Civil servants have simply turned themselves into per diem chasers much to the detriment of the already hamstrung economy by attending countless seminars and workshops

Nick Mangwana View From The Diaspora
It is tough being a civil servant in Zimbabwe. The pay is certainly not commensurate with the cost of living. So civil servants have turned to hassling to augment their meagre earnings which fail to support a decent lifestyle. One of the ways that civil servants have been trying to get to push up their

salaries is to attend seminars, workshops, symposia and conference without an end.

They have simply turned themselves into per diem chasers much to the detriment of the already hamstrung economy. Per diems are in simple terms payments paid when someone attends a workshop or goes on a trip from home. They are therefore paid a daily allowance for their accommodation and other expenses including a very generous extra. These generous flat figures do not require invoices and expense receipts to be submitted or reports on how they were used.

The question on the mouths of those that have noticed this trend which clearly is not a new thing but just an escalating behaviour more so in the current economic context is whether there is any value in these conferences. For starters, if our civil servants and technocrats attend so many skilling up jaunts like they are currently doing, how come the economy is stuttering? Surely one cannot attend a seminar which is relevant to their job and come back thinking the very same way they were thinking before going for the seminar and behaving the very same way.

If anything has changed it will only be their financial affairs because they would have benefited from the per diem that they get for being away from home. This has turned into very expensive institutional time-wasting.

Maybe the courses are relevant but do these people who chase them pay enough attention, fully apply themselves and engage with the objectives of the seminar? You see there is always the argument that someone who is learned does not need to declare it themselves. They do not need to parade an appellation before their name such as Dr or Eng or whatever. Their conduct, their behaviour, their argument and articulation would normally distinguish them forcefully and those that need to notice will notice. So when someone is working with someone who is endlessly attending these progressively titled seminars then it should be very clear that the job has benefited a lot from them.

Every accounting officer has to ask themselves how much of Zimbabwe’s $4 billion is being spent on worthless per diem claims? Is there an effective control on this? Those in the Diaspora are very happy to be seeing all these good family members who come and stay in Central London or Manhattan hotels facing prime tourist attractions such as Central Park or Hyde Park. It is great. Why should we act poor? But then are we rich enough to be that wasteful? Can the civil servant be blamed or the blame lies where it was supposed to be controlled?

Possibly the blame lies in both places. Some of this mercenary behaviour borders on criminality to say the least. The role of sanctions in debilitating our economy cannot be underplayed but we have little control over that. What we can certainly control is this opportunistic behaviour in people that should serve our civic agenda. This problem is not only found in those that serve central Government. No, it is in local authorities that are failing to deliver a service to residents as well. Councillors are attending workshops meant for technical executives. How shameless!

Having said that there are trips that cannot be avoided. Well, what has to be got to be? But there are trips that are purely discretionary. Those ones it is incumbent upon those trusted with the public purse to prudently exercise that discretion with a lot of moral rectitude.

The low civil servant total emoluments have been acknowledged but can this manipulation be allowed to continue? A good comrade once remarked that when he was a civil servant, his boss would attend every seminar that was available as long as the destination was considered “prime”. He said she (the boss) would phone on her way from one seminar to another asking one of her subordinates to write a report for a seminar on her behalf. Yet the subordinate would have been nowhere near where the seminar would have taken place. It was actually one such request to this comrade that ended his job because he said no to this fraud and abuse of office. This is the type of abuse that should not be allowed to continue unabated.

It has been acknowledged again that continued professional development is key in any job therefore it is essential that one attends seminars and short courses. But when attending these has become a job in itself then effective control is overdue. There are many people in the civil service whose per diem take-homes are three fold their official salaries and allowances.

The African Development Bank (ADB) wrote a paper about this and concluded that the per diem payments have become a core instrument of the civil service incentive structure. That is all very well, but then the problem is that only those connected and those in certain positions benefit from these. These trips are now being used as leverage for different outcomes and in some cases there have been imputation of sexual favours being part of the mix.

How unfair is it for someone to benefit in that manner from money that does not belong to them. The same ADB said that a lot of African budgets are not going to infrastructural development and capitalisation but towards remunerations.

How Zimbabwean civil servants spend their time has a lot of impact on projects and efficiency of delivery of the service they are meant to deliver. It is sad that some of them are attending these seminars with the primary reason to buy that car, that house or send their child to that school. At this point the recent efficiency and modern ethos of the Zimbabwe Investment Authority (ZIA) needs to be acknowledged. The purpose of writing some of these things is not meant to just bash our good institutions.

Institutions are supposed to function the way they were meant to function in the first place. So when there is an improvement in one it should also be highlighted. So we give all kudos to the ZIA team before we go back to the per diem abusers.

When our civil servants are draining our fiscus in the name of capacity building workshops, there should be evidence that we are actually building that capacity. Rent-seeking behaviour should not be condoned just because civil service is low paying job. That may be so but it is also one of the sectors with a lot of job security. So those that choose to eat their cakes should not complain when they no longer have them.

In mentioning the ADB there was clear implication that this was not only a Zimbabwe problem. Even NGOs have the same malady. But hey, everything is contextual. Zimbabwe is faced with a very constrained fiscal space. The National Budget that was presented by Minister (Patrick) Chinamasa is an austerity budget in many a way. Therefore austerity measures should be seen implemented from top to bottom.

The state of the economy is clear indication that there is need for evaluation of the economic benefits derived from some of these workshops, seminars and conferences.

The Zanu-PF 15th National People’s Conference began in earnest yesterday, with the revolutionary party holding its Politburo meeting in the capital while the Central Committee will meet tomorrow.

The National People’s Conference is the annual ritual of the ruling party where — outside the elective congress which is held every five years — the party decides on the course the country should take in political, social and economic facets.

Zanu-PF is the ruling party and its programmes and actions inform and indeed instruct, Government. This is why this indaba and the party’s congress are of paramount importance to the nation.

Precisely, the indaba taking place in Victoria Falls this week is arguably the most important meeting of the year.

The conference is being held under the theme, “Consolidating People’s Power through Zim-Asset”, which is following on last year’s theme, “Accelerated implementation of Zim-Asset”.

We commend the ruling party for sticking to the spirit and letter of Zim-Asset which is the Government’s economic blueprint until 2018. This conference will reflect on the past year and take stock of its achievements and challenges and set the tone for next year. On the question of whether the country has seen accelerated implementation of Zim-Asset we note that the country, led by Zanu-PF, has fared well.

Chinese President Xi Jingping was in the country just recently and he oversaw the inking of mega deals between his country and Zimbabwe. The deals are worth $4 billion which is a huge sum that will oil the progress of Zim-Asset.

There are more ventures that will come from China, the world’s second largest economy and the coming of the Chinese leader this year has done more than anything else, towards opening opportunities for the implementation of Zim Asset.

It is not to be forgotten too that this year also saw the coming of Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, to our shores, which underscores the fact that Zimbabwe is safe for investment.

It is not a secret that this environment is safe, thanks to the peace and stability that this country enjoys under the stewardship of Zanu-PF.

Another significant development has been efforts by the authorities to settle the country’s debts which not only removes an albatross around the country’s neck, but also makes Zimbabwe a good destination for new money because of renewed credit-worthiness behaviour. The country has fared well in the continuation of other projects such as transport infrastructure while the social services sector, including health and education, has remained stable.

In light of the drought and hunger that has set in, the Zanu-PF Government has assured the nation that no one will die of hunger and true to that word, has imported maize from neighbouring countries.

Mechanisms have also been put in place to ensure the success of this agricultural season as inputs are available and critically, since the season is coming under a pall of drought, efforts have been directed towards cloud seeding to avert poor rains catastrophe. But we also urge the ruling party to redouble its efforts in serving the people as we are confident that it is within its power to do more, to be more proactive and more creative.

We know it is not lost on the party that this year thousands of people lost their jobs in an unprecedented wave of expulsions triggered by a legal loophole which was repaired, albeit after many casualties and dealing a huge blow to the ruling party’s promise to provide two million jobs.

To undo this damage, the ruling party has to deliberate on ways to stimulate productivity in the country’s economy to provide the necessary fillip to the sacked workers and grow the economy as well.

The challenges that the party and country face are still there — very much so.

For reference’s sake, last year’s Congress noted that, the country faced challenges relating to “illegal sanctions, constrained fiscal space, depressed economic performance, disproportionately high wage bill, the continuing liquidity challenges, poor state of public infrastructure, constrained investment and revenue inflows, the haemorrhaging of State Enterprises, the scourge of rampant corruption and gross violations of good corporate governance in both private and public sector enterprises”.

These problems have not gone away and how they will be tackled remains a beckoning challenge to the party. This is why all hopes and prayers will be with the party because, above all, the resolution of these challenges, barring the sanctions issue perhaps which we have little control over, will bring food to people’s tables.

In fact, people will feel adequately empowered, when, outside the opportunities accorded to them by Government, issues that they lose sleep over are addressed by the party they gave the majority of their votes.

Jethro Makumbe Correspondent
The ongoing 15th ZANU-PF National Peoples’ conference is not going to be turned into a gladiatorial arena for factional and egoistic skirmishes, but it will rather mark the genesis of a new dispensation of unity of purpose and discipline within the party.

It is a common fact that enemies of the party have been working round the clock to wreak havoc and unnecessary acrimony ahead of, and at the conference.

Like always, ZANU PF has proven to be a permanent edifice of peace, resilience and leadership excellence. President Mugabe’s political invincibility and physical immortality are clear testaments of a man with a calling and a man on a grand mission.

This enlightens one that it’s not only priests and pastors who receive extraterrestrial callings to their positions, political leaders also do.

Purveyors of acrimony and disorder, disobedience and mutinous behaviour within organisations, and within the party, have always been there since time immemorial, yet Zanu-PF continues to bloom and fare in the overwhelming presence of its enemies. There is never a time in history where evil has ever triumphed over good. Villains and betrayers have always been known as losers, though some are unrepentant losers.

The conference will create a dialogue platform on which the party will concertedly and categorically discuss issues of national importance and strategise sustainable channels for national development. The setting of the congress venue in the resort area of Victoria Falls in itself serves a symbolic significance of setting a new and refreshed image of the party after a stressful weeding exercise which saw the down-plunging of most witch-weeds in the party.

The December conference is not an elective congress as many doom wishers anticipate. Officials will be driven by ungovernable energy and desire to railroad Zimbabwe back on its wheels and nothing next to the so-called leadership renewal.

President Mugabe is still the peoples’ darling and un-divorceable choice. The conference will be used to review progress on the programmes of the party.

Enough high-sounding-for-nothing hullabaloos about leadership change and succession are just but a witch’s wishes and shouts in the woods.

Week in week out people have been falsely tortured by screaming headlines in news dailies saying Mnangagwa this, Mnangagwa that . . . G40 this and that ad infinitum. These are mere devil’s ploys to stir unnecessary tension within the party ahead of the conference. ZANU-PF is a peoples’ project and not a cauldron of self-seeking interests.

One would wonder what the unholy trinity of Joice Mujuru, Didymus Mutasa and Rugare Gumbo would do for the people of Zimbabwe that they failed to do when they were still in ZANU PF.

It’s rather insipid for this cabal to spew volumes of poppycock allegations against ZANU-PF which in the yesteryear they were part of.

Maybe one would view this as a desperate rampage of a divorced wife, gallivanting around for charms and goblins to destroy the husband. They’re now mere relevance seekers.

It is common knowledge in politics that as soon one feels he is now bigger than the party he belongs to and forms his own, he will no sooner than later fling himself into political oblivion where he will only be remembered in the books of history.

Not as a hero but rather an unremorseful villain. This is not unique to ZANU-PF alone, even in the opposition parties. Simba Makoni, Tendai Biti and Arthur Mutambara are some of the long forgotten cadres, and gradually Joice Mujuru and her cabal are exponentially becoming synonymous with the past.

Judas Iscariotism is everywhere, but the result is a predetermined one.

Neither a sword nor a kiss will ever betray the peoples’ struggle under Cde Mugabe and ZANU-PF, and surely not People First.

It’s not about succession but success and excellence. It’s not about Robert Mugabe or ZANU-PF, it’s about the people of Zimbabwe. The 15th National Peoples’ Conference must address national success and not succession.

The question must not be: What is Robert Mugabe and ZANU-PF doing for us, but rather what are ‘We the People’ doing for our country?

Norman Pollack Correspondent
ISIS is a real threat; I do not suggest otherwise. Its baseness is irreducible, no mitigating factors. Yet, America has been instrumental in its formation, whether as contextual incubator through an international posture of global imperialism or COMPLICIT through the selfsame geopolitical framework in which the US, from its long-standing commitment to “anticommunism” as the generic alarm on behalf of shaping domestic mechanisms of social control and policies of counterrevolution abroad, has aligned itself in a self-constructed power struggle against Russia and China, with similarly reactionary forces, notably, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, in order to check the historical process.

