Relief for Muzarabani as First Lady commissions potable water scheme
CLEAN and readily available water is important for public health and can contribute greatly to poverty reduction.
Women and children often spend many hours every day collecting water from far away sources thus inhibiting them from working to generate livelihoods and this reduces children’s time for education because so much time is devoted to that task.
However, travelling long distances in search of the precious liquid is now a thing of the past for residents in Muzarabani district, thanks to environmental patron Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa who commissioned a 7,2km piped water scheme.
The scheme was implemented by the Utariri Integrated Biodiversity Climate and Livelihoods Programme which Amai Mnangagwa co-launched with the Swedish Embassy last year.
The programme, which is in line with the Government’s goals on biodiversity and climate change, has already started impacting lives, with the commissioning of the water piped scheme, gardening projects and nursery tree production.
The piped water scheme commissioned yesterday will serve 600 households which translates to 4 000 people, clinics and schools.
An avid conservationist, the mother of the nation was thrilled to tour Chitemamuswe tree nursery production which trains and educates the community on indigenous tree production.
Muzarabani is in Mashonaland Central Province, which is a tobacco farming area that requires renewable energy for curing.
The nursery has over 40 000 trees including bird plum (munyii), kei apple (tsvoritsvoto), weeping boer bean, red mahogany, monkey bread (musekesa), sausage tree (mubvee) , munhondo, musasa and wild mango trees.
The First Lady and her delegation also toured Chitemamuswe Primary School’s thriving gardening projects where there is a solar-powered borehole which is also benefiting the community.
The projects are being implemented by the scheme.
“Involving communities in nursery tree production helps in environmental preservation. It helps ensure they protect trees from their hearts. This is commendable. Gardening also teaches children to work and removes laziness in them.
“I am happy the teachers and pupils are hands-on on this project. I have seen different types of vegetables that include tomatoes, cabbages, rape and onions,” Dr Mnangagwa could be heard saying during the breathtaking tour.
Amai Mnangagwa further led in the planting of indigenous trees and fruit trees around the school before proceeding to Chawarura where she commissioned the water scheme and addressed the community.
In her remarks, the mother of the nation paid tribute to the Swedish Embassy for its support and urged the community to guard the project jealously and be against vandalising it.
“Today we have come up with a water project. We all know that life depends on water. I am delighted with what I have seen today in Muzarabani and want to take this opportunity to congratulate the ambassador his excellency Per Lindgärde the Swedish Ambassador to Zimbabwe.
“The Swedish Embassy has walked with us on all our vision for the further development of our people and the country,” the First Lady said.
She gave a brief account of how it all started.
“On the 16th of March 2023 I was invited as a guest of honour to launch this programme and today I am here in Muzarabani in Mashonaland Central Province to bear witness to the foundation of the programme.
“It is pleasing to note how our respectable cooperation is being translated into projects that positively affect the lives of our people. I am happy that through our collaborative work on biodiversity and the environment, we have strengthened the relationship. If you find a relative who comes in your hour of need, that is a real relative.
“The Swedish Embassy has helped us together with those they brought along to work with us in terms of transforming and protecting our lives concerning water. Our Government is a participant in global environmental affairs and is a recipient of financial support from the global environmental facility GEF, an arm of the United Nations.
“Our Government elected to work with the United Nations Development Programme in circle number 6 of the funding known as the GEF6.
“Our ministry put a team in the implementation of a project here in the Zambezi Valley and we are proud of the work in this district aimed at the protection of our heritage and intensifying our response to climate change”
◆ Full story on www.herald.co.zw