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President Mugabe launched the indigenous economic empowerment programme at Colleen Bawn on Friday.
A total of 15 mining companies and a cement manufacturer came together to set up the fund and pledged to give 10 percent of their annual profits to community development programmes. The companies gave out a $5 million cheque during the launch.
Matabeleland South is reeling under years of successive droughts and under-development, despite its mineral wealth.
Speaking on the sidelines of the launch, the chairperson of the community development fund, Chief Khulumani Mathema, said the district was endowed with numerous mineral resources, which had been exploited by multi-national companies for a long time, without any benefit to locals.
He said the trust fund would be used to develop irrigation schemes in the drought-prone area, boost education infrastructure, upgrade health facilities, improve water and sanitation, reconstruct and rehabilitate roads and start a livestock restocking programme.
“There are few schools offering Advanced level in the district and these are not enough for our children to feed the National University of Science and Technology (Nust). Most of our roads were damaged by Cyclone Eline and are still impassable. We also need to restock as most of our livestock is succumbing to drought,” said Chief Mathema.
He said the CSOS/T was a long overdue programme whose implementation reflected the wisdom of the country’s leaders and their unwavering willingness to better the lives of Zimbabweans.
“As chiefs, we will always work closely with the Government to promote transparency in these empowerment programmes. It is our God-given duty as custodians of natural resources to augment the efforts of our leaders by ensuring that the trust funds are used to improve the lives of our people who have been downtrodden for a long time,” said Chief Mathema.
Also speaking during the same occasion, a representative of Pretoria Portland Cement said the company was proud to be part of the scheme to empower communities.
“It is an honour for PPC to be part of the programme. We have given R16 million to kick-start the CSOS/T. We will also invest R16 billion in the country in the next five years as a vote of confidence in Zimbabwe’s leadership,” said the representative.
He said his company hoped to cement relations with the Government and community through the CSOS/T deal.
Mr Stefan Heyden of Blanket Mine said the scheme was proof to the world, which was keenly watching developments, that indigenisation done properly, benefited both investors and locals.
He said the high literacy levels in the country were testimony of the shrewd investment in education by President Mugabe’s Government at Independence.
“That, combined with the work ethic of Zimbabweans, makes the country ideal for investment. We have therefore forged a relationship based on mutual respect and trust with the indigenisation ministry and Gwanda,” said Mr Heyden.
The CSOS/T is a countrywide Government initiative spearheading development and empowering rural communities by giving a 10 percent stake in all businesses that exploit natural resources in their area.
Matabeleland South became the third province after Mashonaland West and Midlands, in which the CSOS/T has been launched.
Zimplats was the first to launch the scheme in Mhondoro, Chegutu and Zvimba in October last year. Unki Mines in Shurugwi was the second.
In February the scheme was launched at Mimosa Mine in Zvishavane and on Friday it was launched in Gwanda.
Online Reporter