Loss of jobs due to COVID-19 has resulted in an alarming increase of illegal brick moulders in Hwange district. Image by Hwange Local Board

by Rutendo Mapfumo

For a decade, brick moulding has been popular in Hwange. COVID-19 induced job losses in the hospitality and mining sectors have driven more people to become brick moulders, however they are not regularized and often steal raw material.

Some of the people that live in the crowded Spanda ward in Victoria Falls. Image by Bokani Mudimba | The Citizen Bulletin

by Bokani Mudimba

Seven years ago, the government promised to build over 300 000 houses nationally. The housing backlog has since doubled. A global pandemic in the form of COVID-19 has laid bare the poor sanitary conditions people are exposed to due to unfulfilled promises.

St. Lukes hospital is the only isolation and treatment facility for COVID-19 positive patients in Lupane. Image by Dr. Schales | Africa Project

by Lizwe Sebatha

In Matabeleland North, a timber industry believed to be worth millions of dollars is not being utilised for any tangible community development. The extent of the problem has been surfaced by a global health pandemic which has laid bare a dilapidated health system.

People living with disabilities fear being exposed to the Coronavirus as they use common ablutions in Cinderella village, Hwange. Image by Doug Maloney | Unsplash

by Rutendo Mapfumo

In a community where common ablution facilities are the norm and water is scarce, a global pandemic is a scare. When the same community has people with disabilities, existing barriers to access to services are worsened.

Malnutrition and starvation in Hwange west has driven people to digging up baobab tree roots for eating. Image by Joel S. | Flickr

by Nokuthaba Dlamini

The ongoing global pandemic in the form of COVID-19 has exacerbated an already raging food crisis. Food aid from the government and the non-profit sector is enabling some sort of livelihood but, is it enough?