Story by Tamuka Charakupa
THE Government’s rural industrialisation agenda is taking firm root in Hurungwe District, where the Nyamakate community has emerged as a shining example of empowerment and sustainable development through the Village Business Unit (VBU) initiative.
At the heart of this transformation lies the Hotel Village Nutritional Garden in Ward 7, a once modest project that has evolved into a thriving rural enterprise combining horticulture, fish farming, and apiculture.
The project, managed by 62 members including 14 widows has become a dependable source of food security and income for local families.
“We now have food security and extra income to support our families. The garden has changed our lives. We are earning decent incomes, proving to be a viable alternative,” chairperson of the Hotel Village Nutritional Garden, Mr White Mazahope said.
“With the profits, we managed to build a community hall which now hosts meetings and training sessions. We have managed to create a working culture in this community, and with this new attitude, we are going far,” a beneficiary, Mrs Visha Pote said.
“This garden has kept us occupied. Youths in this community are no longer involved in drug and substance abuse since this is not allowed near this project,” another beneficiary, Ms Violet Mutanga said.
The empowerment project, now under the custody of ZimParks, was funded by the African Wildlife Foundation to curb rampant poaching by providing alternative sources of income.
“As ZimParks, we are proud to see how this project has transformed livelihoods while promoting wildlife conservation. In the past, communities here depended on poaching for survival, but now they have viable, sustainable sources of income through gardening, fish farming, and beekeeping. This shift has greatly reduced human–wildlife conflict and strengthened our conservation efforts. When communities directly benefit from natural resources, they become our strongest partners in protecting them,” ZimParks Mid-Zambezi Senior Regional Manager, Mr Felix Chimeramombe said.
Mashonaland West Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Honourable Marian Chombo has pledged more government support after seeing the fruits of inclusive development.
“If we look at the projects we have seen here today, they are giving us good nutrition and better health. They also allow us to share and exchange what we don’t have with others. The community’s way of life has completely changed, supporting our leader, President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s vision of becoming an upper-middle-income society by 2030. Great work has been done, but at this stage what is needed is everyone’s support so that we unite, keep these projects going, and build a better future together,” Mashonaland West Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Marian Chombo said.
The project falls under the government’s Village Business Unit (VBU) programme, which seeks to accelerate rural industrialisation and promote value addition across communities.
