In this story:
- WFP impacts lives
- Fight against drug abuse
- Beneficiaries graduate to sustainable projects
The World Food Programme (WFP) resilience-building programme, supporting urban communities facing food insecurity and vulnerability against economic and climate shocks, have had unlikely impact in Chinhoyi, which the organisation may not have envisioned.
Kudakwashe Mutandwa, a former tout has been taken off drugs.
The irony of the story is that the WFP had had no engagement with Kudakwashe. They did not know him and his challenges.
But just like the Dalai Lama says; “Just as ripples spread out when a single pebble is dropped into the water, the actions of individuals can have a far-reaching effect”, the WFP single pebble in Chinhoyi had positive effect on Kudakwashe.
“I used to be a tout and always spent the little I got on beer and drugs,” said Kudakwashe.
Kudakwashe’s road to transformation started when he met Rutendo Muzanenhamo, 24, one of the beneficiaries of the WFP’s resilience-building programme, supporting urban communities through sustainable resilience, livelihood creation and socio-economic empowerment activities.
The programmes are implemented through community-led approaches focusing on capacity building, livelihood promotion and socio-economic empowerment.
Activities around the programmes include income-generating projects, such as mushroom production, poultry, peanut butter processing and detergent making at the household level, among others.
Beneficiaries receive various community assets, and in Rutendo’s case, a welding machine and other supporting accessories and protective clothing.
Rutendo is now a successful welder, manufacturing window frames, panel doors, sliding gates and doors, raking in about US$800 per month in profits.
Her passion for welding received a major boost when she was selected as one of the beneficiaries of the Vocational Skills Activity, under the resilience building projects in 2021, as a metal fabrication student.
“I loved welding which was my uncle’s profession. But he did not allow women to do welding. However, his attitude towards women welders actually strengthened my resolve to take up welding as a profession,” said Rutendo.
“We were enrolled at Chinhoyi University of Technology for three months. After training, I went for attachment and that it where I was soon to discover some industry truths. What we learnt in college and the actual real industry life seemed different. You had to be strong mentally and physically,” she added.
Buoyed by her little success, Rutendo moved out of her parents’ house and taking her late sister’s children along with her and assumed responsibility for their upkeep and school fees.
Rutendo has since employed two workers, and one of them is Kudakwashe whom she dragged off the streets and drugs to train him as a welder.
“I met him at the taxi rank where he was a tout. I started engaging him offering him the chance to join us at the shop,” said Rutendo.
Kudakwashe said sometimes he would avoid Rutendo because he felt that she was “invading his privacy”.
But soon fate would have its way and some self-introspection had to happen.
“I got arrested for drugs and I started thinking about Rutendo’s offer. When I was released, I immediately looked for Rutendo. That’s how I stopped abusing drugs,” said Kudakwashe.
“Rutendo trained me in welding and this has helped me a lot. I can now make window frames. I’m always occupied so there’s not time to do drugs. I’m now trustworthy and can handle customers well because I have reformed. My wife had left me because when I abused drugs, I would turn violent. I’m happy because she has since returned home,” he said.
Bianca Dzvairo, head of WFP Harare Field Office said the programme is supporting 15,000 individuals who receive US$13 per person in the household every month.
“We’ve noted that most of them make use of this money to buy food at household level. And a few have mentioned that they also use this to supplement school fees, medical bills, and others have also gone the extra mile to make savings, which they have converted into some livelihood activities.
“Some have graduated from cake-making, some carpentry, some welding, some dressmaking, some small livestock support in the form of broilers, and some layers projects, to name a few. We also have agricultural-based value chains that we are implementing. There’s include hydroponics and vegetable gardens, where the local authorities have been able to provide spaces for people to do projects on a larger scale in small groups.,” said Dzvairo.
WFP worked closely with various stakeholders who are also operating within the Chinhoyi domain including government which has also come in and complemented by providing additional support in the form of trainings on various aspects as needed by the beneficiaries that we are supporting.
“As a layer, we also have another set of activities that we have brought in, which we have integrated, where some of these households that have been found to have labour, which are labour-endowed, are able to take part in resilience-building activities. And these resilience-building activities seek to ensure that they have a diversified livelihood base, where they’re able to generate household income and be able to supplement their various needs,” according to Dzvairo.
This is like a sustainability plan, which WFP hopes will be a graduation from the cash-based transfers to something more long-term and more meaningful.
As such, some have taken part in the vocational skills training, where WFP partnered with Ministry of Women Affairs which organised trainings in Chinhoyi at Chinhoyi University of Technology.
“We are also looking at ensuring that these people are skilfully trained, financial literacy trainings are provided, different types of technical assistance trainings are also provided, to ensure that these people are able to better manage their businesses and have a sustainable future,” she added.
Feedback: [email protected]