Terrorism is an enabling factor in the maintenance and perpetuation of American hegemony. To seek its eradication on the world scene is counter-intuitive to the US’s mid-life (I’m being charitable) crisis in which it finds itself a declining superpower, less because of an absence of will than because, no longer within its power to control or arrest, the world structure is itself changing and becoming decentralised (no longer susceptible to US unilateral declarations of ORDER) as rival power centers come into being

The US is an anachronism, as the vanguard of retardation of political-economic modernisation in the Third World, believing still that military force and negotiated alliances sugared with a lavish dispersal of arms, funds, and bases to all takers will ensure continued ascendancy in the years to come.

Like Britain and France at the close of World War II, America is witnessing the decline of Empire, and all the president’s horses and all the president’s men cannot put Humpty Dumpty together again. The analogy is valid, the Open Door (i.e., the Imperialism of Free Trade, as Gallagher and Robinson phrased it) the American equivalent of European colonialism, without the expenses of administration, and both manifestations of political-economic dominance no longer structurally tenable.

The US is running scared, more military input wherever possible, as in continued intervention and regime change efforts, more intensified doses of thought control, as in the shrinking boundaries of the political process and general intellectual discourse, more reliance on external explanations to hide internal shortcomings — voila, terrorism, not to be met (although now it may be too late, possibly from the invasion of Iraq, or still earlier, US support for the Taliban in Afghanistan, against the Soviets) with a fundamental reversal of course, away from intervention and regime change, or, the very least, combined de-demonisation of the Muslim/Arab world and specific ground policies of total engagement against ISIS no matter who else’s ox is gored, i.e., Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, and assorted “moderate forces” of opposition to Assad.

Indeed, Assad is the present poster boy designated for annihilation, a convenient scapegoat for sweeping under the rug all manner of hidden agendas, such as the role of OIL in the world economy, which are part and parcel of the larger geopolitical/geostrategic conflict to (a) preserve American power, and (b) militarise still further America’s confrontation with China and Russia.

Taking the measure of Obama (and, as in Hollywood extravaganzas, a cast of hundreds if not thousands, drawn from the military, think tanks, financial and business groups, opinion makers in the MSM, and the cacophonous voices of proto-fascism of the so-called political class, for he is not alone in making decisions, and is rather a sounding board for ruling groups which make up the American power structure) as in his Oval Office apologia for maintaining the current counter-terrorism schema, one finds suspicious activities in dealing with, or not dealing with, ISIS, as e.g., the failure of the US to bomb oil tankers until now (and under Russian pressure), laden with oil from ISIS-controlled refineries and critical to financing its advances, the demand for closing the Turkish border to Syria until now (ditto Russian pressure) which was an open sesame for jihadists, and the entire role of the Saudis, as part of the wider Sunni offensive both to overthrow Assad’s secular government and neutralise Iran’s influence in the Middle East.

This scratches the surface of US involvement in the region (as numerous writers have observed, ISIS appears to have shown no interest in Israel, perhaps part of the quid pro quo until now — Russia’s entrance into the regional conflict aimed specifically at terrorism being seminal to the changing picture — and its heretofore tepid response to ISIS. But Obama cannot have it both ways, conjuring a threat and, by all reports, inducing fear if not paralysis among Americans, at the same time that he skirts around the margins of conflict (air power alone hardly the magic bullet).

I have never been one for conspiracy theory, and, hopefully denying its presence here, I would suggest that the contrived atmosphere of FEAR that has taken hold in America, contrived, in that the stock-in-trade of political life from Washington to the Iowa hamlets, speaks to ulterior motives wholly beyond the measures needed to curb terrorism as a definable force.

Of course, from day one the decision was made to by-pass the UN in favour of a US-led organised alliance system which mirrored the realpolitik of American aims on the world scene, utilising terrorist groups — and its own Special Ops-CIA mode of terrorism to topple what were designated as the adversary from Vietnam to Africa to Latin America — for regime change and/or keeping in power local dictators, all outside the UN framework which the US, like Israel, viewed as poisonous and flaunted at every turn.

Yes, my broad-stroke analysis is circumstantial; it would be horrendous to think the US was complicit in the rise and activities of ISIS. We have seen the genesis of the Contras, death squads, armed insurrections, the daily business of the American government in times past; we have seen from McCarthyism through the Patriot Act a hostile environment to progressive ideas and dissent; we have seen a government more invisible in its workings than ever, itself stirring up fears of unrestrained power and having the desired ambiguous effect of seeking its protection (displayed through ardent patriotism) and feeling intimidated by and in its presence.

In light of the foregoing, is it completely wrong to be suspicious that the US has been using ISIS to its own advantage, from a military and capitalistic position, until this moment when ISIS appears like the genii escaping from the bottle, its usefulness at an end, thus forcing America — in part because of Russian intervention — to take a stand opposing it? The world at large, outside of the US-EU-NATO orbit, is becoming increasingly less gullible about the nature of counter-terrorism as an end in itself, instead looking warily at the American footprint in the stabilisation of a global architecture keeping alive US power and influence.

In a profound sense, America created ISIS by its pattern of military-financial-commercial globalisation, playing up to, if not creating, dictatorial regimes to smoothe the way to market penetration and related activities. As for the US’s previous record on attacking ISIS, Obama’s critics have a point that America has been slow and desultory, but they don’t ask WHY.

Perhaps Obama and the US found (until the situation, as now, got out of hand) ISIS was useful to have around, justifying the full dimensions of counterterrorism policy, e.g., massive surveillance within the country itself, and of course legitimating ever-expanding military budgets at the expense of both infrastructure and the social safety net.

America is declining not because of terrorism but its moral collapse in furthering the agenda of an advanced stage of capitalism. – Counterpunch.

Bishow Parajuli Correspondent

Not only can volunteers serve to address a specific development objective, such as the volunteering action against HIV and AIDS in Zimbabwe, but just as importantly, volunteers can enhance human development by transforming individual lives, including their own.

The International Volunteers Day was commemorated in Harare on December 4.

On this day, we did not only celebrate volunteerism in all its facets — but also paid special tribute to thousands of volunteers working to implement the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

As we work together for the next 15 years for a transformative change under the SDGs, I have a question for all Zimbabweans, “Are you part of the change?, Will you take the challenge of transforming your lives and that of your community? In short are you ready?”.

As I write this article, a human rights lawyer is advising a female headed household to protect her kids and property from insensitive relatives, a social worker is advising a refugee, a doctor is attending to an HIV patient, a midwife is assisting a mother to deliver her baby, an environmentalist is mobilising a community for tree planting, terracing, water and soil management, an engineer is assisting farmers with a feeder road to the nearest market.

The list goes on.

All of these people have one thing in common. They are all volunteers. They have a desire to contribute to the common good; out of free will, in the spirit of solidarity and without expectation of material reward. This is the power of volunteerism.

In proclaiming the International Year of Volunteers, the International Community — through the United Nations General Assembly — recognized the contribution that volunteers make to the progress, cohesion and resilience of their communities and nations.

Volunteering and community engagement empower people to change the world from the grassroots up, especially when enabled by strong partnerships at every level.

As such, the development challenges we are facing in Zimbabwe requires not only economic growth but the contribution and concerted action of individuals and groups in society to improve people’s choices, quality of life and well-being.

As you may know, the Millennium Development Goals will come to an end in just 27 Days; we have already put in place a comprehensive and all-encompassing global agenda, articulated by 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

Our unfinished business in particular is poverty reduction, reducing maternal mortality, empowering the youth and women, ending child marriage and gender based violence, upholding rule of law and justice, and sustaining the environment, will require the ingenuity, solidarity and creativity of all 13 million Zimbabweans through voluntary action.

Not only can volunteers serve to address a specific development objective, such as the volunteering action against HIV and AIDS in Zimbabwe, but just as importantly, volunteers can enhance human development by transforming individual lives, including their own.

Volunteerism matters because it brings the marginalised back to the mainstream; it moves people from exclusion to inclusion; it provides an opportunity for ownership and responsibility for their own sustainable future.

Secondly, volunteerism is about universal values. It is about the desire to contribute in our common humanity. The act of extending a helping hand where it is needed most.

In Southern Africa it is called Ubuntu. Here in Zimbabwe, it is called Hunu. These are all expressions of people’s voluntary engagement in their community. It may be a different word, but it’s the same concept no matter the language. It’s a drive to voluntarily engage in your own community to change things for the better.

The SDGs challenges every one of us, all Zimbabweans; the goals were defined by all including over 20 000 Zimbabweans.

As such we have to ask ourselves what I should do to change my own life and make a difference in the lives of my family members, my community and my country. No one can do it for you. It is up to you. Of course, the UN and development partners will be there to provide support. But mark my word — we can only support.

We cannot underestimate the range and impact of volunteer action in our collective action to achieve the SDGs.

Volunteerism is not the preserve of the rich, it is rather widespread among the income poor. According to some studies, female and male volunteers contribute approximately the same number of hours.

Millions of people around the world devote their time and skills. In a study of 36 countries, it is estimated that there are 140 million people who volunteer at a given time in those countries. Imagine if there were a country called Volunteer Land, home to these volunteers . . . it would be the 9th largest country of the world, placing right after Russia!

Thirdly, we need to embrace the modern face of volunteerism. The United Nations Volunteers programme was established in 1970, it is administered by UNDP.

UN Volunteer Programme has currently over 7 500 Volunteers deployed to more than 132 countries. These are National and International Volunteers from over 150 countries.

Going forward, I would like to highlight three major trends in the wake of globalisation and the digital age.

The first is the way migration and travel are transforming the way people volunteer. The second is the private sector’s increasing involvement in volunteerism.

And last, how information and communications technologies (ICT) are opening up new means of civic engagement.

Online volunteering is on the rise (we have 11 000 online UN volunteers currently providing online support free of charge), despite the significant gap between developing and developed countries in terms of Internet access.

The UNV programme manages the online volunteer service so that thousands of people can volunteer from their homes.

There’s no longer an insurmountable distance between those who want to offer their skills and communities that need their help.

I am pleased to acknowledge that the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe recognises and supports volunteer efforts.

However, collectively, we still have much to do: to complete and compile studies of national volunteerism, advance proposals for pro-volunteer legislation in Zimbabwe and strengthen and extend a global volunteer network that will increase the effectiveness of volunteer service delivery.

In Zimbabwe, the UN Volunteer Programme has 17 current volunteers from different countries of origin. These volunteers have provided technical expertise, assistance and support to several national development programmes.

The contribution of UNV partners; International and National Volunteers involving organisation in Zimbabwe, such as the UK Volunteer Service Organization, the Red Cross Movement, Japan International Cooperation Agency, Simuka Africa, amongst others is also important.

They have worked for sustainable development, facilitating humanitarian assistance to those households and communities whose harvest failed last year due to erratic rainfall and your role in protecting the environment. They are part of a movement that shows how volunteering can change the world.

Encouraging more people to volunteer is a 365-days-a-year task.

If you consider the committed work of volunteers of all ages around the globe, doing every imaginable kind of work, the Volunteers days should be a day that never ends.

Indeed, it cannot end, as the need for volunteers is greater than ever. Those that continue making meaningful contributions in your society should be applauded. I also challenge the rest of the Zimbabwean youth who have not yet done any volunteering to join the movement to make a difference in their community and their nation.

 Bishow Parajuli is the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative.

Pottery is a skill to be celebrated

Dr Sekai Nzenza on Wednesday

We are known for what new professions we have learnt in formal schooling. And yet, there are those skills we used to learn just by seeing or observing. Or simply by virtue of genetic talent.

My grandmother Mbuya VaMandirowesa used to say that if you do not have a skill, you will never get married.

This did not apply to just us girls, but to boys as well.

Every single person must be known for that which they are good at, Mbuya would say. Then she sat there, on the footsteps of the granary, taking in her snuff and pointing to the people in the village around us and way beyond, who were known for their particular skills.

There was VaZizhanga, the village midwife. She was a short woman with very big breasts.

When someone was in labour, you saw VaZizhanga cupping her full breasts in her hands to stop them from swinging as she ran to deliver a baby across the river or over the mountain.

When my sister Paida was born, it was VaZizhanga who did the delivery.

I was too young to know what happened, but the story is that VaZizhanga had already gone to the nhimbe, or village communal field work when the message came that my mother was in labour.

VaZizhanga immediately placed a small stone on her back, wrapped a cloth around it and carried it like a baby. Somehow that stone had magic powers to stop a baby from popping up its head too soon before the midwife arrived.

Paida was delivered well and the umbilical cord was cut with a razor.

Then it was buried in the fields near the homestead so Paida will always remember where it is. That way, she would not forget where she came from.

Then there was Sekuru VaMhofu, my grandfather Sekuru Dickson’s brother. He was the blacksmith, traditional healer and wise elder. I recall that Sekuru VaMhofu was this tall, quiet-spoken man with white hair who never left his dare, or the man’s place. The dare was on the northern side of the anthill not too far from the village homestead.

