Morning Briefing

"The United Nations said on Friday it was seeking $268 million for aid efforts in Zimbabwe next year, with half the money to be used to buy food for more than 1.4 million people facing shortages" in 2012, Reuters reports. "The humanitarian situation in the country has continued to improve over the past couple of years. However, challenges still exist such as food insecurity" and lack of access to safe water, which has led to cholera and typhoid outbreaks, Alain Noudehou, country head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said, the news service notes (12/9).