4. Lack of coordination within government The reality gap between the desire to provide free government inputs, and the ability to do so timeously, are indicative of problems that are besetting the current coalition government more generally. There has been much commentary elsewhere on the consequences of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) that has brought ZANU PF and the two MDCs into one corral.14 But it is deeply regrettable if a political lack of coordination between and within Ministries begins to compound the life‐threatening situation of desperate families in rural districts. There is a direct link between dysfunctional government ministries ‐ where bureaucrats and their Ministers may be at political and policy loggerheads ‐ and poverty on the ground. For example, statements by the Minister of Indigenisation on the one hand, and the Prime Minister, and the Ministers of Industry and Finance on the other, have proved inconsistent in recent years, harming investment in Zimbabwe and making apparent the lack of goodwill and coordination among various parts of government.15 It is ordinary job seekers who have paid the price. Discussions with Catholic Relief Services in Bulawayo on 28 October hinted that while the WFP have sufficient supplies to roll out for FVG already on hand, “politics” is preventing the immediate implementation, once more suggesting that selfish political point scoring may be literally keeping citizens hungry. However, the GPA remains the only framework in which Zimbabwe is able to move forward at all. Pressure therefore must be maintained more broadly for fuller implementation of outstanding issues within the GPA, in particular the road map towards a free and fair election either late in 2012 or in 2013. But in the course of this, the humanitarian needs on the ground must not be forgotten. While political violence has been reduced since the implementation of the GPA, and while hunger too is reduced this season, politics continues in complex ways to affect the livelihoods of the nation’s most desperate citizens. It is therefore imperative for the SADC facilitation to proceed with greater urgency in order to facilitate a more constructive dialogue with the donor countries over more substantive development assistance, even during this interegnum phase of the GPA. 14 SPT: The Hard Road to Reform, April 2011, and “Walking a thin line”, 2010, for example. 15While the principle of indigenization is accepted by all three political parties in the GPA, impractical deadlines and extremely punitive measures for defaulters were first touted by Minister Kasukuwere, who later backed down. However, uncertainty continues to dog the issue of ownership in Zimbabwe. 12