Sekuru VaMhofu lived under a tree at the dare and slept there. Many boys received lessons on how to be a man at the dare. Women in the village homestead took sadza and various relish to the dare where the men tasted the dishes and commented on the best cook among all the women. Every young man brought his proposed bride to Sekuru VaMhofu so he could inspect her with his eyes, ask about her totem and her people. Then he would smile gently at her, before giving his confidential comment on whether she would make a good wife or not.

One time, my brother Charles brought a very skinny, light-skinned, pretty woman from Salisbury, before it became Harare.

Charles was so proud of his girl and was ready to pay lobola for her.

He took her to meet Sekuru Mhofu.

Soon after she clapped hands to Sekuru, she was told to leave the dare and join the other women.

On that day, Sekuru was carving a wooden stool with a little axe and a sharp knife.

As the proposed urban bride walked away, Sekuru paused, looked at her again, shook his head and spat very far away from Charles.

Then he said: “Chorosi muzukuru, Harare inonzi ukapfira mate, anomhara pamukadzi. Karukonikoni aka unokadii? Kanorima? Washaya mukadzi? ” meaning something like this: “My dear grandson, they say there are so many women in Harare to the extent that when you spit, you will hit a woman, why would you take such a skinny woman as a wife? Can she work in the fields?” But at that time, my brother Charles wanted a Western- type woman, urban-based, light-skinned, skinny and glamorous.

He married his bride. She never came back to work in the fields. Sadly, for other reasons, the marriage did not last. Sekuru Mhofu blamed it all on the woman, saying she was too urban and lacked any skills or talents to make a good wife.

Down in the Save Valley, was the Goredema family, the fishermen and hunters.

Soon as the rain came, they trapped the cat fish in big nets, smoked them and placed them in a sack.

The father and son walked around the villages, exchanging smoked fish with sugar, salt or flour.

Because their soil was very fertile, they grew large quantities of okra. Long before our small fields of okra were ready, the Goredema family brought us fresh okra and also sun dried tomatoes. Occasionally, they killed a hippo and walked the steep hills to sell the fresh meat. People said the Goredema men had their bodies “treated” or kurapirwa against crocodiles. They could jump into a pool infested with crocodiles in the Save River.

They fearlessly caught fish and none of the crocodiles dared eat them.

Mbuya often pointed to the Goredema young men and told us to consider marrying one of the sons. But my mother would take us aside and say: “Aiwa, those boys have not seen the door of a classroom.” Mbuya then argued that seeing the door of a classroom or spending days sitting on a desk listening to a teacher did not make a good wife. That argument between Mbuya and my mother went on for years. My mother said we should combine village skills with Western education. That way, we would know how to survive in the city, because the village was not going to be there forever.

Today, if you come to our village, you only need to ask what food the Goredema family have to sell and people will tell you that they have dried okra, fresh vegetables, fish or even smoked rabbits.

Their skill has been passed on from generation to generation.

Mbuya also said one of us girls must spend hours with my mother and learn how to make clay pots.

My mother’s skill was to find the right clay by the river, pound it to the right consistency, and then sit there for hours carefully moulding big and small pots.

On some pots she made chevron patterns. Then she left them to dry, periodically smoothening them with a special stick or stone.

Once they were dry, she dug the ground and made a special furnace. We helped her strip the dry barks of a tree, makwati and leaves. She burnt the pots until they were red hot and nicely brown. My mother sold her pots and raised money for our school fees.

Up to this day, people say, thank your mother for her skill to mould. Vaive shasha pakuumba hari. But we did not learn how to mould pots.

At that time, we believed that pottery making was done by poor people.

We did not know that it was an art to be celebrated. That ability or talent to work with clay is long lost in my family.

Mbuya also used to point at people who did nothing, especially, the man across the river called Isaya.

He was the lazy one who sat by his hut and watched people rush to the fields, plough or weed all day.

A lazy person was often referred to as doing nothing like Isaya, “kuti gada saIsaya”.

People said laziness was Isaya’s talent, shavi or bad spirit. Isaya died with nothing to his name.

Not everyone had a celebrated talent or skill. In our family, there was Tete Sara, who was known to love men beyond what was considered normal. Varoora, or those women who had a joking relationship with her said Tete Sara was the first African woman from the village to share the same bed with lonely European traders during the colonial days. Her skill was to keep men happy, be they Europeans, Malawians, Mozambicans and Zambians.

When Tete Sara got older, she came back home bringing a Malawian husband with her.

Before he died, he handed over to her the skills of a traditional healer.

Then Tete Sara became known as the healer with a skill to provide good medicine to men suffering from various bedroom ailments.

Tete Sara restored fertility confidence in men, even if they were beyond 90 years of age. As her great nieces, the same varoora teased us, asking why we did not inherit such a skill, because in this day and age, a traditional approach to such male ailments is much needed. If only we had gained such artistic knowledge and skill from Tete Sara.

“What does your partner do?” We often ask new friends.

The answer is: he or she is a lawyer, a teacher, a nurse, builder, an electrician or a plumber. We are known for what new professions we have learnt in formal schooling. And yet, there are those skills we used to learn just by seeing or observing. Or simply by virtue of genetic talent.

Most of the old artisans from our village have since died.

But their sons and daughters, who missed out on going to school, are still there. You find such celebrated skills also in other villages around Zimbabwe and beyond the borders. These skills which need no formal schooling are to be celebrated.

Dr Sekai Nzenza is a writer and cultural critic.

The picture shows children accompanied by their parents to look for Form One places at Harare High School in Mbare recently. (Pic by Tawanda Mudimu)

Christopher Farai Charamba Review Correspondent
Famed American educationist and politician Horace Mann once said that “Education … beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equaliser of the conditions of men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery.”

In line with Mann’s statement, education is seen as a priority by many governments and people around the world.

The Zimbabwean Constitution, for example, in Chapter 2 Article 27 states that “the State must take all practical measures to promote free and compulsory education for all children; and higher and tertiary education.

On December 10, 1948 the United Nations General Assembly passed resolution 217 A, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Article 26 of the UN Declaration reads; “Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory.”

The article in subsection three goes on to state that “Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.”

But what happens when parents are denied the opportunity to choose which school their child should attend?

What is the best means for schools to screen prospective students to ensure that each child is given a fair opportunity at accessing the sort of education they want?

Primary and Secondary Education Minister Lazarus Dokora made a decision to scrap Form One entrance tests and enrol pupils on one day based on their Zimsec Grade Seven results. The Ministry set Friday December 4, 2015 as the date for all prospective students to enrol for Form One.

As of yesterday there were still children without a place for Form One. Stranded parents were desperately looking for schools to enrol their children.

Top schools like Goromonzi had attracted some 600 hopeful students on the Friday but were unable to take them all as the school can accommodate only 100 students.

Despite their arguably noble motives, the Ministry’s plan backfired and has left parents and students in a far worse position than before when entrance tests were a means of screening potential students.

Minister Dokora outlawed the practice of entrance tests saying that it was discriminatory.

“Parents were being subjected to unnecessary financial burden through the payment of the non-refundable entrance test fees or travelling from school to school,” he said.

But leaving the enrolment of form one pupils to a single working day has left parents in a no better position.

The criticism comes from the fact that most parents will rush to schools they consider top in hopes of securing a place at the best school for their child as in the case of Goromonzi.

Should they fail to get a place there on that single day they then have to try another school in whatever time is left or settle for an option they might not be happy with. This has a risk of seeing top students ending up at schools without adequate facilities to cater for their academic needs.

Some parents complained that the ministry directive came after they had already paid for entrance tests and secured places for their children.

“I paid $10 entrance examinations fees at each of the four schools where my child wrote an entrance test in order to secure a boarding place and now that the ministry has set a date what must we do as we had already secured places?” asked Mrs Bhebhe while speaking to Chronicle journalists.

The move to scrap entrance fees and tests is certainly one that has merit as education is a basic human right and a child should not be impeded from receiving it based on their financial status. The fact that free education is enshrined in the Constitution of Zimbabwe means that Government should do everything within its power to uphold this mandate.

By removing entrance tests it levels the playing field for students, particularly those who despite their intellectual capacity and ability, might not be able to make it to the school they desire to write the test based on economic reasons.

This will also prioritise the local Zimsec examinations as those results will be the basis and main criteria used to select students.

Parents and teachers can then know that a child is focusing only on the national curriculum and examinations rather than having to worry about extra lessons for high school entrance tests.

However, the manner in which the ministry has taken its corrective measures deserves some critic.

One day is certainly not enough time to enrol all Form One pupils nationwide as evidenced by the current situation that is taking place and has left parents and students stranded.

The fact that the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education selected a single working day for enrolment means that many parents had no choice but to abandon their work stations due to a forced need to enrol their child for form one.

In an attempt to save parents from incurring extra costs in trying to find a place for Form One for their child, the ministry can find that the opportunity cost of single day enrolment is equal to that which parents had traditionally been paying.

Speaking to The Herald, Primary and Secondary Education Deputy Minister said that pupils who failed to secure places on Friday will naturally be enrolled at schools that were not overwhelmed by prospective students.

“We expected that enrolment would not happen in one day. Obviously the best schools attracted many pupils. And so naturally there is going to be a process of rationalisation where schools that are not full are going to absorb those who would have failed to get places from the schools of their choice,” he said

The downside of this is that some students might be absorbed into schools which they did not want to go to or that are far from where they reside adding additional costs and concerns to parents.

If the ministry had foreseen the issue surrounding the single day enrolment and left the process to continue till the end of this week then they should have found better means to the situation that is progressing now.

One solution would be for Grade Seven pupils to select and apply to a set number of schools that they would like to go to. These applications are then vetted by teachers at their school and at the prospective high schools and the students and parents are informed in advance whether their child has been accepted.

This option is easier on parents and leaves the decision of placing students in the hands of educators.

It also removes any potential corruption of parents bribing headmasters as all correspondence takes place among schools. Parents only choose a list of potential schools they would like their child to go to.

The current situation that sees parents scrambling to schools looking for a place for their child is inefficient and cannot be allowed to continue. The ministry needs to reassess its policy and come up with a better strategy that is accommodative of parents, schools and especially the children.

 Feedback: chrischaramba@gmail.com

Nils Zimmermann Correspondent
Recently, China’s President Xi Jinping announced $60 billion in new investments into Africa over a three-year period within the framework of FOCAC, the Forum on China-Africa Co-operation, a framework first launched in 2000.

The key word here is “investment”.

The bulk of the money will be supplied in various types of concessional loans to support infrastructure development. A minority of the money is in the form of aid, including a billion renminbi ($156 million) in emergency food aid.

There are at least two things about China’s approach to Africa that Germany and Europe could learn from. The first is that it is focused on doing business – on making investments in commercially viable economic projects, rather than merely giving “development aid” in the form of grants. That makes China’s engagement in Africa, and the jobs and industries it creates, financially self-sustaining and capable of generating more growth.

The second is that China doesn’t have any qualms about using the powers of the Chinese state to direct large-scale investment flows. Beijing combines foreign policy, economic development assistance and Chinese business interests in coherent packages in its partnership approach to Africa.

Pragmatism over ideology

China’s state-capitalist approach may contravene the doctrines of folks who hew to a narrow market-fundamentalist ideology that insists the state must simply set up economic laws and then allow private market participants to invest – or not – without “interference” by govern- ments.

Yet China has managed to pull itself up by its bootstraps on a heroic scale during the past 35 years – not so long ago, its level of development wasn’t much different from Africa’s. That doesn’t mean China can be a direct one-for-one model for Africa’s future; Africa is incomparably more ethnically fragmented than China has ever been, and it has different traditions. Yet China can still bring aspects of its recent experience to bear productively in its partnerships in Africa.

Pragmatists recognise that where infrastructure is poor and the rule of law is uncertain, as in many regions of Africa, it’s enormously helpful to develop major projects under the long-term patronage of a powerful state. When a heavyweight player like China commits to financing and co-development of major projects, its influence with local partners can compensate for weak local state systems in the short run, and help strengthen them in the long run.

Special economic zones

One of the bright spots in a fraught global geopolitical landscape is China’s solid relationship with Europe and Africa – and with Germany in particular. The broad relationship between German and Chinese people is marked by mutual respect, with both recognising the other as industrious, determined and capable.

The trade relationship between China and Germany is also strong – as is that between China and Africa. But the trade relationships between Germany and Africa are not as strong as they should be. There is much work that could be done, but it will require Germany increasing its efforts to promote investment in Africa, rather than focusing on development aid. One way this could be done is to promote “special economic zones” co-managed by German agencies and local partners.

Special economic zones were used to great effect within China itself starting in the early 1980s, as a key tool in the great renewal of the country’s economic structure under the leadership of Deng Hsiao Ping. It’s an approach China has begun to implement in Africa too – setting a goal of 50 special economic zones, mostly managed by private Chinese com- panies.

Special economic zones are managed under multi-decadal contracts by Chinese companies under contract to agencies of the Chinese government in partnership with local African governments. This gives Chinese companies looking to do business in Africa a familiar and stable governance framework and business culture, making investments much easier. Germany could and should adopt a similar approach – and perhaps even scale it up.

