Chronicle Editor
Tendai Rupapa in England
MEMBERS of an international organisation which focuses on creating life-changing opportunities for vulnerable groups through education, entrepreneurship and agri-business, have applauded First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa’s outstanding work through her Angel of Hope Foundation.
The organisation’s senior strategy advisor — Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Mr Nero Ughwujabo and Ms Thulo Mali, the fundraising manager — Africa, paid a courtesy call on the First Lady and paid glowing tribute to her hard work and tireless efforts to empower vulnerable groups mainly women and youths.
They said their organisation’s work is aligned to that of Angel of Hope Foundation pointing out that there were possible areas of co-operation with them.
Dr Mnangagwa is in the United Kingdom at the invitation of the president of the African Society at the University of Cambridge, a dynamic and diverse community dedicated to promoting African intellectualism, culture and values.
“Our Trust is working in Africa in countries like Kenya, Rwanda, Nigeria, Ghana and others. We will be keen to explore Zimbabwe because supporting Africa is our key interest. We work primarily with young people supporting them to build their confidence and also to look at ways they can set up their own businesses. Most of the work in the African continent is on the two sides of education and setting up your own private business. A lot of young people actually come through the trust.
“There is quite a range of interests and we are pleased that Dr Mnangagwa is doing the same for the people of Zimbabwe and her works are outstanding,” he said.
Dr Mnangagwa highlighted her interventions among youths to stem the challenge of teen pregnancies which reared an ugly head during the Covid-19 era when schools and businesses were closed due to lockdown restrictions.
“During this period we saw many girls being impregnated and they dropped out of school. So we are saying to the teen mothers, the girl child, come and we will equip you with some skills so that they do not dump the babies but look after them.
Through my foundation’s partnership with a local university — The Zimbabwe Open University, I am educating the whole family, from the child to the grandmother and grandfather regardless of age. They are benefiting from short courses being offered so that they are able to set up their own businesses,” she said.
In an interview later, Mr Ughwujabo reiterated his delight in meeting the First Lady.
“We are delighted to have had a conversation with Her Excellency, the First Lady of Zimbabwe. I am very happy to hear about her foundation that is also working with young people, young women in particular and empowering women in terms of enterprise and education and all of these programmes are very much aligned with the work of the Prince’s Trust in particular Prince’s Trust International which works in parts of the African countries.
There are great opportunities for collaboration and for working together, learning together and hopefully reaching some of those young people and young women who need support,” he said.
Mr Ughwujabo praised the First Lady for her hands-on approach.
“It is really great that the First Lady is just not having these ideas and setting them up for other people to run but she is personally going on the ground being with the people from grassroot level, engaging the women, young people and participating in those programmes she is spearheading through the Angel of Hope Foundation.
That is a real inspiration to women and that brings her closer to women and communities across Zimbabwe and I think that’s also a great approach which is really genuine to engage with communities. It is directly getting deep in their needs, understand those needs and respond in a way that actually meets those needs and that’s a great job and congratulations to her for that,” he said.
Ms Mali echoed similar sentiments.
“I had the pleasure of meeting the First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa and there are a lot of synergies between her foundation and what we do with the trust particularly in Africa in terms of girls education and empowerment.
Sixty-five percent of the young people that we work with globally are young women so there is a lot of synergy there and in terms of what we do in Africa. It is about entrepreneurship, agribusiness and I see that there is definitely conversations that we can continue to have and see how we are able to work together fruitfully,” she said.
During the discussions, Amai Mnangagwa told the duo that she was always out in the field working.
“I don’t stay in the office, I am always out and about being with the people especially in the rural and remote areas. By being with the people, it gives me more information to learn more about, when and how I can chip in and help. I separate the First Lady’s office and my foundation.
I have the foundation’s offices and accommodation at the foundation where I am taking care of those who have cancer and most of them come from rural areas which are very far for them to travel daily for treatment, so I house them and the Ministry of Health and Child Care comes to pick them up from there for treatment,” she said.
During the treatment period, Dr Mnangagwa said she also trains the patients some skills to generate income for themselves back home.
She spoke about her traditional meal promotion programme where she is helping communities with the means to preserve the food to ensure it is consumed throughout the year.
“We are introducing the nutritious and medicinal food in the hotels and very soon our airline will have it as well. I also introduced the traditional cookout competitions. After we had planted these traditional grains then I said let us have competitions to see how you prepare the dishes wherever you are and how to preserve the food.
So it was done throughout the country and I saw a lot of menus there. The competitions also brought people more closer and made them more united. It also led to regional competitions,” Dr Mnangagwa said with an air of accomplishment.
She said she was also working hard to end the drug abuse challenges which are destroying the lives of young people.
“Drugs have affected our youths and we are fighting very hard for them to quit this. As a foundation we are in the process of setting up a rehabilitation centre where we can take them from the streets and doctors come to help with the rehabilitation and after that we release them.
At the same time monitoring them as we equip them with skills as well hoping that it will help them after and there is a lot that the foundation is doing for the young people,” she said as she welcomed the proposal for a partnership between the two organisations.
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