In the community

PDC to host Dirimwe Festival in Hwange

Published

3 years ago

November 24, 2022

BY TICHAONA MATARUSE

Painted Dog Conservation (PDC) will this Saturday host a high level Dirimwe Festival in Dete to celebrate conservation work done by the organisation over the past three years.

The event is being organised by Promoting Sustainable Livelihoods in Transfrontier Conservation Areas (ProSuli).

The ProSuli project aims at understanding and supporting sustainable livelihoods in the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Areas.

ProSuli local facilitator Fraser Bitu said the project runs in three countries and its engagements are aimed at understanding how people in Hwange’s ward 15, which has been their area of operation for the past three years, perceive the future of their livelihoods.

“This project runs in four sites, in three countries and Hwange ward 15 as part of the Kavango-Zambezi TFCA is one of them. Over the past three years, we conducted more than 60 engagements focusing on six villages-Magoli, Jwape, Dingani, Chezhou, Sialwindi and Malonga,” said Bitu.

ProSuli has also invested in water sources in Hwange to augment water shortages in the dry district.

The organisation has repaired six boreholes and solarised two of them.

They also initiated nutritional garden projects to sustain the livelihoods of the communities.

The event will also mark the end of a cycle of conservation work in Hwange’s Ward 15.

“We have repaired six boreholes and solarized some in ward 15. We have had several programs including capacity building, training, leadership, farming, peace building, local culture, and others,” said Bitu.

He said the project has been successful because of respect for culture by both beneficiaries and community at large.

“This upcoming event will thus seek to celebrate the progress made and bring the Hwange community together to better support and sustain each other both on conservation and local development,” said Bitu.

The occasion will be graced by the traditional leaders including Chief Dingane-Nelukoba and Chief Nekatambe.

Political leaders and the District Development Coordinator’s office have also been invited, together with tour operators around the Hwange National Park.

The programme will start with a tour of Dirimwe which will be characterised by storytelling, drama, songs and poems .

In the community

Hwange duo sentenced to 26 months for wildlife crimes

Published

3 hours ago

August 27, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY WANDILE TSHUMA

Two Hwange men have been sentenced to 26 months imprisonment for setting 49 wire snares, including 48 class one snares, in Sinamatela Game Park, resulting in the killing of one impala and two female kudus, with a total value of US$6 000 worth of dried game meat.

Lungisani Moyo (38) and Joel Nyathi (27), both from Madumabisa Village, were convicted of contravening the Trapping of Animal Control Act.

According to the National Prosecuting Authority, the state presented a case that the two unlawfully set the snares this month, resulting in the illegal killing of one impala and two female kudus.

The matter came to light after a joint patrol by police and Zim-Parks officers intercepted a man in the Lwendulu area carrying a suspicious black bag. Upon searching him, authorities recovered 12 bundles of dried game meat.

Upon probe, the man led officers to Moyo’s residence, where further illegal game products were discovered.

Subsequent searches at both Moyo and Nyathi’s homes yielded a total of 22 bundles of dried game meat, kudu hooves, intestines, and other animal parts.

Police investigations confirmed the use of wire snares to hunt the animals within protected parkland.

The total value of the poached wildlife is US$6 000.

Of the 26-month sentence, 10 months were suspended for five years, leaving the two to serve an effective 16 months imprisonment.

In the community

Hwange man fined US$1 100 for illegal kudu meat sales

Published

1 day ago

August 26, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

A 62-year-old man from Hwange has been fined to pay US$1 100 for selling dried kudu meat without a permit.

This was heard at the Hwange Regional Court when Samson Ncube appeared before a magistrate for selling meat without a license.

The state alleges that Ncube was found with 12kg of dried kudu meat valued at US$480, which he was selling without a permit.

He was arrested by CID Minerals Flora and Fauna and ZimParks during patrols in Lwendulu Village.

The magistrate sentenced Ncube to pay a fine of US$1 100 by September 19, next month, or face 3 months in jail.

The recovered meat was forfeited.

In the community

Goat thief caught red-handed in Tsholotsho

Published

1 day ago

August 26, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

A 30-year-old man from Tsholotsho, has been convicted of stock theft after killing a goat he stole at a farm.

Praymore Sibanda was busted after police recovered the stolen goats carcass at his residence.

Sibanda’s downfall came when he appeared last week before the Tsholotsho Magistrates’ Court facing stock theft charges.

According to the State, on 11 August, Sibanda stole a male goat valued at ZAR 900 from Moses Ncube’s farm.

The court heard that Sibanda’s reign of theft ended when Ncube discovered the theft and reported it to the police, leading to Sibanda’s arrest after police found the goat meat and the skin at his homestead.

In a bid to teach him a lesson, the magistrate sentenced Sibanda to four months imprisonment, wholly suspended on condition that he restitutes ZAR 900 to the victim.