Could China and Germany co-operate on African

development?

It could be an interesting experiment for Germany, with its famous love of order and rules and its extensive technical capacities, to take a look at approaching the establishment of a few “special economic zones” in joint ventures with China in Africa.

China is set to be a long-term presence in Africa, and Africa, in turn, is set to become a big long-term presence in Europe – demographically as well as economically, given that by 2050 its population will be five times that of today’s European Union, compared to just twice today. China and Germany already get along well. There are good reasons why German economic and foreign policy-makers might want to sit down with their Chinese counterparts as well as African partners and compare notes about how best to help Africa develop successfully over coming years and decades.

There’s no shortage of conferences or workshops in Berlin about the future of Africa, or encouraging noises about the importance of investing in the continent. With growing flows of north-bound African refugees, German politicians have also taken up the mantra that “something must be done” to tackle the causes of refugee migration at their source, by improving conditions in the countries of origin.

But so far, there remains too much talk of “development aid” as distinct from “infrastructure investment”, and the volume of German investments or state commitments remains rather small beer when compared to China’s big-handed approach. – DW.

Lack of toilets is a common problem in many slums across the world

Katrina Charles Correspondent
Over the last 15 years, 68 million people gained access to improved sanitation in urban areas in sub-Saharan Africa.

This is a big achievement. But in the same period the urban population grew by an estimated 167 million.

That leaves an additional 99 million urban dwellers without access to improved sanitation.

Since the beginning of this century there has been an increase in the number of people without access to improved sanitation in 42 out of 51 African countries.

With the rapid rate of urbanisation on the continent, this number is going to increase.

This means there are 99 million – and rising – urban dwellers who are at increased risk of diarrhoea and other diseases spread by contact with faeces.

The lack of sanitation in these areas is causing roughly 50 000 deaths per year (assuming 40 percent urbanisation).

The health risks associated with poor sanitation include stunting in children as well as malnutrition.

This, in turn, has an impact on cognitive development.

On top of this, illness from poor sanitation prevents children from going to school and adults from going to work.

The economic impact of the lack of sanitation has been estimated at up to $80 billion annually for Africa.

A new way needed

Unfortunately, what should have been 15 years of investment in sanitation under the Millennium Development Goals or MDGs hasn’t materialised in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Sanitation did not initially get the attention it deserved. As result there was lower investment and slower progress globally.

The new goals have tried to address this. The target in the Sustainable Development Goals is to achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation for all by 2030.

But how will urban sub-Saharan Africa meet the goal of universal access to sanitation if progress is going backwards?

One way is to think about the pathways to universal access, rather than just focusing on a target of universal access.

In the past 15 years, the focus has been on the target. And the target has been set by defining access to sanitation as “improved” or “unimproved”.

These two measures have been determined by the kind of technology used.

Improved sanitation systems included those that are considered to hygienically separate human excreta from human contact such as flush toilets and pit latrines with washable slabs. But only private latrines – that is where only one household has access – have been included as improved.

On the other hand, shared sanitation has been considered “unimproved” and not providing hygienic separation of human excreta.

But it is one of the areas where there was the most progress over the MDG period. In urban areas in sub-Saharan Africa the population using shared sanitation doubled from 64 million to 128 million.

Debunking myths about shared sanitation systems

Shared sanitation systems are a practical option in informal settlements where space is limited and tenure for the household and the community is insecure.

And there is a growing body of research that questions the assumption that shared sanitation is unhygienic compared to private latrines.

Research on shared toilets in urban areas in Kampala found that while households with private latrines thought their toilets were less dirty, in reality there was little difference between private toilets and shared toilets when there are fewer than four households sharing.

Research looking at the presence of bacteria had similar results. Recent research from Tanzania demonstrated that shared sanitation systems had significantly less E. coli bacteria at places where people touch the toilets with their hands than private sanitation.

In fact, contrary to the concerns about hygiene in shared sanitation, in their regression model, sharing was considered protective against E. coli contamination.

Decisions will be made in the coming months about what indicators will be used to measure progress towards the SDGs. The Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation has recommended keeping shared sanitation as unimproved as they consider that the weight of evidence isn’t sufficient to change practices.

A need for a shift in focus

I believe we have to shift the focus from only looking at universal access to including realistic pathways that are addressing the growing demand adequately.

The hard fact is that shared sanitation will continue to be a reality in Africa’s cities. It should therefore be viewed as part of the transition to universal access and, as such, kept on the research and implementation agenda to support this transition.

I accept that there are good reasons why it should be considered as a transitional arrangement only. Most people who have experienced public toilets will attest to the shortcomings.

The two main barriers to shared sanitation being considered adequate in informal urban settlements in East Africa were the lack of privacy and not having 24-hour a day access because caretakers lock the doors at night.

But I believe that we can design better shared sanitation to meet the needs of the growing urban populations now, and help give Africa’s urban population a healthier environment. – The Conversation Africa.

 Katrina Charles is a lecturer and course director in Water Science, Policy and Management, University of Oxford

President Mugabe

America has found no shame at all in declaring these two peaceful countries as warranting “a national emergency with respect to the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States . . .”

A piece of news from Latin America may not excite our audiences very much.

So indeed the news that the opposition in Venezuela recently won a majority of seats in the National Assembly, overturning nearly two decades of dominance by the Socialists of President Nicolas Maduro may have escaped many.

Maduro succeeded Hugo Chavez who died of cancer two years ago.

Chavez got into power in 1999 and initiated a socialist revolution dubbed the Bolivarian Revolution, a tribute to Simon Bolivar, the revolutionary patriarch of South America.

Chavez’s socialist programmes, which put the poor at the forefront in terms of the means of production, chiefly land, and redistribution of oil wealth to close the most glaring poverty gaps on the continent put him at cross-purposes with the United States of America.

Quite predictably.

Roger D. Harris writing in 2013 puts a context to this illustrating “Venezuela (as a) Threat of a Good Example”.

He explains: “Venezuela remains on the top six list of the US National Security Agency’s ‘enduring targets’. In the upside-down logic of the Obama administration, Venezuela ‘constitute(s) an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.’ In reality Venezuela is subject to US military presence in Colombia to the west, US military bases to the east on Aruba and Curacao, and the US Fourth Fleet off of its coast. The US State Department cites Venezuela along with Ecuador, Argentina, Bolivia, and Nicaragua among a group of Latin American countries . . .”

Hugo Chavez

By the way, Chavez inspired a number of Latin American countries with his Bolivarian revolution.

At home and abroad here is what he championed: “The progressive government has eradicated illiteracy, halved poverty, and introduced new forms of direct democracy such as community councils. Internationally Venezuela has played a leading role in regional integration of Latin America with UNASUR, CERLALC, andALBA, promoted fair trade, and maintained peace with its neighbours including helping to broker the current peace talks between the Colombian government and the FARC (rebels) . . . Venezuela has funded its social programmes from oil revenues.”

The US imposed sanctions, the latest early this year, on Venezuela for being such a good example.

It is explained that, “The new US sanctions are a continuation of the long-term US campaign to roll back the social advances in Venezuela, curtail its independence, terminate its international leadership, and obliterate its example of an alternative to the neoliberal world model.”

The sanctions were meant to cause suffering among the Venezuelan populace and prop the opposition that lost in successive elections since 1998, despite having a war chest of a reported $100 million of American money.

A coup attempt was even attempted in April 2002. Pressure from the US on Venezuela’s economy, which saw massive shortages of basic commodities and services, finally led to the buckling of the Chavez dream seeing his predecessor Nicholas Maduro superintending defeat at the weekend by over two thirds to the opposition.

Gone is the unique status quo where “the poor celebrate their government and the rich protest”.

It is noted that the unrest of 2014 “was almost entirely limited to rich and middle class neighbourhoods”.

This is what happens when a visionary, pro-majority person leads a nation; a people.

The same fate also to befall leaders who upset the capitalist apple-cart.

I am Chavez

A blog, Venezuelan analysis summarise the success of Chavez as follows: “The accomplishments of the Bolivarian Revolution to date are many: land distributed to the landless, poverty rate halved and extreme poverty reduced by two-thirds, child malnutrition reduced, access to safe drinking water increased, etc. Social expenditures have been increased and pensions for the elderly went from less than 400 000 recipients to over to two million, while hundreds of thousands of new homes were built for those in slums.”

When Chavez died the majority poor were devastated.

They wished and hoped the spirit of Chavez would last forever.

They did not embrace Chavez as a person but an idea, an immortal.

This is why they had the slogan, which featured everywhere, that, “I am Chavez”.

I am Mugabe

When you read the above, you cannot miss the similarities between Venezuela and Zimbabwe; Chavez and Robert Mugabe.

The only difference is that, happily, the US-sponsored opposition in this country has not won after a similar number of attempts.

It should be hoped it won’t.

But then there is something worrying, both leaders are mere mortals for all their enduring and revolutionary ideals.

In Venezuela, Maduro was once considered a strongman, with his military background, but he could not stop the wave of attacks from the US by dint of being not the originator of the battle.

It will be interesting

The same sanctions they have suffered, Zimbabwe has suffered.

The sanctions are worded in the devilishly deceptive language and alleged pursuit of the so-called human rights.

America has found no shame at all in declaring these two peaceful countries as warranting “a national emergency with respect to the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States . . .”

Yes you heard right!

But it is not the physical person or the physical country.

It is the ideas that so much make even superpowers like America quake in the boots.

This is why they are afraid of the Chavez idea.

This is why they are afraid of the Mugabe idea.

That is why we are all Chavez and Mugabe!

VP Mphoko

As the ruling party Zanu-PF holds its 15th Annual National People’s Conference this week, we call upon the cadres to maintain top discipline.

The ruling party is known for following strict disciplinary measures, which members are fully aware of. Lack of discipline can easily derail all the good things that the party has been working on.

It has already been stated that this conference is about finding strategies to improve the livelihoods of the people and fulfil the promises made to the electorate during the 2013 harmonised elections.

The ruling party overwhelmingly won both the presidential and parliamentary elections on the back of campaigns whose message was about improving people’s lives. And the Politburo re-affirmed this position at its meeting on Monday, an announcement that has raised hope and expectations among the people.

This is why we expect discipline to prevail within the party because without that watch word, all what the party has set to achieve might come to naught. The party cannot hope to come up with effective programmes and projects when its officials are not pulling in the same direction.

Lack of discipline is a sure sign that party members will be pursuing different agendas.

We are very much aware that in every political party, there are always contestations, but it becomes worrisome when such moves breed an undisciplined lot.

In fact, we urge the party cadres to strictly follow the party’s constitution which defines times and periods when they are free to express themselves in terms of seeking positions. As for this conference, party cadres are pretty much aware that it is not about leadership positions.

But it worries us when there are some party members who, through their actions or otherwise, behave as if the party is going for elections at the conference. Leadership issues were appropriately settled at the party’s 6th National People’s Congress in December last year. Congress affirmed that there is only one centre of power in the party and that is President Mugabe. Disciplined cadres must follow the party’s rules and procedures and respect the leadership at all levels.

We totally agree with Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko when he said on Sunday that there are some “rotten” people within the party.

He was speaking at the Zanu-PF Harare provincial conference convened ahead of the party’s conference.

VP Mphoko made startling revelations that there were some cadres with the guts to insult President Mugabe using covert means such as creating shadowy groups.

He said: “Mr Chairman, (Cde Charles Tawengwa) make sure all your resolutions are solid. They should criminalise this open insult. President Mugabe does not need rotten people, if you become something else he does not need you.

“He can do with all the people, but not individuals. Do not insult the President using other means, kurova imbwa wakaviga mupini.” The undisciplined party cadres must learn from what happened at the December 2014 Congress where a number of people lost their positions and were eventually expelled from the party.

The Mujuru cabal was thrown out of the party because of ill-discipline which led its members to plot against President Mugabe.

If the cabal was allowed to prevail, there would have been chaos in Zanu-PF.

Indiscipline breeds confusion within the party and we expect party members with such inclination to desist from their actions.

Otherwise, all eyes are on Zanu-PF as it holds its conference in Victoria Falls and in the same vein, it is up to the party to shame its detractors by showing unity.

Sifisosami Dube Correspondent
Former Miss Zimbabwe, Emily Tatanga Kachote was stripped of her crown as Miss World Zimbabwe 2015, after nude pictures believed to be hers were leaked to the public via social media.

The publicly available photos were deemed unbefitting to a beauty queen who is supposed to lead by example. Not only was her career in the catwalk industry damaged, she also received a plethora of attacks from the public for ‘immorality’. Luckily, she is amongst the few that have been able to pick up the pieces by participating in a campaign against revenge pornography which petitioned the Zimbabwean Government.

Revenge pornography, defined as sexually explicit media of an ex-partner distributed online in a deliberate attempt to humiliate them, has added itself to the long list of emerging cybercrimes.

