Zimbabwe has again been classified as one of 22 countries in “protracted crisis”(..). “Faced with so many obstacles, it is little wonder that protracted crises can become a self-perpetuating vicious cycle...They represent ongoing and fundamental threats to both lives and livelihoods, from which recovery may become progressively more difficult over time,” said the preface to the report, signed jointly by FAO Director General Jacques Diouf and World Food Programme Executive Director Josette Sheeran.