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Obey Sibanda
FOURTEEN-YEAR-OLD Nompumelelo Nyonia��s school attendance each day is apparently determined by how much food is left in the pantry.
a�?Every morning, the first thing I do is go to the kitchen,a�? she said, adding that, a�?If there is food, I go to school; if there is none, I go to work.a�?
a�?My father used to work as a farm labourer and paid our school fees with his paltry salary until 2010 when he lost his job. The farm was converted into a mine and hunger forced me to drop out of school and work to help him to put food on the table,a�? said Nompumelelo, whose name ironically means a�?mother of successa��.
Sadly, Nompumeleloa��s case is not an isolated one but a graphic indication in Matabeleland Northa��s Bubi district where children aged between 13 and 16 have to drop out of school and venture into menial jobs and financially help their families.
Village head Jeff Nyoni said hunger stalking people in the district was forcing many children to drop out of school to work in dangerous disused mines where their lives are at risk.A� They work without proper protection.
Nyoni expressed fears that more children, particularly the girl child would drop out of school if nothing was done to avert hunger looming in the area this year.
a�?Pupils including the Early Childhood Development (ECDs) walk long distances of about nine kilometres daily to the nearest school. This tends to discourage them from attending school regularly, some have declared school a a�?no-goa�� area,a�? he said.
Nyongolo Primary School Development Committee vice chairperson Ezra Dube pointed out that most pupils in the district leave home without eating anything, and spend the day at school on empty stomachs leading some parents to withdraw them.
a�?There are reports from the school that pupils sleep during lessons because of hunger and long distances they walk to school which is about nine kilometres. Teachers dona��t punish them for coming to school late because they have realised problems affecting these pupils,a�? said Dube.
The district is located in land richly endowed with natural resources but locals have little or nothing to show for this abundance.
Mineral resources are controlled by multinational companies siphoning the proceeds out of the country.
Locals are trapped in vicious poverty cycles despite claims of corporate social responsibility by the various mining companies.
Villagers are bitter that gold mining has not benefitted them as they continue to face difficulties in accessing clinics and schools.
a�?We are not getting first preference in terms of employment opportunities at the mining fields. The companies import cheap labour from other areas. Even the ancillary staff is not from this village,a�? said Ndaba Ncube, from Dollar village.
According to information obtained from the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, Bubi district has the highest number of satellite schools in Matabeleland North province, some operating under pole and dagga classrooms while 14 operate in farm houses.
The district has a total number of 54 primary schools; only 30 are registered while the other 24 are satellite schools.
Classes in most schools are composite with pupils of different grades cramped together. Early child hood grades ECD A and B learn in the open or under shades compromising the quality of education offered and this is a cause for concern considering that this is the most crucial stage in learning.
Acting District Education Officer (DEO) Virginia Sibanda highlighted that in all satellite schools, there were no ablution facilities for both pupils and teachers. Teachers have no decent accommodation, they live in improvised houses and they walk long distances to schools and this had adversely impacted the quality of education rendered to the children hence the poor pass rate.
a�?In addition to a lack of separate toilet facilities for boys and girls, there is poor road network, dilapidated infrastructure. Teachers walk 20 kilometres to school, as such the district has failed to attract qualified and dedicated teachers,a�? she said.
Most major mining companies in the district have deliberately failed to honour their social responsibility of giving back to the community.
Apart from all the mining companies dotted around the district only Thathile Mine has been ploughing back to the community for three consecutive years.
The mining company has donated slightly above $10 000 to the Bubi Community Share Ownership Trust (CSOT).
Thathile Mine public relations officer Esnath Zhou pointed out that her company always has the belief that they should do something for the community.
a�?We have actually drafted our own programme for what we will do for the community in the next five years. We have drilled six boreholes and donated books to schools,a�? she said.
Chief Mtshane lamented that despite making huge profits other mining companies did not want to give locals what was due to them.
a�?Ita��s sad that only one mining company is giving back to the community while there are so many companies taking away the wealth of the community as well as the country. Our children learn under poor conditions which can improve if these other companies are to chip in,a�? said Chief Mtshane.
Amos Ncube, director at Tips Mine said his company was not in a position to meet their obligation of paying back to the community as stipulated by the Community Share Ownership Trust (CSOT) scheme.
a�?We are faced with a situation whereby we are considering downsizing our staff in order to meet our monthly costs. We are aware that in a way we must assist locals but at the moment we are not realising any meaningful profits,a�? he said.
Minister of Youth, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Patrick Zhuwao said the resource underground has much value than the investment, but when it comes to ploughing back to the community, the mining companies remain stubborn, intransigent and refuse to honour their obligation of paying back to the locals.
a�?Mines in the district have been robbing the locals of their wealth and this has to change,a�? charged the Minister.
The minister pointed out that plans were under way to uplift share ownership structure from the initial 51 percent.
He said shareholding for non-indigenous entities must be calculated on the basis of the infrastructure put on the ground in relation to the value of the infrastructure in the ground so that locals enjoy proceeds of their God given natural resources.
Chief Mtshane who is also the chairman of the CSOT said they had made a positive contribution in uplifting the community using the money they received from Thathile Mine.
The trust has since undertaken several projects which include the construction of classroom blocks, one at Mvundla and another block at Sishawe primary school, purchasing classroom furniture for Esiphikeni secondary school and renovation of a farm house into a clinic at Battle fields among other projects.
Bubi constituency Member of Parliament Clifford Sibanda highlighted that his office, working with the relevant Ministries, the Rural District Council and the office of the District Administrator continued to channel funding and efforts towards the provision of quality education in the constituency.
a�?We have witnessed the resuscitation of a number of schools including Mahlabathini, Mavikeni and Sijawugwe. We therefore invite the funding from Government and Non-Government Organisations to help us achieve our dream,a�? said the MP.
Traditionally Bubi districta��s agricultural sector was dual; on the one hand there was the commercial sub-sector that comprised medium-scale farms producing cash crops such as grain, on the other the small-scale producers who grew food crops, especially maize and cattle ranching.
This food fed the district and there was even surplus for export to other districts in the province. The gold rush dismantled the existing system of land distribution and severely damaged the commercial farming sector, which provided employment for scores of people in rural areas.
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