Social media has made it easy for any sex tape to go viral across the globe, leaving the victim open to abuse and attack from the public. These private keepsakes are either posted on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter or on porn sites that specifically cater for revenge porn, which has gained a niche of its own in the porn industry. Revenge pornography perpetrates gender based violence and is fuelling an industry that deprives human beings, especially women of their dignity.

Revenge pornography is used as a tool to humiliate, intimidate and dehumanise women as it is mostly released by men. The victims are left traumatised, distressed and labelled as outcasts of society. Ultimately, revenge pornography removes the trust element from relationships.

Many women have fallen victim of revenge pornography when their so called trusted partners have dished out sex tapes to the public as part of revenge and blackmail especially after a breakup.

During the Sixteen Days of Activism against GBV, women’s rights activists in Zimbabwe called on Parliament to enact a law that prohibits the distribution of pornographic material taken privately without the subject’s consent. Led by Katswe Sisterhood, the activists called on Parliament to enact a law that prohibits the distribution of pornographic material taken privately without the subject’s consent. Legislators Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga and Tabitha Khumalo, who took part in handing a petition for onward transmission to the Parliament of Zimbabwe, joined the campaign.

The activists have called for the elimination of leaking sexually explicit material as it is degrading to women. They decried the absence of criminal laws protecting the privacy of private communications involving sexual expression from publication without the subject’s consent.

Freedom of expression allows the production and consumption of pornography, though there are laws of general application, such as the Sexual Offences Act, which limit the type and nature of pornography.

It is a criminal offence in a number of Southern African countries to be in possession of pornography. But the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) cannot by law ban the production and consumption of pornography. This weakens efforts to protect thousands of women from revenge pornography.

Social media is awash with videos of unsuspecting victims filmed during trusted private interactions with their partners. Although many have filmed themselves willingly at the time, such videos all too often fall into the wrong hands.

Social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr depend on the goodwill of their clientele to report any sexually explicit postings but this is not enough as it does not provide remedies to victims whose jobs and family lives have been wrecked as a result. Blocking a perpetrator from a social media site does little to stop the abuse as the image is still out there destroying reputations.

Women should have the freedom of express themselves sexually in private. Yet the deeply entrenched patriarchal attitudes in Southern Africa point fingers on women in the revenge pornographic tape. The woman is left to deal with picking up pieces of her life and also counteracting rejection from the society.

Images of revenge pornography can be used as grounds to dismiss the victims from work, not hire them in the first place, refuse to rent housing to them, or investigate them as unfit parents, among other things. — Genderlinks.

Sifiso Dube is the Alliance and Partnerships Manager at Gender Links. This article is written in her personal capacity as part of a special series for the Sixteen Days of Activism being produced by the Gender Links News Service.

Joseph Kishore Correspondent
The events of the past week will go down in history as a milestone in the development of 21st century imperialism.

In the space of a few days, the United States, Britain, and Germany escalated their military involvement in Syria, following France’s intensification of its own bombing campaign in Syria last month.

The pretext for these operations are the November 13 terrorist attacks in Paris, followed now by the horrific mass shooting in San Bernardino, California, a week ago.

As tragic as the killings of 130 people in Paris and 14 in San Bernardino are, they cannot explain the sudden and convulsive military escalation by major imperialist powers in the Middle East.

One should recall that in 1915, after the sinking of the RMS Lusitania with the loss of 1 198 lives, the United States refrained from entering into World War I. At that point, the American ruling class was still divided over the advisability of intervening in the Great War.

The basic force behind war in Syria is the same as that which has motivated the imperialist carve-up of the Middle East as a whole: the interests of international finance capital. The major imperialist powers know that if they are to have a say in the division of the booty, they must have also done their share of the killing.

This war drive in the Middle East is deeply unpopular, which explains the frenzied rush to utilise the recent attacks, along with an atmosphere of fear whipped up by the media, to push through actions as rapidly as possible. Consider the events of the past week:

On Tuesday, the Obama administration announced that it would deploy a new contingent of Special Operations Forces, nominally directed at the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS, or ISIL).

At a Press conference on the same day, Obama repeated that any settlement of the war in Syria had to include the removal of President Bashar al-Assad, a key ally of Russia.

On Wednesday, the British Parliament voted to support military action in Syria after Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn cleared the way for war by agreeing to a “free vote” by his party’s MPs. British warplanes moved immediately to bomb targets in Syria on Wednesday night, as Prime Minister David Cameron denounced anyone opposing the war as a “terrorist sympathiser”.

On Friday, the German Bundestag rushed through a vote to join the Syrian war with almost no discussion.

The parliamentary sanctioning of war followed the decision by the government earlier in the week to send 1 200 troops, six Tornado jets and a warship to the region.

Then, over the weekend, the US media and political establishment moved to exploit the killings in San Bernardino, California, to press for expanded war.

In a speech on Sunday night, Obama defended his own policy in Syria against his Republican critics, repeating his opposition to a massive deployment of ground forces in Iraq and Syria in favour of accelerated airstrikes, the funding of groups within Syria, and the use of troops from neighbouring countries.

Praising the moves of France , Germany and the UK, Obama declared: “Since attacks in Paris (on November 13), our closest allies… have ramped up their contributions to our military campaign which will help us accelerate our effort to destroy ISIL.”

As they press for war, neither Obama nor any section of the political establishment is capable of saying anything about the actual roots of ISIS, which explode the pretext of the “war on terror” that has been the foundation of US foreign policy for 15 years.

In his speech on Sunday, Obama referred obliquely to the growth of ISIS “amidst the chaos of war in Iraq and then in Syria”, as if this was unrelated to the policy of the US itself.

In fact, the US and its allies first illegally occupied and devastated Iraq, then built up Islamic fundamentalist groups in Syria from which ISIS emerged as the spearhead of the war against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Rather than a response to the recent attacks, the actions of the imperialist powers are the realisation of long-standing plans and ambitions.

In Britain, this week’s vote reverses the 2013 vote in the House of Commons rejecting participation in a planned US-led war with the Assad regime. The German ruling class has been clamouring to play a much more active military role, to assert itself as Europe’s dominant power.

In the United States, prior to the San Bernadino attacks, there were insistent calls within the political establishment and media for the deployment of ground troops and the imposition of a no-fly zone in Syria.

Led by United States, the imperialist powers have been engaged in unending war, centered in the Middle East and Central Asia, for a quarter of a century. More than a million people have been killed, and millions more turned into refugees. After wars in Afghanistan and Iraq under the Bush administration, Obama has overseen the war in Libya and CIA-backed campaigns for regime change in Ukraine and Syria. The disastrous consequences of each operation have set the stage for an expansion and intensification of war.

What is taking place is a redivision and recolonisation of the world. All the old powers are piling in to claim their share. While currently centred in the oil-rich Middle East, the conflict in Syria is developing into a proxy war with Russia. On the other side of the Eurasian landmass, the US is launching increasingly provocative actions against China in the South China Sea.

The geopolitical situation today is more explosive than at any time since the eve of World War II. Beset by an intractable economic and social crisis for which they have no progressive solution, the ruling class increasingly sees war and plunder as the only possible response. – wsws.

True leaders of a revolution will never dominate the masses they lead

Reason Wafawarova on Thursday

A true revolution cannot stand on the legs of prescriptive methods as imposed by elites on the masses.

H uman beings are different from animals in that they are beings of pure activity, emerging from the world, objectifying the environment around them, and also having an understanding of how to transform the world around them.

Humans are not like animals that simply adapt to the environment: they are capable of development.

By nature humanity consists of action and reflection, and this is what politicians sometimes fail to see.

Politicians would love to manipulate human activity to an extent where they reduce everything to rhetoric and political activism.

Lenin pointed a long time ago that a revolution couldn’t achieve any of its goals through rhetoric or activism.

His famous statement is: “Without a revolution theory there can be no revolutionary movement.”

There is always a revolutionary procedure based on a people’s reflection and action, as directed at the structures that need transformation.

This procedure does not make political leaders the thinkers, while the masses are mere followers or doers.

We have kingmaker-politicians in Zimbabwe who misguidedly believe that they are the custodians of the thinking business in the country, and that all other people have to play the role of perpetually admiring them, or doing what they say.

They believe any election process that does not follow their bidding is a flawed one, and they count anyone opposed to their views as illegitimate.

If the reality of the suffering of Zimbabweans is to be transformed, revolutionary procedure will require that there must be a shared ideology around which transforming action will happen.

This ideology cannot fail to assign the people the fundamental role in the transformation process.

The role of our people in the redistribution of land is not to line-up for offer letters so they can forever thank the benevolence of the political leader in the acquisition of that land.

Rather the role of the people is to transform their world through the acquisition of agrarian land.

Our unfortunate predicament is that we now have charlatans in politics – leaders who treat people like mere activists with no ability to reflect.

Indeed, some of our political leaders bear the responsibility for co-ordinating the revolution, and for giving it direction. This responsibility does not warrant the manipulation of the masses.

Any politician who is genuinely committed to liberation will always ensure that his actions do not proceed without the matching actions and reflections of the people he leads.

The revolutionary procedure must always stand opposed to the procedure of dominant elites. By its very nature the bourgeoisie is a class of antithetical people, and it is a huge contradiction to expect elitist procedure to lead to the liberation of the poor and the oppressed.

A true revolution cannot stand on the legs of prescriptive methods as imposed by elites on the masses. Once that happens, one can only talk of mass oppression, not of a revolution.

Revolutionary procedure is by definition an act of unity, and the leaders cannot treat the masses as their possession.

We have in our country some people in leadership who believe they have the right to prescribe revolutionary procedure on all others – those self-congratulating heroes who consider themselves custodians of our collective conscience and even memory.

These charlatans survive on manipulation, sloganeering and regimentation of our people.

These are no aspects of a revolution, and that is precisely because they are the tendencies that define domination and oppression.

True leaders of a revolution will never dominate the masses they lead.

True revolutionary leaders are sacrificial lambs ready to die for the cause of the collective community.

There are those leaders who cannot even dialogue with our people, and they openly retain and exercise the traits of the dominator.

These are openly non-revolutionary, and they do not care.

Yet we have others who seem to be totally misguided in the conception of their role as leaders, in the process becoming hapless prisoners of factionalism and sectarianism.

These are the leaders who have created unprecedented doubt over the validity of our revolution – leaders who have reduced our land reform programme to a pitiful act of patronage, and our economic empowerment policy to a mere propaganda tool designed to win cheap and directionless populism.

Revolutionary procedure demands that the oppressed actively participate in the revolutionary process leading to their own liberty, not as blind loyalists to the diktats of a dominant leadership, but with critical awareness of their role as foot soldiers of the transformational journey.

Loyalty to the revolution must make our youths who have borrowed from the micro-financing project repay the loans with honour and pride.

The moment we find ourselves celebrating the role of a messianic “sheriff in town” playing the role of super debt collector we must know that the revolutionary procedure has lost its way.

In a true revolution the greater cause of economic indigenisation of the economy would compel those who have borrowed from our revolving funds to do the honourable thing and dutifully repay the loans for the good of the greater cause.

When I repaid the money I borrowed from the Employment Creation Fund in 2004 the gentleman who served me at the ministry’s accounts department was petrified.

He told me that I was the only one from the whole ministry that had bothered to pay back the money, and he repeatedly asked me if I was sure of what I was doing, and if I really wanted to do that.

We cannot go far with a revolution executed by a people coming in the shape of ambiguous beings, people who are partly themselves and partly oppressors. Leaders with this kind of ambiguity will often live the imagination of heroism – violently claiming recognition for self-proclaimed valour and achievement.

The dangerous existential duality of such leaders has facilitated the perilous factionalism bedevilling ZANU-PF today, which in every sense fatally undermines the revolutionary procedure.

Our young people have been misled into aspiring to the revolution not as a road to emancipation, but as a shortcut to self-centered aggrandisement. Some of our leaders have chosen to use the revolution as a means of domination, rather than as a road to liberation.

No one can successfully carry the revolution for the people, even with the best of intentions. Attempting to do this is as good as carrying out the revolution without the people.

We cannot execute a revolution by threatening and manipulating the people.

We cannot use the same methods employed by oppressors to implement revolutionary procedure.

A revolution is defined by dialogue between leaders and the led, elected revolutionary leadership and the oppressed.

We want to end the economic misery in Zimbabwe, and for that to happen the revolution must begin to initiate a serious and courageous dialogue with the people.

There is no legitimacy in a revolution that excludes dialogue with the masses, as clearly seems to be the case in our situation.

Revolutionaries work with the people, they listen to the expression of the people, and they allow maximum participation of the people in the revolutionary procedure.

The revolution is not a perfect phenomenon. It is accountable to the people, its achievements are spoken of frankly and honestly, and so are its mistakes, its miscalculations, its challenges, and its difficulties.

We have to frankly acknowledge the miscalculations and errors of both the land reform programme and the indigenisation policy, the same way we hail the nobility of these initiatives.

This business of saying any form of criticism directed towards Government policy is treacherous is in itself a great disloyalty.

