Online Reporter
Richard Muponde-Zimpapers Politics Hub
At the recently concluded ZANU PF 22nd National People’s Conference in Mutare, the party underlined the urgency of addressing drug and substance abuse.
The conference adopted a resolution calling on Government to establish rehabilitation and treatment centres in every district of Zimbabwe, in response to what was described as a “silent pandemic” of drug abuse among youth.
Rather than waiting passively for top‐down interventions, Mashonaland West Minister of Provincial Affairs and Devolution Marian Chombo has taken the lead by establishing the trust, scheduled for launch in on 01 November, under the theme “Say No to Drugs”.
The launch will be held at Katawa Business Centre and will feature the provincial youth games for both boys and girls in football and netball under the trust’s banner.
The party resolution directly ties to the national social infrastructure agenda and underscores development as inseparable from social regeneration.
The Government of Zimbabwe has in turn positioned drug and substance abuse as a threat to national development.
Under the leadership of President Mnangagwa, the country launched a “Whole of Government and Society Approach” to the scourge.
President Mnangagwa stated that: “The health and well-being of our citizens, especially the youth, is critical not only for our national development agenda but also for the socio-economic stability and sustainability of our nation.”
In that context, the Government mobilised funds, created a multi sectoral action plan and identified rehabilitation facilities. Thus, the stage is set, the political will is present, the directive is clear, and the challenge enormous.
In a statement by Marian Chombo Tournament, Cde J Zakaria said all youth and leaders and the communities are invited to the launch.
“We are inviting all for this Marian Chombo tournament finals which are the Provincial Youth Games being held under theme ‘Say No To Drugs’. The guest of Honour is MP Marian Chombo and all councillors, chairpersons and ZANU PF District Coordinating Committees are all invited.”
By organising a sporting event around the anti-drug theme, Cde Chombo is operationalising the resolution coming out of the 22nd Zanu PF National ‘s Conference in Mutare which emphasised youth livelihoods and drug abuse. Not only has she heard the call, but she has taken the task into her own hands, translating national policy into provincial action.
In Mashonaland West, at a recent police community engagement in Magunje, Minister Chombo reiterated: “Our youths are the leaders of tomorrow, however, through drug and substance abuse, their participation in nation-building is compromised. We have to fight the scourge together as a province,” Minister Chombo said.
This statement shows her emphasis on collective responsibility and on youth as a strategic national resource. The fact that the trust’s launch is tied to a youth sports tournament is significant.
Youth participation, boys and girls alike, in both netball and football, means the message is inclusive, visible, community‐based and positive. It offers an alternative to idleness, peer pressure, and substance abuse by creating structured, healthy activity.
The theme “Say No to Drugs” aligns exactly with the national priority.
The national policy documents speak of prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, supply reduction, and community reintegration. Cde Chombo’s trust addresses the prevention side directly through sport and community mobilisation.
It localises the broader Government move, from the President’s call, the National Drug Master Plan (2020-2025), and the multi-sectoral committee, by bringing it into the province’s youth life.
In this era where many policy pronouncements stay on paper, a provincial leader initiating a trust demonstrates follow through.
It shows that leadership can move beyond rhetoric, from the National Conference’s resolution, through the Government’s national strategy, down to the provincial level. Cde Chombo is modelling how other provincial and state leaders, ministers and agencies should emulate the process, adopt, adapt, and act.
Other leaders should emulate Cde Chombo’s approach by leading through action, creating local campaigns or youth centred programmes anchored in prevention and community mobilisation. Youths need constructive outlets, and tying anti drug themes to sports ensures participation, visibility, and an alternative to idleness. Her approach also aligns with the conference’s emphasis on 50/50 participation of women and youth.
By engaging councillors, district coordinators, traditional leaders, and community policing, the Trust harnesses the full ecosystem of provincial leadership.
Nationally, leaders must also push for decentralised rehabilitation facilities, as resolved by the conference, and ensure proper infrastructure, staffing, and funding. Coordination across ministries, provincial administrations, and agencies remains vital to sustain momentum.
The Government’s multi-sectoral committee and the National Drug Master Plan provide a framework that provincial leaders like Cde Chombo are now activating on the ground.
The next step is for others to mobilise resources, strengthen follow up, and monitor outcomes, making sure every initiative translates into measurable impact.
This fight is not only institutional, but cultural.
As one delegate at the conference said:
“This is no longer just a health issue, it’s a national emergency that demands community-based solutions.”
That message demands that the country move from blame to engagement, from policy to practice, from isolated action to a coordinated national strategy. President Mnangagwa has repeatedly described the drug scourge as a threat to “our national development agenda, socio-economic stability and sustainability,” highlighting the urgency of a collective and practical response.
Cde Chombo’s initiative is timely, grounded in a credible political mandate, and practical in its implementation. By using inclusive youth sport, the approach tackles both gender and youth engagement, offering a tangible alternative to substance abuse. However, prevention alone is not enough. Without accessible treatment and rehabilitation infrastructure at district level, those already addicted may be left behind. Sustaining momentum will require continued programming beyond the launch event, supported by resources, trained personnel, and community participation.
The initiative of the Marian Chombo Trust offers a compelling example of how political will articulated at national level can be translated into concrete, local action.
By anchoring the anti-drug agenda in youth sport and community engagement, she operationalises the theme “Say No to Drugs” in Mashonaland West.
Other leaders, whether provincial, ministerial, or local, would do well to emulate her proactive stance, create structures, engage youth, mobilise resources, and connect provincial efforts with national strategy.
The war on drugs is not only about law enforcement or rehabilitation, it is about building alternative pathways, restoring hope, and engaging young people in meaningful, constructive activity. As President Mnangagwa has said, the fight is about national development and stability.
The conference resolution and the Trust’s launch show Zimbabwe’s determination to move from rhetoric to action. Whether every district establishes its own rehabilitation centre and sustains prevention efforts will determine the success of this campaign.
If provincial leaders follow Cde Chombo’s example, Zimbabwe’s collective war on drugs stands a real chance of being won, not just in policy, but in the lives and futures of its young people.
