Starvation has forced about 300 pupils from Chiyabi Basic School to stop going to School in Sinazongwe district following heavy rains that have washed away bridges and fields.
Sinazongwe District Commissioner (DC)Laiven Apuleni has described the situation as unfortunate and serious.
Mr. Apuleni noted that the food for most Schools that were on the School feeding programme have run out and the floods have made impossible to transport the food to the affected areas.
He said last culvert in Chiyabi along Sinazeze-Chiyabi road was washed away and has also affected the pupil’s movement to School.
“Now we can’t transport the food and pupils can’t go to School because there is no food,” the Dc said.
Mr. Apuleni said the only alternative was to higher a boat from the business community to transport food on water using Lake Kariba.
He said food in most the Schools has run out because the ministry of Education was unable to transport it owing to impassable roads.
The DC said some food for pupils in Schools was still piled in Livingstone because of the damaged culverts along Maamba-Batooka road which is not accessible using heavy trucks.
Chiyabi Head teacher Progress Syappai said in a report written coped to the Sinazongwe DC and Sinazongwe Council vice Chairperson Fisher Zimana said that parents have also run out food.
Mr. Syappai noted in his report that out 262 boys at the School only 100 were attending classes and out of 280 girls only 120 were coming for lessons.
He said the situation was critical as people were being forced to walk for 35 km to look for food.
Mr. Zimana said a bag of a 15 kg roller mealie-meal was being sold at K70, 000.
He appealed to government to urgently look into the plight of people to save them from starvation.
The Sinzeze-Chiyabi road was also impassable following floods that have washed away culverts and bridges.
Sinazongwe district have also remained cut off following the floods that had damaged the culverts along Maamba-Batooka road.
Only light vehicles were using Mochipapa road via Choma while trucks and buses could not pass through it.
On Wednesday President Levy Mwanawasa appealed for humanitarian support from the Australian government and other members of the international community to enable the Zambian Government mitigate the effects of the current floods.
Dr Mwanawasa is today expected in Southern Province where he will check on the flood situation in three of the hardest-hit districts.
He said in Lusaka that the current floods had wreaked havoc in various parts of Zambia, leaving adverse effects, which Zambia alone could not manage to handle hence the plea for help.
[ZANIS]
How can Zambia declare the floods as a National disaster. Mozambique is affected than Zambia and has not appealed for international assistance. about 7 people have been killed, many evacuated, and thousands are homeless. This just shows how poor Zambia is becoming. How many pipo have been displaced in Zambia? How many have died? Guys we should not declare things mungulu mungulu. LPM wake up.
HE IS DECLARING IT BECAUSE HE HAS NOT SEEN WHATS ON THE GROUND.HE IS USED UKULOMBA ALL THE TIME.LPM GO AND SEE WHAT IS HAPPENING THATS WHEN YOU CAN COMMENT ON THE ISSUE.SUSPEND NCC AND TAKE THE MONEY TO BUILD ROADS IN EASTERN AND SOUTHERN PROVINCE WHICH ARE DAMAGED.
Siambai mudenda