members although our target group with the partners has even gone beyond just our membership. The gesture shall continue until a time the survivors manage to have a strong foot on their own economic means,’’ he said.

Goneso further stated that the union had also broadened its intervention to skills capacitation on disaster preparedness to the survivors and other un-affected workers in the regions.

‘’We do not want our members to be caught unaware anymore and without educating our members on disaster preparedness, our intervention would be incomplete. It is in this light that the union implemented an intensive crusade around the estates in Manicaland teaching membership on disaster preparedness. We carried out  the campaigns at 6 estates under Border Timbers, Allied Timbers and Forestry Commission where we met over 2000 employees,’’ he said.

Tropical Cyclone Idai was recorded as one of the worst tropical cyclones to affect Africa and the Southern Hemisphere. It was ranked as the second-deadliest tropical cyclone on record which caused a humanitarian crisis in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe leaving more than 1300 people dead and many more missing. In Zimbabwe, the storm and subsequent flooding and landslides left 340 people dead and many others missing.

 Chimanimani and Chipinge were the hardest hit in the country.