National

In perched rural Matabeleland North, renewable energy is vital

Published

4 years ago

September 9, 2021

BY FARAI SHAWN MATIASHE

Under partly cloudy skies, Lydia Mlilo, 56, fetches water from a communal tap in the sparsely populated village of Singeni.

Any clouds are unusual in winter in this semi-arid land with nothing but teak forests, and to Mlilo they are not a sign of rain.

The water in this Nkayi district village in Matebeleland North province, 168km northeast of Zimbabwe’s second-largest city of Bulawayo, is pumped from underground using solar energy and stored in huge tanks.

It is then carried by pipeline in the village, supplying water to villagers as well as a nearby school.

Mlilo uses this water for all her domestic needs.

The mother of six still recalls the predicament of not having clean and safe water in the 2000s and early 2010s.

“It used to rain [so] that I could get water in the wells at my household, but that changed almost two decades back,” Mlilo said.

“The water tables are now so low that we cannot even access water. We used to get water at about 12m, but now maybe at more than 50m.

“I had to fetch water from open wells on the shores of a nearby river.

“It was dirty but we had no choice, we had to drink it. We could, however, get stranded in summer when the river runs dry.”

German charity Welthungerhilfe installed solar stations in Mlilo’s village and the village of Ngabayide as part of its Matabeleland Enhanced Livelihoods Agriculture and Nutrition Adaptation (Melana) project, which is running in four districts in Matabeleland.

The project started in 2016 and ends in 2022, and is part of the wider Zimbabwe Resilience Building Fund (ZRBF) programme.

These water sources benefit more than 350 households, as well as the owners of more than 4 000 head of cattle, who use them for drinking water and to dip their livestock, according to ZRBF-Melana project head Kudzai Nyengerai.

Singeni village head Nathaniel Ncube (66), says there were outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid in the village in the early 2010s.

“Most of the households do not have toilets. Open defecation is common here,” Ncube said.

“With water being a menace in the village, we lost a number of our villagers from the outbreak of diseases.”

Mlilo is a smallholder who grows drought-resilient crops such as millet and sorghum.

She also rears cattle and has 10 that she dips at a community dip tank. They drink water there, too.

Villagers in Nkayi district are limited in terms of how they can earn a living because climate change has made agriculture unviable.

Some survive on remittances from the diaspora, as family members were forced to cross the border to neighbouring South Africa or Botswana to search for work during Zimbabwe’s economic crisis in the mid to late 2000s.

The roads are rugged and the villages difficult to access.

There is a lack of infrastructure such as electricity, internet, television and radio signals.

Rachel Dube (29), from Singeni village, says she did not believe it was possible for a community deep in the thick forests to have a tap.

“I thought tap water was only for people in the cities,” Dube said.

“ I did not know it was possible for us. This solar technology has done wonders.”

The mother of three says she can now practise the maximum levels of hygiene recommended by nurses when looking after her children.

Nyengerai said the solar stations ensure that villagers have a perennial source of water.

“The two communities in question here have since established nutrition gardens. Even the nearby schools have benefitted by establishing their own gardens, and issues like livestock poverty deaths and time poverty have been reduced.”

Sukokuhle Khabo, 30, from Indibe village in Gwanda, is among the 2 100 households that benefit from the solar-powered irrigation schemes in this district in Matabeleland South province.

“I am growing onions, tomatoes and carrots for family consumption as well as for sale in Gwanda town and Bulawayo. We have been using the flash irrigation method to water the garden but we have since changed to drip irrigation, which saves water,” she says.

The mother of three says she uses the proceeds from her garden to buy other essentials for her family and pay her children’s school fees.

Like Nkayi, the Gwanda district is semi-arid and poorly developed.

“Drip irrigation has less labour and is critical in conserving water,” says smallholder Musa Moyo (75) from Indibe.

“Drip irrigation uses less water on a large piece of land. We rotate our crops [and use] mulch to conserve the much-needed water.”

Melody Makumbe is the project coordinator for Resilience Enhanced through Agricultural Productivity, run by development agency Practical Action.

“We use green energy to pump water as [opposed] to dirty fuels,” Makumbe said.

“ We facilitate access to markets, increasing access to finance, rehabilitation and support with infrastructure for irrigation as well as capacity-building for management structures of the irrigation schemes.”

In Nkayi, residents have established asset management committees that oversee any operational or maintenance issues with the solar stations.

Nyengerai says villagers have set up a revolving fund to pay for any issues that arise with the equipment.

“Singeni village went on to have fundraising initiatives that fund the maintenance of the scheme, for instance, cattle sales.

“These two projects have been run by the community since 2018 without any problem,” she added.

Mlilo hopes the initiative will expand to support other schools nearby.“Some schools in this village do not have clean and safe water,” she said.

“We are not yet safe from outbreaks if some nearby places such as schools have no water.” – New Frame

This story was published with the support of the British Council as part of COP26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland.

National

Government launches nationwide dog vaccination drive amid surge in rabies cases

Published

1 week ago

February 18, 2026

VicFallsLive

BY WANDILE TSHUMA

The Government has launched an urgent nationwide dog vaccination campaign following a surge in rabies cases across Zimbabwe.

In a statement posted over the weekend, the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development said the country is experiencing a significant rise in rabies infections, largely linked to domestic dogs and wild jackals.

