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Herald Reporter
Marketers Association of Zimbabwe (MAZ) has joined the national fight against drug and substance abuse by youths and plans to raise US$10 000 through its annual charity golf tournament, which would be channelled towards fighting the scourge.
Drug and substance abuse has become a national challenge especially in high density areas, with a number of youths having died or becoming insane due to abuse of drugs.
President Mnangagwa has urged youths to abandon drugs, and directed the police to hunt down those that supply the drugs.
A research done by the Health Professionals Empowerment Trust in Zimbabwe indicated that 50 percent of admissions to mental institutions have been attributed to substance-induced disorders.
The MAZ Charity Foundation, an arm of Marketers Association of Zimbabwe, has since embarked on a fundraising initiative whose objective is to facilitate income generating projects under the theme, “Rescue-a-teen from substance abuse”.
The initiative is targeted at teens involved in drug and substance abuse, and is being run in partnership with Teen Rescue Mission Trust.
MAZ executive secretary Mr Gillian Rusike said: “As an association, we have decided to join the national fight against drug and substance abuse.
“This is a real scourge that requires collective effort from all citizens and corporates at large.”
Mr Rusike said this year they partnered the Teen Rescue Mission Trust, a non-profit community-based organisation that focuses on teens and youths involved in drug and substance abuse, premature sex and teen crime, to fight the scourge.
“To raise funds for this cause, MAZ is hosting a Charity Golf Tournament on the 29th of July at the ZRP Golf Club and the target is to raise US$10 000, which will go towards the construction and facilitation of income generating projects on a piece land the Trust acquired in the Seke area,” said Mr Rusike.
He appealed to corporates and all golf players to be part of the Charity Golf Tournament.
Teen Rescue Mission director, Mr Abraham Matuka, said: “As an organisation fighting against the rise in drug abuse, we are happy to have MAZ coming on board to empower these youths through projects to be set on the organisation’s piece of land (in Seke). “We are working towards constructing structures for income generating projects at our stand in Seke and we would also want to start a chicken project which will be run by youths, thereby keeping them busy as well as giving them a source of income.
“It is mostly unemployment and idleness which drives them to drugs,” said Mr Matuka.
The projects, said Mr Matuka, will go a long way in empowering the youths and community as well.
Over the years, MAZ has been involved in different corporate social responsibility initiatives through its charity golf tournament, including the “donate a shoe campaign” which saw the Association handing over school shoes to Chokera Primary School in Masvingo in 2018 and Mathew Rusike in Epworth in 2019.
In 2020, proceeds from the charity golf tournament were used to buy sunscreen lotions which were donated to the Zimbabwe Albino Association.
In the same year, the MAZ Charity Foundation responded to the Covid-19 pandemic by donating food baskets and other basic commodities to the Methodist Church in Epworth.
It also donated stationery to Dambudzo Primary School in the Midlands Province after the school had its roof blown away by heavy rains.
This year, the Charity Foundation handed over basic commodities and toiletries to the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) in Chinhoyi, which were bought using proceeds from last year’s golf tournament, held under the theme, “Prison Campaign”, as well as groceries donated by National Foods.
Online Reporter