Author: Tatenda Chitagu
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US aid freeze: “Gvnt will not abdicate on its duty to take care of its citizens”
By Hazvinei Mwanaka MASVINGO-Permanent Secretary in the office of the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs Dr Addmore Pazvakavambwa has assured the public that the province has enough stock of the Anti-retroviral (ARVs) drugs to last for the next seven months and government will not abdicate on its duty to take care of citizens living…
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Impassable bridge cuts off minority Tshangaan tribe
By Tatenda Chitagu CHIREDZI-A low-lying, impassable bridge in Zimbabwe’s south-eastern district of Chiredzi in Masvingo province has cut off the minority Tshangaan tribe from essential services. Chilonga Bridge in the Lowveld is the shortest link to Chiredzi town across Runde River with its vast rural Tshangaan speaking communities of Chilonga, Chikombedzi, Boli, Mahlanguleni, Mabalauta and…
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Zimbabwe braces for HIV resurgence as US aid evaporates
By Gamuchirai Masiyiwa HARARE, ZIMBABWE — Rumbidzai, a sex worker from the bustling settlement of Epworth in Harare, has been taking antiretroviral drugs since 2017. For over two years, the mother of three has relied on mobile clinics that regularly visit her community to offer vital services such as ARVs, as well as condoms and…
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Scores of Zim girls ‘trapped’ in Russia
By Tatenda Chitagu HARARE-When Sylvester Moyo* heard his 21-year-old daughter, Lingani got a job in Russia, he felt over the moon. It was a dream come true as the opportunity would help the family escape biting poverty, the 66-year-old pensioner was convinced. And this was understandable for him, given the high unemployment and harsh economic…
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Zimbabwe’s hunger crisis turns fatal
By Tatenda Chitagu MASVINGO, ZIMBABWE-There is a popular vernacular saying that goes; ‘Kange mbeu kurima kwakona.‘ Loosely translated, it means; ‘Better eat the seeds since farming has failed.’ This saying turned out to be true for a hunger-stricken family from the arid Mwenezi district of southern Masvingo province that consumed a meal prepared from treated…
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How seed fairs help small scale farmers revive long lost, first generation seeds
By Tatenda Chitagu BIKITA, ZIMBABWE-Since childhood, Ellen Mutsinze (55) has planted small, early generation grains to add variety to the family’s staple corn diet. She never imagined the once-looked-down-upon drought tolerant crops as a source of cash-until now. Climate change-induced droughts that have led to successive maize crop failures-compounded by increasing lifestyle diseases-drove increased demand…
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Jesuits set to evict 1 600 Chishawasha families for housing project
By Spanyoge Madziwa CHISHAWASHA-The fiery-dark Cumulonimbus clouds building up in the skies show the heavens are set to open up generously anytime soon, and this is good news for farmers in Goromonzi, a prime agricultural area located 28 kilometres south-east of Zimbabwe’s capital Harare. The farmers’ anticipation is understandable for a country that is reeling…
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How USAID emergency drought relief programs saved lives in Masvingo
By Tatenda Chitagu MASVINGO-Nothing seems amiss at Tendai Maronge’s rural homestead in Zimbabwe’s southern province of Masvingo. The neatly painted houses, a thriving orchard, lots of free range chickens, broilers, goats and turkeys all point to a normal rural life. Not before she opens up on her ordeal of being left ‘high and dry’ by…
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Water shortages sour cane out-growers’ sugar prospects
Tatenda Chitagu/Hazvinei MwanakaCHIREDZI, ZIMBABWE-Zimbabwe’s prospects for a sweet harvest of sugarcane grown mainly in the Lowveld region have been soured by an acute shortage of water spawned by the El Niño induced drought, farmers have said. This has ignited fears of sugar shortages for both domestic and international markets. El Niño is a natural climate…
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Bus accidents, a cause for concern
By Spanyoge Madziwa Zimbabwe has of late been plagued by fatal accidents mainly involving public transporters. A number of lives have been lost involving long distance buses and commuter omnibuses. Statistics from the Traffic Safety Council (TSC) of Zimbabwe show that close to six traffic accidents are recorded every hour. This is not something to…