Contextual Assessment
In Masvingo living conditions continue to become difficult as citizens are competing for scarce resources in the urban areas. According to Tacoli (2012) where urban cities fail to provide needs for urban residents day to day stresses are encountered for long-distance travelling, waiting in queues and poverty indicators. This is evidenced by the fact that today longer queues at banks have been witnessed although $500 RTGS is the maximum amount being withdrawn from all the banks. In conjunction with that prizes of goods are increasing as compared to the maximum money being withdrawn.
There is unfair distribution of fuel in some service stations in Masvingo Urban as they sell fuel to the black market but people spend most of their time queuing to get fuel but at the end of the day they go to black markets to buy fuel with unfair prizes as compared from the pump. Water challenges are being experienced in Runyararo West Masvingo as people end up queuing at boreholes of which it is not recommended as observing Covid-19 rules. The issue of mealie meal has become a burning issue since there is shortage, unfavorable prizes, nepotism thereby causing residents to suffer since they have nowhere to get money and the government should take a step further to increase the supply of mealie meal with affordable prizes.
Updates
It appears that police are ignoring the issue of following lockdown rules since today 19 June 2020 there was no police at all road blocks in Masvingo Urban as people are moving around even those without letters.
Source: Masvingo Centre for Research and Community Development (MACRAD)