Only when we accept constructive criticism can we carry out this revolution to a successful realisation of its noble objectives.

Reason Wafawarova is a political writer based in Sydney, Australia.

Obert Gutu

George Chisoko Senior Assistant Editor
When the MDC-T which claims to be the biggest opposition party in Zimbabwe, and made its blind followers believe it has the muscle to remove Zanu-PF from power begins to talk of forming a coalition, then you know that the party that touted itself as a political elephant at inception has fast transformed into an ant incapable, on its own, of dislodging the revolutionary party from power.

And that should be disappointing news to those people who have, for years, been made to believe and trust in the MDC-T as a political game changer.

For any party to command the support of multitudes of people, it should have confidence in itself as an oppositional force so as to inspire the same in the supporters, something that Zanu-PF has done with great aplomb since 1980.

By exposing itself to the electorate that it has lost self-belief, that it doubts its capacity to stand toe-to-toe with Zanu- PF and chooses to combine forces with other parties, which themselves have been confined to the cemetery since their formation, the MDC-T has made a huge statement of admission of its overestimated popularity and potence.

It had given itself this false aura of a party that was God’s gift to politics. But, can you be such a party when you cannot stand on your own? That the MDC-T lacks venom is not the creation of this writer but it is something that has been made transparently clear by the coalition route that the party has chosen.

No one really despises the party for electing to form a coalition, it is its choice to do so, for indeed political parties should always adopt strategies that win them elections. But I feel pity for its supporters who are only learning now that the party they supported with a passion since its formation is just a toothless bulldog that poses no threat to anyone and seeks to find strength in a coalition.

There is nothing wrong, however, with forming coalitions since it is an accepted path for political nonetities that are desperate for power following many years in the political wilderness.

It makes sense to form a coalition when you are a party that has failed in numerous attempts to remove Zanu-PF from power. It makes even more sense to form a coalition when your party that claims to be very popular and loved by the people persistently and consistently gets walloped by Zanu-PF in every election it has participated. Indeed, it makes sense!

It fails to make sense when the parties that want to form the coalition are proven failures that have found it hard to make any impact on the political arena. A coalition of failures is without doubt, destined to fail.

It must be noted here that even before the split of the MDC that saw the likes of Welshman Ncube, Job Sikhala, Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga, Tendai Biti and many others leaving to form their own parties, the MDC, in its original purported strong state, still failed in its attempts to send Zanu-PF packing.

The same characters that comprised MDC in its original form, before the several splits, that have not been able to remove Zanu-PF from power, now believe that they can do so by forming a coalition. What a false sense of belief!

The mooted coalition can be likened to same-sex marriage between men, in that no child is ever to be born in that arrangement. There is no one to conceive, to carry the pregnancy and to give birth to a child.

It can also be equated to a lesbian arrangement, where some realising that they still need the opposite sex to conceive are now going for in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) and use a donated stranger’s sperm. That outside interference will not mean the baby is entirely theirs. The sperm donor may one day wake up claiming his baby.

Essentially, I am saying such a coalition is never going to achieve its outcome of wrestling power from Zanu-PF. What it will certainly achieve is to leave those hoping for a change of government, very disappointed.

While the MDC-T spokesman Obert Gutu, unashamedly talks of a value and issue-based coalition, theirs is clearly a coalition of convenience.

We had been used to thinking that marriages of convenience only applied to couples but now I have learnt that even political parties, desperate for power, enter into marriages of convenience as evidenced by the mooted coalition that Gutu talks about.

It is a coalition of convenience because it generally serves the greater interests of the MDC-T to assume the reins of power at all cost, and does not seek to serve the interests of the other parties in the coalition. All the parties forming the coalition do not instill fear in Zanu-PF at all since they are led by proven political failures.

Yes, coalitions have worked in some countries, like Kenya and for anyone to think that whatever worked elsewhere will work in Zimbabwe is daydreaming, not least when the coalition is being formed to fight a party like Zanu-PF that boasts many years’ experience in politics.

Zanu-PF is a party that is glued together by principles and rooted in ideology and has remained unshakable in the midst of unrelenting attacks from the West and its allies.

The message the MDC-T and its allies coming into the marriage of convenience is sending to their supporters is that Zanu-PF’s invincibility, solidity and unshakability is real and that no single political party can stand a chance against it.

Ants always use their combined energy to build anthills because they know that as individuals they cannot achieve anything. How the “mighty” MDC-T has fallen from being an elephant that thought it would easily dismantle Zanu- PF on its own to an ant that now seeks help to achieve the feat!

A party that believes in itself, in its capability, its support, its ability to market itself to the electorate, in its programmes, and its strength such as Zanu-PF would never fathom forming a coalition with anyone because there is clarity in what it stands for and what it seeks to achieve.

Only those parties, like the MDC-T, which suffers from a serious deficiency of ideological grounding, would unsurprisingly, always choose the route of coalition.

However, for me, the biggest threat to the survival of Zanu-PF as a political party is Zanu-PF itself and not any opposition coalition of whatever colour.

The party has very strong roots that it cannot easily be pushed over by the opposition. While the party has managed to take care of the external elements, it needs to now place more emphasis on addressing the internal factors, which have, in recent times, been more problematic than the external.

For now, let the coalition dreamers dream on while Zanu-PF, which is not given to dreaming chart the way, in Victoria Falls, crafting strategies to improve the livelihoods of the people and fulfil the promises made to the electorate during the 2013 harmonised elections that it won emphatically.

Cde Khaya Moyo

According to Dr Obert Mpofu, the Party’s secretary for finance, the national fundraising dinners held in Harare and Bulawayo last month, also exceeded budget targets by three times.

Tafara Shumba Correspondent
As the revolutionary party’s 15th National Annual People’s Conference is on the go in Victoria Falls, the MDC-T and its allies in the opposition camp have pushed the panic button, causing them to react in the most asinine manner.

The conference roars into life amid futile attempts by detractors to discredit it by way of propagating all sorts of blatant lies in the media.

Of course, the detractors have all the reasons to go into panic mode for zanu-pf is going to emerge from the conference stronger than ever, with all its machinery re-oiled.

The conference was well prepared with the party holding successful fundraising dinners in all provinces. The provincial fundraising dinners harvested more than their allotted budget target of US$50 000.

According to Dr Obert Mpofu, the Party’s secretary for finance, the national fundraising dinners held in Harare and Bulawayo last month, also exceeded budget targets by three times.

The bulk of the fund came from the corporate world and individuals who have not only the party but the nation at heart. The oversubscribed fundraising dinners attest to the confidence that people still have in the revolutionary party.

With such a bumper harvest from the fundraising dinners, the NewsDay woke up on December 4 with a shameless screamer — ‘zanu-pf forces civil servants to donate for Indaba.’

The paper flagrantly fed the public with barefaced lies, alleging that civil servants were forced to pay $5 each for the conference.

The NewsDay said a memo sent to civil servants in Beitbridge purportedly written by one Notious Tarisai, an Assistant Regional Immigration Officer partly reads, “Subject: Request for financial contributions towards the zanu-pf conference. Following a meeting attended recently concerning the above subject matter, all staff members are requested to pay US$5 each by the pay date, i.e. 27-11-15.”

The reporter contacted Tarisai and zanu-pf spokesperson, Cde Simon Kaya Moyo who both refuted the authenticity of the memo. However, the NewsDay went on to put the lies on paper despite the facts he was furnished with.

The paper wanted to portray zanu-pf as a party that is extorting money from the hard-pressed civil servants. By publishing a story they knew very well perverts the truths, they thought they would successfully alienate zanu-pf from the civil servants.

Unfortunately for them, the civil servants could not fall hook, line and sinker for hoax as they saw through the plot.

November 27 came to pass, still the civil servants did not pay a dime.

Only a half-baked journalist can buy that gibberish. After exceeding the budget target by three times, how can zanu-pf go on to force civil servants to donate a paltry $5.

Even the NewsDay’s sister paper, The Zimbabwe Independent had a story that acknowledged that zanu-pf exceeded the $3 million target.

However, The Zimbabwe Independent also attempted to tell the public that the target was exceeded because companies including state enterprises were forced to pay. The Minister of Energy and Power Development, Dr Samuel Udenge is said to have marshalled $700 000 from parastataals under his sway.

zanu-pf is a people’s party that is very sensitive to the needs and aspirations of its people. At a time Government is running around hunting for money to fund power generation projects, zanu-pf cannot do that. Perhaps Morgan Tsvangirai can do that for he recently bought a $100 000 Mercedes Benz ML when the party coffers are completely dry with party workers going for months without salaries.

After all, it is not a crime for any organisation, be it religious or political, to request for donations. As such, there was no reason for Tarisai and Cde Kaya Moyo to refute the memo if it had indeed come from zanu-pf. They distanced themselves from it because zanu-pf never sanctioned same.

Thus, the alleged memo is a fraudulent act of detractors bend on soiling the good name of the party.

The alleged memo could have been penned by the MDC-T with a view to discrediting the party.

It is an archaic war tactic used by the Selous scouts, who killed innocent villagers disguised as freedom fighters.

It could have been also the work of some criminal elements bend on duping civil servants.

In all earnest, how can zanu-pf selectively force civil servants in Beitbridge only?

How can Tarisai, an immigration officer who is not a zanu-pf official write that memo?

These are some of the questions that the journalist should have interrogated before putting ink on paper.

Even if the memo is to be given a benefit of the doubt, still the journalist stands accused of deliberately drawing a long bow.

The alleged memo is requesting not forcing. This exposes the paper as a willing tool signed up to propagate a sinister agenda crafted in a certain political office.

This is not the first time that detractors attempted to throw mud into the conference.

The private media was awash with speculation which they tried to sanitise by attributing them to some phony political analysts.

The public was told that the conference will see many changes in the leadership including the Presidium. That conference which is running under the theme ‘Consolidating People’s power through Zim-Asset’ is mainly meant to review the year 2015 with a view to taking stock of the progress the party made, what it has not done and proffer the way forward.

SPEAKER of Parliament Advocate Jacob Mudenda, in a report carried by The Herald Business yesterday urged Government to undertake reform initiatives that ensure economic growth and attract both domestic and foreign direct investment.

Adv Mudenda made the remarks while addressing the post-Budget seminar for parliamentarians in Harare on Tuesday.

We concur with sentiments shared by Adv Mudenda that Government needs to fully undertake reforms to turnaround the economy.

It is our firm belief that judicious implementation of Government policy programmes will help speed up recovery of the economy as well as attract investment.

Most of what Adv Mudenda pointed out are problem areas or issues Government has grappled with, discussed at various fora and even came up with strategies to address. We believe the Speaker was just spot on. He was also on point when he made a rallying call to legislators, urging them to push for good corporate governance within Government.

Zimbabwe’s economic problems are well documented, so too is the need for structural adjustment and reforms in the way Government operates. Policies and economic blue-prints have been crafted, brilliant documents at that . . . but somewhere along the line due to various reasons, implementation is always a problem. Government is at fault, but so too is Parliament as it does not hold the former to account over this.

Parliamentarians have let the nation down by not vigorously seeking to ensure Government sticks to its own policies. By virtue of their position and mandate, Members of Parliament must interrogate, evaluate and monitor implementation of Government policies and hold ministers accountable who fail to deliver targeted policy objectives.

Instead, our Parliament often spends a lot of their time bickering along political party lines and not looking at the merit of issues to achieve outcomes that best serve the nation and not an individual party.

Zanu-PF too, the ruling party, is at fault as it is using its majority muscle to turn committees into compliant cheerleaders of Government policies and legislation. Adv Mudenda at the post-Budget meeting said it was the duty of parliamentarians, regardless of party affiliation, to hold Government to account.

The few instances that a committee has gone all out to question certain transactions have degenerated into personal or factional fights.

There is definitely need for some introspection; what exactly is the Parliament’s role. Are the various portfolio committees doing the kind of in-depth probing or clause-by-clause examination of the different kinds of legislation that pass through them? Or do we have toothless legislators who help to create a weak system of accountability.

In our Herald Business yesterday, we also carried an article which quoted an official from the Office of the President and Cabinet speaking against the rationale of the Sovereign Wealth Fund. The official also identified loopholes in the SWF Act. Yet this is an Act which went through scrutiny and various readings in the National Assembly and MPs passed the legislation.

Parliament should move away from rubber stamping legislation, but should create ripples enough to impact on Government agenda.

This is why we are moving Parliament to play its oversight role diligently.

In his address, Adv Mudenda encouraged parliamentarians not just to pass the 2016 Budget.

“I shall not belabour our role as Parliament in the budgetary process, but would like to urge you to thoroughly scrutinise and cut into this Budget. I encourage you to do more than just pass the Budget, but, to analyse it as an instrument of policy implementation and to ensure that it meets the developmental values and principles enshrined in the Constitution.

“It is trite to mention that as Parliament, our responsibility as far as the Budget is concerned does not end with its adoption. Our oversight and audit functions should be rigorously pursued and executed,” said Adv Mudenda.

