Ever-increasing transport costs coupled with escalating food and fuel prices has forced many Zimbabwean urban dwellers to avoid visiting their respective rural homes 'kumusha' especially during this festive season holidays.

By Lee Shungu

Zimbabweans Avoid Visiting Relatives Kumusha

In a snap survey, many people in the capital city, Harare indicate they will not be going to their rural homes because it has since become so expensive to travel.

Currently, transport fares are rising almost on a weekly basis and the same applies for food, fuel and other services' costs. To travel to Masvingo, one needs to fork out at least $1, 2 million a trip, a single trip to Bulawayo costs around $3, 5 million and approximately $3 million to get to Mutare.

Sindiso Mataga of Kuwadzana surburb says her salary is too little to cater for transport costs for her and her two children to travel to and from Mberengwa.

"If I go to the rural areas for the holiday, it means that I will have to starve my family so as to save the bus fare," she said.

Commuter fares have also gone up drastically with many kombis now charging between $300 000 and $500 000 for a single trip.

Transport operators say the increase in fares is justified as they are sourcing fuel on the black market whilst also importing vehicle parts mainly from neighbouring South Africa.

Wellington Zimondi indicates he cannot go to 'kumusha' empty handed.

"My rural home is near Murehwa. It is close and relatively cheaper to travel there but I do not see myself going there- for the meantime."

"If I decide to go, I will have to buy maize seed, cooking oil, sugar, flour and other basic commodities for the rural folk. These are very scarce in shops, but plenty at the black market where the prices are just prohibitive." he says.

Zimbabwe is in its eight year of economic recession entailing runaway inflation and shortages of foreign currency, food and other basic necessities.

53 year old Munashe Chimwaza recalls decades back, when everything was still 'normal' and food was still plenty with the country being the 'Bread basket of Africa'.

"It was sort of a norm that all people in urban areas- with all their families visit their rural home. Now, if the whole family fails to raise money to travel there, it is a matter of sending someone with groceries."

"On Christmas Day, we would eat anything we like as we could afford it and the same applies to New Year's Day. Usually a beast would be slaughtered at each and every homestead but now, people do not have any animals to spare for that occasion," he said.

A visit at Mbare Musika indicate buses are few, although travellers are also very few.  Many bus drivers hint they have begun delivering to rural areas, some of the stuff given to them by people in the city.

"Most people come here with maize seed in large quantities. Very few come with groceries to be taken by us to their respective rural homes," said a bus driver identified as Murefu.

"Right now we charge about $2 million for a single delivery so for us, it is time to make a bit of some money so we can at least be able to also buy groceries for our rural folk," he added.

Due to hardships in the country, the festive season (including Christmas and New Year's Day) have been reduced to just as other normal day where families struggle to put food on the table.

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