Welcome
Zimbabwe Victims’ Support Fund is a relief organisation, founded in 2002, for the support of some of the most vulnerable and desperate among the countless victims of the continuing crisis in Zimbabwe.
Now a British registered charity, the Fund was set up as a partnership between, on the one hand, those directly involved in the relief of hunger and extreme hardship in the Matabeleland region and, on the other, Christian friends in the United Kingdom who shared that concern and wanted to support that effort.
Supporters and donors are now drawn from a wide range of churches, groups and individuals of many denominations across the UK and beyond.
Relief feeding
All funds are applied in Zimbabwe under the direction of a dedicated team within the country, and the relief food distributed across a wide swathe of Matabeleland North and South by a network of trusted volunteers. Relief feeding remains the main work of the Fund and this reflects the continuing deep humanitarian crisis gripping the country in the absence of a just and lasting settlement. As and when there is any break in the pattern of unrelenting hunger we shall be pleased to explore any window of opportunity to assist the victims to become self-supporting.
The relief food comprises mainly the staple food, maize meal or mealie meal, though alongside this and as funds permit, we have supported a programme that distributes the “miracle” nutritional food called E’pap to the severely malnourished, particularly among the children.
E'pap feeding supported by Zimbabwe Victims' Support fund
From victims to survivors and more …
Over the years God has blessed this venture and the victims themselves in ways more wonderful than we could have imagined. Many of the volunteers directing the relief food operation are Pastors. As such not only do they have a heart to minister to the obvious physical needs of the poorest of the poor, but they also have a passion to share the Gospel with them. They are ministering therefore to both physical and spiritual hunger, and the relief food is a visible and powerful sign of God’s love for these abused, almost forgotten people.
Moreover the food shared with the hungry in this context does not leave the victims unchanged. The lives of many are touched by this act of grace. Victims become survivors as the very act of sharing prompts a response of thanksgiving and a surprised hope. The victim now knows that he or she is not totally forgotten but cherished by God and loved by his people. And by the grace of God many of the survivors, their live transformed, go on to become what the Apostle Paul would call “more than conquerors through him who loves us.”
The testimonies we hear of changed lives are inspiring and deeply moving. Through our reporting and regular updates, on this website and by word of mouth, we do our best to share these stories so that you also may be inspired and encouraged to engage with us in this partnership of grace.
And as we engage together in this challenge please feel free to respond with your own thoughts, feedback and suggestions on the way forward.
Warmest thanks
In the name of our compassionate God who has a special care for the hungry, the destitute and the abused, our warmest thanks for whatever help you can offer in support of this ministry of grace.