Zimbabwe, once one of the most prosperous nations in Africa, now has the lowest life expectancy and highest inflation rate in the world. Life has become an everyday struggle for survival.
The supermarkets in Bulawayo are all empty. According to the shopkeeper, the last time they had bread was “a month ago”. Filming secretly undercover, journalist Ginny Stein captures the desperation everywhere. “There is no water. Nothing, just nothing”, laments ‘Tony’. “Children are hungry, everyone is hungry. Our government is a monster”. Even if there were things in the shops, most people couldn’t afford them. A teacher’s monthly salary now buys the equivalent of one MacDonald’s family meal. Malnutrition is taking its toll on people’s health. “Up to 75% of the people coming in have diarrhea and vomiting”, states Dr Thandazani. The fear is that these problems will only get worse. In July, the government forced businesses to half their prices. Now it’s proposing to nationalize 51% of all white-owned businesses. “The economy must be in the hands of Zimbabweans”, states Ambassador Khaya Moyo. But unsurprisingly, manufacturers and retailers feel they’re being made new enemies of the state
