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Debra Matabvu
Women in rural areas should embrace healthy and hygienic practices to eradicate water-borne diseases and move with the times, First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa has said.
She said rural women had the potential to attaining the same living standards as their counterparts in urban areas if they explored their potential in life. The First Lady said this in reference to Ms Tendai Makunda of Chirumanzu, who has managed to uplift her living stands through various self-help projects.
“Women in the rural areas can also live in houses that are tiled and can have clean running water in their back yards if they are willing to work hard,” said the First Lady.
“We have a model house here in Chirumanzu, which is tiled, has modern facilities and it belongs to one of the women who reside in this place. Gone are the days when cow dung would be used in homes and huts, rural women can now also have the type of life that is enjoyed by their urban counterparts. This also promotes hygiene and healthy lifestyles.”
In an interview, Ms Makunda, a beneficiary of the First Lady’s empowerment projects, said she was living a modest life unimaginable in a rural set-up.
“I was incorporated into the First Lady’s projects in 2016, when she was a Member of Parliament,” she said. “Being a widow, I quickly grabbed the opportunity and that is how my life was transformed. We were given a sewing machine (as a group) and we started selling clothes. We managed to raise funds for other projects such as poultry and cattle breeding.
“This has immensely changed our lives, as women, and I am one of the women who have managed to re-model our houses using modern infrastructure.”
Bongani Ndlovu