He also said MPs had a role to play in making 2016 a year of economic growth and success.

It’s up to the MPs to follow through what was said.

Cde Kenny Ridzai

Hildegarde The Arena

Due to this basic training element, the struggle for Zimbabwe’s Independence transformed itself into a people’s war, where the people (masses/povo) were heavily involved, despite inherent dangers.

A CRITICAL element in guerrilla warfare is political orientation and mass mobilisation. Freedom fighters had to understand why they were fighting; who the enemy was; what liberating the country from colonial bondage meant and implied; and, the meaning of oppression.

Political orientation/education answered all these questions

As Cde Kenny Ridzai underscored, fighting in the struggle was voluntary: “Kuhondo wange usingarwiri mari. Vaiziva kuti kana usina politics dzakakwana it’s either uchatiza, and it’s obvious waigona kutiza.”

Freedom fighters received political orientation before the military training, which was anchored on Mao Zedong’s teachings who said that “the guerrilla must move amongst the people as a fish swims in the sea.”

Chairman Mao also taught that, “If you want to know the taste of a pear, you must change the pear by eating it yourself.”

Without mass mobilisation, the war of liberation would have been difficult to execute because the people’s support was critical.

Due to this basic training element, the struggle for Zimbabwe’s Independence transformed itself into a people’s war, where the people (masses/povo) were heavily involved, despite inherent dangers.

To the people, the guerillas were the children fighting to liberate their parents.

This thread runs through the narratives of the Chimurenga chronicles being compiled by Munyaradzi Huni, Tendai Manzvanzvike and Forget Tsododo.

Cde Ridzai, who was among the first group of freedom fighters to enter Rhodesia in 1972, recounted two incidents in an interview on October 29 that demonstrate that when guerrillas moved amongst the people as fish swim in water, the going would be easy.

The first incident was when he sought refuge at Chief Makuni’s homestead for almost two months after he lost contact with fellow comrades following a military operation with Rhodesian forces.

The second instance resulted in his demotion when he defended his group’s stance for not burning down farm workers’ compounds as per command at a tobacco farm in the Centenary area.

The full transcript of Cde Ridzai’s interview would be published separately.

But a brief background of Cde Ridzai suffices. He was born Constantine Mabuya in Filabusi in 1952, and his parents, like many families in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), relocated to Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) in 1954. He did his primary and part of his secondary education in Zambia, before joining the struggle.

Unlike other Ndebele youths who joined Zapu’s military wing Zipra, Cde Ridzai made a deliberate decision to join Zanu’s military wing, Zanla.

He also opted for Zanla despite the fact that he could not speak Shona because he feared that his brother who had joined Zapu in 1964 would send him back to proceed with his education.

During the third term, while doing Form 2 in Lusaka, he “decided that it was better to join the liberation struggle. Ndakange ndave kutoziva kuti nyika isiri yangu (Zambia) haiite.”

Cde Ridzai said he went to the Zanu offices in Lusaka on September 15, 1969.

“I knew that my brother was in Zapu. I knew that there was a common thinking that Zapu was for Ndebeles only, Zanu yoita yamaShona but ndakati ndondozvionera ndega, zvokutaurirwa navanhu zvinonetsa.”

He was received by Cde Felix Rice Santana: “Ndivo vakange vari mashefu acho.” Another official, Cde Bernard Mutumwa told him that he was too young, but he said, “I want to go and fight and free Zimbabwe.”

In December 1969, together with other recruits, they left Lusaka for Itumbi Training Camp in Tanzania, and commenced training in January 1970, conducted by Chinese instructors: “We received various military tactics — mobilising the masses so that they support the struggle. We were also trained in guerrilla warfare (hit and run tactics), laying ambushes, and much more. The training lasted two years — 1970 to 1971. It took so long because I think they wanted the numbers to grow.”

When the terrain was favourable, they were divided into groups, and the first three groups entered Rhodesia at the beginning of 1972. It was tough, as they had to fight Rhodesian and Portuguese forces. They transported ammunition from the Zambezi valley to Mavuradonha mountain during a large part of 1972 with the assistance of the masses.

When they entered Rhodesia in 1972, their group comprised 20 fighters and Cde Kenneth Gwindingwi was their overall commander.

Some of his comrades-in-arms included James Bond, Kid Marongorongo, Mabhonzo, George Rutanhire and Vhu-u. He was a section commander when they opened up Chaminuka Sector.

A number of comrades exhibited unique survival instincts, and they also used intuitive military tactics that were not part of their training.

As fish swimming in water, the people were their means of survival.

Cde Ridzai said this was because they became part and parcel of the masses, and the latter accepted them not based on political grounds but because of earlier political orientation as “vana vevhu” or “vanhu vapasi” (sons of the soil) who were fighting for their cause.

“When we started fighting, our group was deployed in the Chunye area in Mutoko district where we laid an ambush.

After the landmine blast against the enemy, we retreated to our gathering point (GP). That was around August 1972.

When we got to the GP, we realised that we were running out of bullets, so we decided to go and get some more ammunition from one of the mountains in the Kotwa area where some of our material was hidden.

“But the enemy was following us, and we think that they discovered where the ammunition was hidden. They moved around with mine detectors. They stayed on top of the mountain knowing that we would come at some point.

“Five of us went to get the ammunition, and when we saw a footprint, we realised that the soldiers were on that mountain. Since I was commander, I told my colleagues that the enemy was on the mountain, and there was no way we could get the ammunition, but they thought that I was being cowardly. Eventually, we went up and there was military contact. Two of the comrades were killed, and one was captured. We fled. I retreated ndikabva ndaenda kwangu ndega. My colleague also went his way . . . After losing other comrades, I was now on my own,” he recounted.

Cde Ridzai said he started walking back to Mozambique alone. “Pandiri kufamba, ndiri kukumbira chikafu mupovo, muvanhu . . . At the same time, as I moved on, I would mobilise the people, but in some cases I would also be sold out. But, they were very supportive and helped me cross Nyadire River because they knew how”.

He would always ensure that he hid his gun before engaging people, but as a sign of appreciation, he vividly remembered the assistance he got from Chief Makuni, and his subjects.

The chief was a big supporter of the war of liberation: “Chief Makuni was well-known for supporting the struggle. His homestead was the last one as you got close to Mozambique. I had heard about his support, thus I had nothing to fear. I hid my gun in the mountain, and went to see him. I told him of my predicament — kuti ndakarasana namamwe maComrades saka pano apa ndiri kutoenda kuMozambique, saka ndinokumbira kuti ndingafambe sei.

“He took me in as his biological son, but he didn’t know that I had a gun. He went to his elders and told them, ‘As I once told you, when I worked in Salisbury, at one point I married a Ndebele woman, and we had a son. This is the child (referring to me).’ He told them to take care of me, until further notice. From then on, I stayed at the chief’s homestead as his son.

This encounter resulted in a stranger than fiction incident. Cde Ridzai said at the attainment of Independence in 1980, he got his first national ID under the chief’s name Chegorerino: “PaIndependence, ndakatanga kuisa zita rake nokuti ndakazogara ipapo almost three months before crossing into Mozambique. Then I started mobilising the masses.

“I went to Makuni Primary School. Eventually it was an open secret that there was a freedom fighter residing at the chief’s homestead, because I was mobilising people, although I was performing chores around the household including farming.

“The chief had two sons, almost my age, but I was younger. I was now 21 years of age and qualified to be in Grade 7 then. I went to Makuni Primary School and they issued me with a pass because the authorities used to ask for passes. But I continued to mobilise the people.

“I was free to move all over the area. We would meet soldiers, and I would produce my pass, and they were never suspicious,” he said. But he was later sold out. “Handina kuzoziva kuti pese pese pane vatengesi. The sell-out gave the Rhodesian forces very accurate information that Chegorerino was keeping a terrorist, as the enemy referred to freedom fighters.

“Then one day, the other two boys came home around 2pm to milk cows. The kraal was not far from the homestead, and we then saw soldiers all over.

“I never thought of escaping. I asked the other boys for my pass in case they asked . . . We stayed on kudanga whiling away time. The soldiers started searching the homestead isu takagara kudanga. They even searched the granaries, but we had already decided that when asked, we would produce our passes.

“Then the white soldiers told a black soldier: ‘Call those boys.’ They were about 15 of them, but I was the first one to walk over to where the soldiers were. (What saved me was that my two-months stay at Chegorerino/Makuni had cleared the marks on my shoulders. Zvazvinoita maComrades, kana uchitakura zvombo, musana uyu unosvuuka.”

“He ordered me: ‘Take off your shirt,’ and I just tore it up and threw it away. Akanditi, ‘Look over there’, ndikabva ndamupira gotsi, akatanga kundirova-rova musana, achitarisisa akaona kuti hapana kumbosvuuka. Ndakange ndagarisisa. And he said to me, ‘Move over there,’ and I did. Akange ari mumashure mangu akabva anzwarwo futi. When they were done with us, we went back to the cattle pen.

“I later realised that there were more than 200 soldiers there. They went back to Makuni Primary School… Meanwhile, people feared for me… One of those boys is still alive. I visited the family just after Independence”.

Cde Ridzai said he realised that if the soldiers were to return, he would be captured, so he had to move on.

“I stayed another two weeks and came out in the open that I was a freedom fighter, and said guerrillas can disappear, and that those soldiers were seeing only my shadow. The people believed it because it’s not easy to be caught and then told that you are not a terrorist, when you are a guerrilla,” he said.

Cde Ridzai realised that he had overstayed his welcome, and had to proceed to Mozambique. The chief provided escorts, and eventually he linked up with his comrades.

In another incident, he said they went into Centenary, a tobacco-growing and dairy farming area. Farmers in that area gave Smith a lot of financial support, so they had to sabotage their operations.

Their mission was to destroy the tobacco crop, plant landmines and organise farm workers. One of the tasks was to burn the farm compounds: “But zviya zvinotaurwa nemunhu asiri paground. Saka isu taenda imomo, I was the platoon commander. We mobilised the workers, attacked the horses and spotter plane near the farmer’s homestead.

“After all this, towards the end of 1973 we went back to give reports to our commanders in Karuyana – Cdes Thomas Nhari, Badza, Cephas Chimedza. I gave the brief. An issue was raised why we had not burnt down the farm compounds. I replied: ‘Aiwa chef, ungapise komboni where we get information and food from?

“You had told us to destroy the crop, so why should we have burnt the workers’ houses? Fodya yacho inoda kutemwa. Hatingatemi fodya yese tiri 7. Zvinototora vanhu vomukomboni imomo kuti handei husiku namabhemba kana mapadza kundotema fodya, tovadzorera mukomboni… Ndokutaura kumashefu kuti zvange zvisingaiiti. Zvikanzi iwewe une misikanzwa, hauna kutevedzera order. You are no longer a platoon commander. I was demoted to section commander. But, Cde Nhari wanted to beat me up because I had not followed orders.”

However, the other comrades he was with said, there was no point in punishing Cde Ridzai because they could not burn the compound where they got information and support.

Primary schools have been churning out thousands of children with few secondary schools to absorb them

Kudzanai Gerede Correspondent
Lucy Moyo (48) rues the decision she took when she secured enrolment for her daughter Rumbidzai at a nearby college close to Waterfalls’ Parktown Shopping Centre. Unknown to her was the dreadful fate that lay ahead.

Barely a year passed, her daughter was due for registration for ZIMSEC Ordinary Level examinations candidature but the college failed to secure an examination centre status for its pupils at the 11th hour. It later emerged the institution was not registered with the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education as is mandatory.

Rumbidzai could not sit for exams last year and has spent this entire year studying at home with the help of a private tutor since her widowed mother cannot afford to send her to a proper school.

“When they enrolled my daughter, the principal at the college assured me the college was running smoothly as a registered institution.

“The problem with these colleges is that all they seek is money at the expense of parents’ hard earned cash and they seriously compromise the standards of education in the country,” Lucy says regrettably.

She says the situation is compounded by the fact that there is only one secondary school (Lord Malvern) in Waterfalls and many parents cannot afford enrolling their children at the school due to an unforgiving economic environment and high unemployment bedevilling the country.

“We paid $20 per month at the college and I still struggled to cope so I had no other choice but to send my daughter to the cheapest school I could afford. There are no chairs but several bricks to support long boards which make up as benches and they even use a veranda as one of the classrooms,” she narrates.

Backyard colleges have been sprouting at every street corner, church building and backyards of enterprising home owners since the country plunged into an economic crisis in 2008.

These colleges are rampant in high density suburbs as they are often cheaper than council or Government schools, with fees ranging from $20 to $30 per month, prompting many stranded parents who cannot afford formal schools to improvise.

The scourge has not only surfaced in urban centres but has become the norm in rural areas, growth points and farming communities.

Fees at Government schools range from $ 80 to $150 per term in urban centres depending on the school grouping, with those in rural areas charging between $50 and $ 100.

Early this year the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education shut down close to 30 learning institutions due to malpractices at such colleges, and this has profoundly compromised the quality of the country’s education.

