Facelift for Rushinga schools

Fungai Lupande Mashonaland Central Bureau

Schools in Rushinga have been transformed into modern institutions with facilities including flush toilets and irrigation through the Presidential Borehole Scheme that improves health and allows schools to start generating income to sustain their day to day needs.

Through this programme, Kamanika Primary School has ventured into sweet potato farming to strengthen agriculture practicals and generate income.

The Presidential scheme for borehole drilling aims at drilling boreholes in 35 000 villages across the country and so far Rushinga has managed at least six boreholes per ward.

Legislator for Rushinga Cde Tendai Nyabani said places like Harare did not come close in access to clean water compared to Rushinga.

He said in 2018, Rushinga was hit by a critical shortage of water and through the Presidential borehole scheme seven boreholes were to be drilled in each of the 21 wards.

“We have several piped water schemes in all our villages,” said Cde Nyabani. “People have access to running tap water. Through the Presidential borehole scheme, our schools have been transformed into modern establishments with access to flush toilets.

“Most rural schools have squat toilets and we are exposing our children to modernisation.”

Kamanika Primary School’s acting headmistress Ms Kwanisai Murigo said the school set up its sweet potato field when water arrived in 2021.

“We irrigated our crop from August until the end of November,” she said. “We are now harvesting our crop and we will sell firstly to close-by villages for nutritional needs of our pupils.”

Ms Murigo said proceeds from the garden will go towards buying school furniture.

She said the sweet potato project augmented the competence-based curriculum.