Project trip to Zimbabwe

Visit to the projects of Chiedza Chenyika Organization

Markus Schopp (KETAAKETI country coordinator for Zimbabwe) travels to Zimbabwe with his wife Sabine in April 2024. He describes his experiences during the project trip in a personal report:

13.04.2024, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe:

"Just 30 minutes after leaving the plane, we see the first unmistakable signs from the car that we are in Africa: market small stalls more or less close to the roadside, lots of people walking from A to B, cows and goats grazing on the side of the road regardless of the traffic, overloaded ancient trucks, women hurrying to the stopped intercity bus to sell food to the bus passengers from baskets balanced on their heads, and lots of children in school uniforms. And yet something is different, although this "different" does not refer to a clearly identifiable visual impression, but rather arises from a diffuse feeling. And then we name this feeling almost simultaneously: the atmosphere here seems more relaxed, more calm than we have felt in other African countries. A smile or a friendly word everywhere. We will probably feel at home here in Zimbabwe.

Maybe it's different in Harare, but here in Bulawayo, the second largest city in the country with 1.2 million inhabitants, there is no sign of hectic activity, traffic chaos or aggression. In total, Zimbabwe is home to 15.5 million people, of whom almost 100,000 are white. In an area of 391,000 square kilometers, the population density is significantly lower (42/square kilometer) than we are used to in Germany (238). As a result, the country appears almost deserted in places on our journey east."

Get to know the project partners personally

Visit to the German Ambassador

"The rest of the team has already arrived at our first planned project village to conduct a training session there. Adeyline, Innocent, Sabine and I have a meeting with the German ambassador in Harare on the agenda. The conversation with the ambassador is very nice and informative, although we naturally spoke in English out of consideration for our African friends. Our impressions gained during the trip to the south of the country were confirmed; the ambassador described the people in his host country as remarkably friendly, creative and hardworking.

Zimbabwe does not receive any funds from German development cooperation; at least the sanctions imposed after the disastrous land reform of former President Robert Mugabe have largely been lifted, partly because Zimbabwe has committed to compensating the white farmers who were expropriated in 2000.

Adeyline Dzumbira, NGO leader of the Chiedza Chenyika Organization

“Consistent with both local and global trends, I represent the plight of vulnerable and historically marginalised populations in our Zimbabwean societies; namely children, women and the youth. My desire is, first and foremost, to ensure that they enjoy their different rights as enshrined in our Zimbabwe Constitution. In protecting and advancing their rights, I seek to empower them through educational and entrepreneurship support, among other interventions. The ultimate goal is to create a healthy, equal and just society where everyone's dormant potentialities are activated for the normal functioning of society."

Warmest welcome for the visitors

"And then something happens that turns out to be a pattern for all our project visits in the coming days. As representatives of KETAAKETI, we are given places of honor in the prepared and partly lovingly decorated meeting place. In one village, we are allowed to admire chickens and two pigs that 13 women bought together using microfinance money. Now the ladies are waiting for offspring, after all, the microfinance is to be paid back and two small piglets are to be the property of the village and "earn" the children's school fees in the future."

The women who have successfully improved their lives with microfinance is given a certificate and a small gift to motivate them further. The guest Markus Schopp has the honour of receiving these gifts from the Chiedza Chenyika Organization to the women.

Good mood at the reception in a village where new microfinance projects are being launched.

"But after properly admiring the pigs and their pens, it's time to go to the places of honor. Sometimes there's coffee, sometimes juice, sometimes homemade little cakes, sometimes a whole dinner. In the end, we never stay in these places of honor for long, but after a very short time we find ourselves singing, dancing, cheering and rejoicing over successfully completed or newly received start-up loans."

In the village school building, project manager Innocent Dube explains to the assembled women once again the basic principles of financial management: saving, budgeting, etc., so that the microfinance received is used well.

10 women from the village each received €100, which they now want to use to significantly improve their lives.

The principle of "Headwomen"

"For us, the high point of the loan cycle is of course celebrated: the women who have managed to pay back their loan are allowed to report what they did with the 100 euros and are rewarded with lots of applause, a certificate and a small gift. Then the next women receive this money and explain what they plan to do next. In this context, the principles of money management that have already been discussed in more detailed training sessions are mentioned again; budgets, spending controls, reserves and generally responsible management are discussed.

The new groups of ten will choose a "headwoman" from among themselves who will be responsible for contact with Chiedza Chenyika over the coming months and will also be responsible for collecting the loan repayments. This is a position that requires a great deal of trust, both from the borrowers and from the organization. We are discussing the possibility of more extensive training for these "headwomen" and promise to take the topic back to Germany for internal KETAAKETI discussions."

The road to the village of Mutasa in the eastern highlands of Zimbabwe - difficult to navigate in the dry season, impassable in the rainy season

"Of course there are villages where things are not going so well at the moment because of conflicts with the "community leaders" appointed by the government, there are villages where the projects are just running quietly, and there is DC Mutasa, this village in the mountains of the eastern highlands that is almost inaccessible even in dry weather via a sand, gravel and rock track, where we are showered with so much love that we hardly know how to deal with it. The reception, as soon as the women see our car, with singing, dancing and hugs, is hard to beat in terms of warmth."

Four women from the village have put together a short play and are now performing it for the other women in the village and visitors. The play explains the principles of interest-free microfinance with sharing.

"Then we see that there are also several men present who also greet us in a friendly manner.

Later we dare to ask. Yes, there were conflicts between the women, who had become more self-confident thanks to their economic success, and their husbands, who wanted to remain in the role of pasha, but that was over now, the men had realized that a wife who brought money home was not so bad after all. Some of the women presented this whole development in a short play to everyone's delight. How the news of the interest-free start-up loan spreads, how the husband (who is of course portrayed drunk) finally understands what his wife is doing and why she is so self-confident, all of this is presented in a heartwarming way and is met with wild applause and singing. Then the certificates are awarded here too, while some of the women are already busy cooking for the guests (chicken legs with sassa and vegetables). The men also join in for the final group photo."