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15 000 cattle starve to death
01/01/2003 14:53 - (SA)
Harare - About 15 000 head of cattle have starved to death in drought-ravaged southern Zimbabwe, the state-controlled Herald newspaper reported on Wednesday.
The death of the cattle, which the paper said occurred over the last three months, is likely to compound a famine here that threatens eight million of the country's 11.6 million people.
The Herald, quoting the country's top government veterinarian, said farmers in the area had refused to de-stock in the hope that summer rains would restore grazing.
"They have, however, not been lucky, as the cattle have continued to die in thousands," Stuart Hargreaves, principal veterinarian at the Ministry of Agriculture told the paper.
Cattle are traditionally kept as a sign of wealth in Zimbabwe.
The country's national breeding herd has over the last few years dwindled from one million cattle to just 400 000 animals, according to official figures. - Sapa-AFP
- SAPA
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