Tsholotsho youth drive employment creation

Sikhulekelani Moyo, [email protected]

Youth in Tsholotsho, Matabeleland North, are driving employment through the value addition of local produce.
The co-operative initiative, which was exhibited at the just-ended 66th Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) in Bulawayo, has already created jobs for more than 20 young people.”

The Tsholotsho RDC Youth Entrepreneurship showcased various products, including shoes, soap, dried vegetables and fruits at ZITF 2026.

A representative of Tsholotsho MarketSpace, Ms Almita Mlalazi, said in an interview they are working across four value chains: leather processing, soap making, dried fruits and vegetables and apiculture.

“We are working with 20 youth and we are supplying the Tsholotsho local market,” said Ms Mlalazi.

“We are looking forward to increasing our market base.”

After touring exhibition stands from Matabeleland North districts, Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Richard Moyo commended the work being done in the province, saying it has created employment for local communities.

“I think the province is doing well. You can see there are baskets there, fish there and some indigenous trees which they turn into tea leaves. Even in Nkayi, they’ve got minerals, which they want to beneficiate, hence creating jobs,” said Minister Moyo.

“They are looking for investors, who can come and benefit from that stone, which they have in Nkayi. And you can see the youth in Tsholotsho, they are making shoes from cattle skins and also, they are drying okra and some other traditional vegetables.”

He noted that all seven councils in Matabeleland North have investment opportunities, urging the locals to share the investment opportunities with investors, who may want to invest in the province.

Minister Moyo said a ready market exists for the products, particularly school shoes, being produced by Tsholotsho RDC Youth Entrepreneurship.

“Schools surrounding Tsholotsho can be co-ordinated to buy from them,” he said.
“What we want is to look for investors, who can come and work with these youth financially so that they grow.”

The 66th edition of ZITF generated more than US$600 million in business transactions, confirming its role as a key investment and industrial matchmaking platform.

The Government now expects the total value of deals concluded at the fair to rise significantly once all commitments are finalised, with long-term ambitions of pushing annual transactions beyond the US$1 billion mark.

Officials said the results challenge the perception that ZITF is merely a networking event, arguing instead that it has evolved into a serious commercial marketplace.