Statistics availed by ZIMSEC indicate a declining trend in terms of pass rate for Ordinary Level examinations, with a 20,72 percent national pass rate recorded in 2013 and a slight improvement of 30,85 percent in 2014.

Much of this has been attributed to poor teaching standards at the illegal colleges and the engagement of unqualified teachers by most of them.

One former teacher who requested anonymity said at a particular college the principal assigned him a class comprising pupils doing three different grades in one tiny makeshift classroom teaching them simultaneously.

There have been concerns of high levels of indiscipline and immorality amongst students at private colleges as they lack proper discipline.

Epworth Residents Development Association secretary general Mr Peter Nyapetwa who is also worried about the status quo in the education sector, says they have engaged relevant authorities.

“We are worried about the influx of backyard learning centres in our area and we have noticed a drop in the standards of learning and the results coming out of these institutions. It’s all because they employ unqualified teachers who, in many cases, only have O-Level qualification.

“We have tried to get in touch with the Ministry of Education and we have seen some of them being closed but some resist the bans”, he said.

However, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education Dr Sylvia Utete-Masango earlier this year said the ministry was concerned with the status quo in the country’s education system and were taking measures to counter the sprouting of illegal learning institutions.

“The identification of illegal colleges is an ongoing process. Measures are being taken to regularise those that meet the criteria and close those that do not meet basic standards”, she said.

The sprouting of illegal colleges has been largely attributed to Government’s failure to build more schools for the country’s growing population and new settlements since independence owing to a lean fiscal allocation.

Primary schools have been churning out thousands of kids with few secondary schools to absorb them.

However, despite strong criticism of private colleges, there are other legally recognised private institutions across the country that have offered quality educational standards who remain competitive in churning out quality students.

Government has, however, identified a deficit of 2 056 schools across the country’s 10 provinces, mainly in resettled areas.

Minister Dokora recently said the ministry was in the process of constructing 100 schools as a matter of urgency, expected to be complete by March next year.

It also targets the construction of 2 000 schools as a long term project.

The construction of these schools will ease pressure on existing schools that have had to bear with huge enrolment of pupils beyond their stipulated capacity in the communities they serve thereby according every child their right to quality education.

Feedback — kudziegerede@gmail.com

Magogoya are some of the local foods known for their resilience to climate change

By Charles Dhewa
Resilience is about people’s ability to cope with life’s difficulties such as vulnerability to climate change, malnutrition and unstable incomes. In the face of climate change and stagnant economic growth across the globe, Zimbabwe needs a strong resilience framework. Measuring resilience should include changing the institutional emphasis on evidence collection and analysis as well as understanding how farmers, traders, consumers and ordinary people cope with uncertainties. However, when measuring resilience the devil is the attention to detail. For instance, some technical details may be difficult to reconcile with real life situations. On the other hand, helping Government departments and rural communities to use all the knowledge at their disposal can be more of an organisational and institutional issue than technical.

Harnessing the power of quantification and markets

Assessing community resilience can embrace environmental and ecosystem elements such as water quality/quantity, soil quality, biodiversity, biomass and vegetation, among other natural resources. Although it can be easy to develop indicators for these elements, the most important elements like social capital are always difficult to pin down. Creating a rural market as an institution can empower farmers and create employment for local people who probably have no idea how to unlock the value of abundant resources in their community. In the same way, the value of education depends upon job opportunities.

Most smallholder farmers are vulnerable to market failure and this traps them in poverty although they will have worked very hard to produce commodities. Structuring markets and coordinating production in response to the market can be a way of building the resilience of farmers While infrastructure such as irrigation schemes and roads are engineering concerns, creative deployment of ICTs should see the development of software-based tools that can assess the sustainability and resilience this infrastructure including pastures and water sources. This resilience dimension also covers institutional, social, economic and environmental perspectives.

Traditionally, in most communities agriculture has been driven by the livelihood factor not income. Even today, at least 50 percent of food is often for household consumption and surplus for the market. There is considerable evidence showing that cash crop production has compromised community resilience in terms of food and even income. Cash crops contribute to the vulnerability of farming communities especially given that most farmers do not have much knowledge on what contributes to the collapse of international markets. They often end up blaming buyers.

Farmers’ production capacity is influenced by buyers’ perceptions and projections of the international market thus there is often no fall-back position for farmers when things go wrong. When prices plunge, buyers sometimes gamble with farmers. If prices are good the buyer gets a good return. When the market is bad buyers do not incur huge costs, rather they lower price in ways that push the burden of the low international price onto the farmer. This compromises farmers’ resilience strategies.

On the other hand, the impact of globalisation varies enormously in different situations. In Zimbabwe, the fall of cotton and tobacco prices on the international market often deal a heavy blow on smallholder farmers who depend on these commodities. Building strong market structures and market integration between formal and informal markets are some of the mechanism that can curtail these challenges and ensure resilience. We also need empirical research to identify characteristics at community level that can help explain when support at community level is likely to benefit everyone, and when it is more likely to further entrench elites.

The role of judgement and researching for resilience

In the absence of longitudinal evidence, our planners currently rely on their judgement to make decisions. In addition, commonly used indicators of social capital which measure the number of organisations to which people belong are meaningless without considering the nature of those organisations, the relationships that exist between people within them, the costs of belonging to them and many other questions. Many different kinds of research will be necessary to throw up new ways of thinking about resilience and vulnerability and to help build up evidence to answer many specific questions over time.

Resilience comes from having a potential income source which can be relied upon if another fails

An assessment of the resilience of people’s livelihoods in rural areas that depend on agriculture may need to pay as much attention to shocks which threaten economic opportunities in urban informal markets as it does to rural markets. Research institutions should conduct more research on indigenous food systems and drought tolerant crops. In some communities people survive on baobab and other indigenous fruits during severe droughts. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be efforts to develop plantations for baobab fruit, mazhanje and other fruits that are part of communities’ coping mechanisms and resilience. Research on these foods should be during drought to see how they adapt. At a national level we seem to be ignoring these foods yet they represent a resilience mechanism which we have to tap into. Nyevhe/Ulude and other indigenous vegetables grow naturally but we have not vigorously tried to harvest their seed in order to understand their natural resilience.

Risk and resilience

Zimbabwe’s financial institutions interpret risk as being about uncontrollable natural hazards rather than about structural vulnerability like socio-economic issues. It is much easier to measure events such as rainfall than it is to measure circumstances which deprive some people of access to irrigation. Banks should understand risk as part of the ability to invest in the future and an indicator of resilience.

In fact they should encourage entrepreneurship by rewarding risk-taking behaviour among farmers, traders and entrepreneurs. Measuring resilience must be underpinned by a good understanding of why people make the choices they do.

Economic agents like financial institutions, development partners and policy makers have a critical role in ensuring the resilience of individuals and communities. While there is proof that farmers have reliable resilience and coping strategies, this view is not shared by financial institutions who tend to be risk-averse. They try to get the best out of farmers even during times of national calamities. If they suspect a drought, most banks suddenly stop their relationship with farmers. This means they leave farmers more exposed rather than coming up with resilient financial strategies. On the other hand, development agencies should look beyond food aid but introduce interventions that strengthen community resilience.

The essence of learning from what works

While researchers and those implementing projects in rural and urban areas find it quicker and easier to focus on formal dimensions of life, such an approach is not very useful in societies where the informal is paramount, for example Zimbabwe. Understanding changes brought by interventions and policies into people’s lives and how these changes occur is probably a priority area where quantified understanding is needed. All interventions should be based on documented analysis which gives the rationale for addressing the intended change.

The importance of improving people’s ability to cope should be explained as well as how a particular intervention interacts with various economic, political and other forces that ultimately shape people’s lives. Resilience is an area of work where many different disciplines can contribute. This analysis should be based on analytical frameworks that accommodate various disciplines (e.g. livelihoods, agronomy, trade, nutrition and public health, among others.

In order to learn what works, we need to be constantly generating evidence and creating spaces for that evidence to be interpreted in different ways. Lessons about resilience may emerge through comparisons or contrasts from one community to another.

But cross-situational learning cannot emerge from context-free analysis – it will slowly be gained if patterns can be discerned in the specific and context-grounded analyses of different situations. Zimbabwe has many policies, frameworks, tools and methodologies which if properly harmonised can contribute to national socio-economic resilience. Support for economic growth should not be geared simply to increasing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but must ensure that unemployed youth benefit from improvements in economic activities. While it is impossible to say in advance how resilient people are until they are faced with a test, there are many dimensions of coping including economic, social and psychological mechanisms. Understanding all these dimensions requires an inter-disciplinary approach.

Towards a resilience agricultural ecosystem

Some of the components of an agriculture ecosystem through which resilience can be expressed include the natural environment, institutions and other actors. Naturally the environment is always adjusting to changing climate and human interference. This change has to be thoroughly understood and includes how natural products like indigenous fruits, pastures, indigenous livestock and indigenous crops adapt to a changing climate. The majority of indigenous crops, livestock and fruits go through a natural evolution. On the other hand, most smallholder farmers use retained seed to produce food. Research that tracks what happens between soils and retained seed as part of adaptation to climate change can generate reliable knowledge systems.

In our embrace of industrial agriculture, we seem to have developed some seed varieties that we think are adaptable yet indigenous crops and livestock adapt naturally without genetic manipulation. This capacity of indigenous crops and livestock to adapt naturally offers a strong research base. When it comes to the cost factor, every year, smallholder farmers seem to be incurring more costs buying seed and fertilizer. One would expect the survival probability of maize varieties to increase as seed varieties adapt to climate change. On the other hand, no meaningful research has been conducted on how small grains, indigenous fruits, tubers and pastures adapt to climate change.

This is in spite of the fact that most farmers have more trust in natural resilience inbuilt in crops that are part of their ecosystem than in hybrids. To farmers, this is a foundation of resilience and copying mechanisms.

Indigenous and local crops and livestock represent more than 60 percent of every farming community’s resilience capacity. We should go further and develop business models that support value addition, processing and even financing of locally adaptable crops and livestock. Unfortunately Zimbabweans use derogatory terms like “orphan” crops to describe indigenous crops yet the most important attribute is that the “orphan” crop has its own survival mechanisms. In fact, it is orphaned because we lack the knowledge to support its resilient nature.

There are still knowledge gaps in terms of what scientists offer as drought resistant characteristics of hybrids. This is in spite of sufficient proof that natural adaptation is more powerful than genetic manipulation of crops and livestock by human beings. Our knowledge generation seems limited to developing drought resistant varieties but within a short period these varieties lose their resistance capacity. On the contrary, wild fruits, pests and some small grains become adaptive and resistant as they are used. This is a natural resilience strategy for these crops. We should build on indigenous knowledge which has a way of selecting good varieties and livestock breeds from time immemorial – well before hybrids were discovered. Unfortunately much of this knowledge is not documented.

Let’s not link our indigenous food to ailments or diseases

Most of our indigenous food systems are being promoted with a bias towards their claimed capacity to address ailments like cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure and even HIV and AIDs. This is not the right way to promote a food system. To farmers, we have to start promoting indigenous foods from a livelihood and resilience angle. For consumers our message should focus on nutritional and healthy benefits without pinpointing particular diseases. Linking food to a particular disease generates some unintended negative messages with those who think they are not sick refraining from eating foods which they associate with diseases.

While there is a powerful shift in the meaning of diets and staple food, we have also seen indigenous fruits contributing to income resilience by being sold on the market. Selling indigenous fruits is now a source of income for many households. By bringing indigenous fruits to the market, farmers and traders are also promoting these foods, mostly to urban folk who have become used to think of fruits in terms of apples, oranges and bananas. After meeting their livelihood and resilience requirement, farmers and local people bring surplus fruits to the market. Unfortunately there are no preservation methods to take them to the next marketing season.

People who spend some time in hotels drink apple juice, guava juice, mango juice and many others juices. However, we are still to see baobab juice and that from other indigenous fruits being promoted in our local hotels. Even if we drink mango juice, is it from Mutoko, Murewa, Mhondoro, Honde Valley, Shamva, Zvimba, Bikita and many other local areas? By galloping juice from outside we are not supporting our own people. We have to support our own communities based on their economic drivers.

Mutoko is known for mango fruit and guava fruit among others but we have not done much to understand the soils, climatic conditions and other natural factors that make mango and other fruits adaptable to Mutoko. Such knowledge is important for stepping up fruit production in this area. Mazowe district got its name from orange plantations. There is no reason why communities with so many baobab fruits should not be supported to a point of being called Mawuyu area. This will be a way of supporting the role of local resources in the socio-economic resilience of the whole country.

 Charles Dhewa is a proactive knowledge management specialist and chief executive officer of Knowledge Transfer Africa (Pvt) (www.knowledgetransafrica.com ) whose flagship eMKambo (www.emkambo.co.zw ) has a presence in more than 20 agricultural markets in Zimbabwe. He can be contacted on: charles@knowledgetransafrica.com; Mobile: +263 774 430 309 / 772 137 717/ 712 737 430.