Story by Kenias Chivuzhe

COMMUNITIES in Manicaland Province have endorsed the national economic blueprint, the National Development Strategy One (NDS1), whose implementation has transformed their lives.

With communities already ticking infrastructure development evaluation check-boxes, there is the excitement that the implementation of the NDS1 has set the tone for the attainment of an upper middle-income society by 2030.

The Makoni community has praised the government’s prioritisation of high-impact projects driven by the 14 pillars of NDS1.

“Since independence, we have not seen such transformative action. What is most exciting about NDS1 is that we share the national cake as we effectively harness our natural endowments,” said a traditional leader Chief Makoni.

“Unlike any other economic blueprints, we ever had, we are seeing results in NDS1. When we say we want to beneficiate what we have before exporting, it means more jobs for us women and youths,” said a community member.

“One of the pillars of NDS1 speak to food security issues through optimal use of arable land and water resource. This created more opportunities for youths who are now taking charge of their destinies,” said another community member.

Leading a NDS1 dissemination programme in Makoni and Mutasa areas of Manicaland province, Finance and Economic Development Deputy Minister, Honourable Clemence Chiduwa underscored the importance of public buy-in of national programmes to ensure collective participation.

“The feedback we are getting from communities during these engagements is crucial in modelling and evaluating policies,” noted Honourable Chiduwa.

“Manicaland communities have demonstrated that they are closely monitoring what central government is doing as they look for opportunities to improve their livelihoods,”
he went on.

The deliberate support of productive sectors as espoused in the NDS1 has also seen the country striving to maintain an average growth rate of 5 per cent.