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Midlands Bureau
Businessman, Mr Kudakwashe Tagwirei through his charity arm, Bridging the Gap Foundation (GPF) donated tractors and other farming equipment to nine schools in the Midlands Province as a way of empowering them to become more self-sufficient.
Nine schools drawn from areas including Zhombe, Silobela in Kwekwe District and Gokwe South District, received a full complement of farming equipment which includes a tractor, trailers, harrows, ploughs and planters through the Seventh Day Adventist Church’s Zimbabwe Central Union Conference.
Apart from the farming equipment, the schools will also receive inputs including fertilisers and seeds.
They will be mentored by trained agronomists paid by the church to help them in their farming exploits.
Handing over the donation in Kwekwe this afternoon, BGF executive director, Dr Blessing Nyahuma said the donations were being done in phases.
“So far only nine schools have benefited out of a possible 21 schools that are meant to receive this donation in this region,” he said
“This is after we discovered that all schools have land but cannot utilise it because they do not have equipment hence the land is not fully utilised.
“On top of that we are also giving them inputs and the trailers that they can use for ferrying the yield when they harvest. So this is a comprehensive set of farming equipment from the planting stage to yielding.”
Dr Nyahuma said the move was meant to foster sustainable development within schools and communities.
“We have made such donations in Matabeleland where we gave about 17 schools almost the same equipment,” he said
“We have been to Birchenough-Bridge where we donate to hospitals. We have been given food across the country as a way to alleviate poverty within our community.
“You would find that from our programs, apart from capacity building, we are also doing other projects to foster sustainable development within the community.”
BGF Head of centers of influence, Mr Blessing Chitsato said the equipment will benefit the schools as well as the whole community.
“We want to ensure that the schools benefit agriculturally and that the community benefits from subsidised prices for tillage services, ploughing, disking, and planting among other services.
“The money that is generated from the hiring of the equipment can be channeled towards the sprucing up the equipment and the development of the school.”
He said agronomists will be strategically deployed in selected areas who will work with the schools and the community and help manage the equipment.
Receiving the equipment, ZCUC head of education, Pastor Tarisai Chikomo said the donation came at a time when schools were struggling to utilise vast tracts of land they have which were lying idle.
“We have been struggling to bring the schools to a self-sustainable stage due to lack of equipment,” he said.
“We were depending on donations in the school feeding programs and we could not even develop our schools, but with this donation, we can plant our own food which can be used for feeding programs and even for sale and to develop the school.”
He said on selecting the schools, they targeted those with vast tracts of idle land.
“We looked at those that have tillable land that has been lying idle and also we looked at issues like availability of manpower that is agriculture teachers,” he said.
“We are however hopeful that every school should be able to benefit as we look forward to empowering every school. In the meantime, the schools can be sharing the available equipment since they are sister schools.”
Founded back in 2010, BGF is a brainchild of Mr Tagwirei together with wife Sandra which seeks to promote sustainability and self-sustenance in schools and communities.
Besides assistance to schools, the foundation is also assisting hospitals across the country and drilling boreholes in some marginalised communities where water is a problem.
Online Reporter