Permanent Secretary Prof. Obert Jiri confirmed that 650,000 doses of rabies vaccine have been secured from Botswana — exceeding the country’s usual annual requirement — to contain the escalating threat.

The Ministry said the campaign will be rolled out in the coming weeks across all provinces, targeting hotspots near national parks and conservancies, as well as urban areas that have recorded increasing cases.

Prof. Jiri stressed the urgency of seeking immediate medical attention following dog bites, warning that rabies is fatal in humans once symptoms appear.

He appealed to dog owners to ensure their pets are vaccinated, saying collective action remains the primary defence against the deadly disease and is critical in preventing further fatalities.

National

Matabeleland North flags aid discrimination as provinces record widespread violations

Published

1 week ago

February 18, 2026

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

Matabeleland North recorded cases of discrimination in government aid distribution and political interference in community leadership, as human rights violations were reported across all provinces in January, according to the Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP).

In Matabeleland North, five violations were documented.

“On 9 January 2026, in Ward 29 (Emphafeni), farmers reported irregularities in agricultural input distribution, including selective allocation of groundnuts and maize seed to ruling party supporters, and sharing of 50kg fertiliser bags among three farmers, raising concerns over fairness and equal access to government assistance,” the report states.

In Binga South, a village secretary was removed from his position “for not aligning with ruling party positions, affecting his political rights and freedom of association.”

In Matabeleland South, four violations were recorded, mainly involving political intimidation. In Gwanda, individuals allegedly invaded Vubachikwe Mine claiming political backing, while in Bulilima West, villagers were reportedly threatened with losing land under the land reform programme if they did not support the “2030” agenda.

Bulawayo recorded two violations, including a case where “a visually impaired woman was denied bus transport from Bulawayo to South Africa despite having valid travel documents and fare, raising concerns of discrimination based on disability.” Residents in Old Magwegwe also reported prolonged sewage blockages exposing families to health risks.

Midlands province recorded 13 violations, including environmental concerns in Redcliff and Kwekwe over potential water contamination linked to gold processing chemicals. In Zhombe, political interference prevented enforcement of a court sentence in an assault case. In Silobela, police disrupted a Gukurahundi memorial service organised by a human rights group.

Masvingo recorded 19 violations, including the assault and arrest of a female vendor at SimRac Shopping Complex. The report says her goods were destroyed in what it describes as harassment of informal traders. Patients at Mashoko Hospital and Gawa Clinic also faced high user fees and limited medication.

Mashonaland West recorded 10 violations, including alleged irregularities in agricultural input distribution in Magunje and assault linked to ruling party supporters in Sanyati.

Mashonaland East documented six violations. In Murehwa North, “Provincial Chairperson and Minister Daniel Garwe threatened individuals in Ward 30, warning that those supporting the opposition CCC would be excluded from community programs and that anyone associating with CCC members could face violent reprisals.”

Mashonaland Central recorded four violations, including exclusion of community members, including persons with disabilities, from presidential agricultural inputs in Mt Darwin South, and learners being denied access to Grade 7 results over unpaid fees.

Harare recorded 16 violations, including assaults linked to political intolerance, disruption of civic gatherings, politicisation of borehole water access in Glenview, and the detention of a political activist over a planned protest.

Manicaland recorded the highest number of violations at 31. ZPP said incidents involved “state security agents, ruling party members, war veterans, and local authorities,” including intimidation of a human rights defender in Chimanimani and disruption of a community meeting in Nyanga South.

Overall, ZPP said the January data reflects “continued structural and institutional challenges in the protection, promotion, and fulfilment of human rights,” reinforcing the need for strengthened accountability and rights-based governance across the country.

National

Police arrest six in major drug busts across the country

Published

1 week ago

February 17, 2026

VicFallsLive

BY BANDILE TSHUMA

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has arrested six suspects in separate incidents involving the unlawful possession and cultivation of dangerous drugs across the country.

In a press statement written on Monday, police said the arrests were part of ongoing efforts to curb drug trafficking and substance abuse.

On Sunday , police in Plumtree intercepted a Toyota Quantum vehicle and arrested Msawenkosi Ndlovu (49) and Vengai Chawa (41). The two were found in possession of 5 124 bottles of Broncleer cough syrup (100ml) and 4 170 bottles of Astra Pain cough syrup (100ml). The illicit substances are valued at approximately US$80 000.

In a separate case on the same day, police in Wedza arrested Emanuel Busemani (28) at Plot 7 Investment Farm in Melfort, Goromonzi in connection with the unlawful cultivation of dagga.

Meanwhile, in Bubi, Lacken Tshuma (55) and Owner Muleya (32) were arrested on Monday at Inunwa Ranch for unlawful cultivation of dagga.

In another incident on Friday, Tinashe Mero Shoko (22) and Eliot Badza (33) were arrested at a house in Garikai, Dulibadzimu, Beitbridge after police recovered 100 kilogrammes of dagga.

Police reiterated that the fight against drug and illicit substance peddling and trafficking will continue for the safety and security of Zimbabweans.

The ZRP urged members of the public to provide information on drug lords, dealers and criminal syndicates. Reports can be made through the National Complaints Desk on (0242) 703 631, via WhatsApp on 0712 800 197, or at any nearest police station.