Peter Matika, [email protected]
BULAWAYO City Council (BCC) has launched the Isiziba Innovation Hub, a facility aimed at helping young people turn innovative ideas into viable businesses, create jobs and develop solutions to challenges facing urban communities.
The hub, established through Hivos’ Urban Futures Programme in partnership with BCC and consortium partners, is expected to provide young entrepreneurs with access to mentorship, skills, networks and markets to support the development of sustainable enterprises.
The initiative comes as young people continue to face challenges accessing employment and economic opportunities, with entrepreneurship increasingly seen as a potential pathway to job creation and improved livelihoods.
Speaking at the launch yesterday, Bulawayo mayor Councillor David Coltart said the facility would empower young people to move beyond identifying community challenges and develop practical solutions.
“The Isiziba Hub is a welcome and commendable initiative because it creates an opportunity for young people to move beyond identifying challenges to becoming active participants in developing solutions.
“We want to see young people using their creativity, innovation and skills to address real challenges facing our city, particularly unemployment, waste management and climate change,” he said.
Clr Coltart said youth empowerment required more than providing physical space, adding that young people needed the tools, platforms and support to turn their ideas into sustainable businesses.
“As a city, we must continue creating an enabling environment where young people can thrive, innovate and become agents of positive change,” he said.
Clr Coltart said US$30 000 had been spent on refurbishing the facility, adding that the investment demonstrated the importance of prioritising initiatives that directly benefit communities.
Hivos portfolio manager for Africa, Mr Joy Mabenge, said the hub reflected the organisation’s commitment to involving young people in shaping the future of their cities.
He said sustainable urban development required the participation of communities, particularly young people and women, who experience challenges affecting their surroundings.
“At Hivos, we believe that the most effective solutions to urban challenges come from bringing together diverse actors, particularly young people and women, who experience these challenges daily and are best placed to drive innovative responses,” said Mr Mabenge.
He described the hub as a community asset and learning platform that will help generate practical solutions to urban challenges in Bulawayo and beyond.
The facility includes internet access, greenhouses and a wellness centre.
Mr Mabenge said the hub will give young people opportunities to access mentorship, knowledge, networks and markets needed to develop sustainable enterprises.
He said the Urban Futures Programme was testing approaches that placed young people at the centre of decision-making, enterprise development and climate action.
Mr Mabenge challenged stakeholders to take collective responsibility for the hub’s success, saying its long-term impact would depend on sustained investment and active participation.
“The launch of this hub is therefore a significant milestone in our work as it demonstrates the value of partnerships and the importance of investing in local solutions,” he said.
“It also reflects our conviction that when young people are given the space, tools and support they need, they become powerful drivers of economic growth, social inclusion and environmental sustainability.”
Mr Mabenge said Hivos had implemented programmes across Africa, South-West Asia Europe and the Americas, with its African programmes operating in Southern, Eastern Northern and West Africa.
In Zimbabwe and Zambia, the organisation’s Urban Futures Programme covers Bulawayo, Mutare, Chongwe and Kitwe.
The launch comes amid calls by Bulawayo councillors for youth centres to move beyond recreational activities and become fully equipped skills-development hubs.
The councillors have called for investment to turn the youth centres into vocational training institutions that can churn out trained youths that can turn their skills into sustainable livelihoods.
