ICS Zimbabwe

To gain an insight into the lives and routines of the people in rural Binga, we, the UK and Zimbabwean volunteers, recently spent the weekend in a small, traditional village; not as visitors, but as part of the family - thereby working, eating and living as part of the community.

Saturday

We arrived late on Saturday and were introduced to the head man of the village; a man dressed modestly in casual sportswear. He gave us a warm welcome, then let us take a walk around the village and introduce ourselves to people there.

Fridays here in Binga finish as early as 2pm in the office. During the hottest part of the day the volunteer group with partner organisation, Basilwizi, expected a leisurely walk home along our usual route beside the quiet road, cars occasionally passing crammed full of people making their way home.

How often does one get a second chance at an amazing opportunity?  Frequently? Sometimes?  Almost never?  Well I’m one of the few lucky people to get another go on the ICS journey, however this time as a group leader.

In the UK, there are only a few things you can do that are deemed ‘culturally unacceptable’, such as staring at a stranger, to push into a queue and to have more than one wife. 

Here in Zimbabwe, especially in Binga where we have been working, cultural beliefs and practices, namely Tonga culture affect so many more aspects of life. Often they are very different from our own customs and I have found them fascinating during our placement.

Like many countries there remain damaging gender stereotypes within Zimbabwe that restrict and limit the extent that women can express themselves, both professionally and culturally. Local practices such as ‘lobola’ (bride price) and external pressures such as unemployment and alcoholism, all contribute to a society that is plagued with gender based violence. Basilwizi, our partner organisation, aims to combat these ills and stimulate a society that has gender equality at the heart of everything it does.

‘This year it is so bad, we really have to guard our compound and fields because of the baboons.’

Welcomes and greetings mean a lot in Zimbabwe. In the rural areas particularly, a smile or a nod never suffices, friendliness is shown by treating everyone as your brother or sister, so it is always customary to ask at the very least about one’s day, how the family is, and how work is going. This applies whether you cross paths with a mother carrying water down the road, or pass by a farmer watering his plot.

We arrived in Kariyangwe early on Wednesday morning; it was already over 30 degrees. Our partner organisation had arranged for us to meet two local residents, Enia and Jairos, who were HIV positive. Given it was them who were to be asked questions on how they came to catch the condition and then live with it, I was nervous. This would be the first time I had met anyone who was HIV positive and willing to discuss it – I needn’t have worried. The meeting lasted just under an hour and both Enia and Jairos told their stories with dignity, openness and humour.

Our school programme is now on the roll and it is full steam ahead from here. After all the meetings and various amendments to our action plan we now have a concrete list of all the topics we will be presenting to our targeted primary and secondary schools in and around Regina. Our topics range from child abuse to waste management to HIV & AIDS basics to gender equality.

Local volunteer Raymond Tafadswa Muzundo writes:

After having spent their first weekend at Regina Coeli mission the UK volunteers now had a broad picture of the mission but were still anxious to get involved in the community. However, as it is said, failing to plan is to plan to fail.