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Flora Fadzai Sibanda, Chronicle Reporter
YOUTHS in Bulawayo have joined churches and the police in the fight against drug and substance abuse by participating in various campaign activities.
Churches and the police have been at the forefront of anti-drug campaigns.
Zimbabwe is witnessing a surge in drug and substance abuse and most of the people who are abusing drugs are youths.
As a way of tackling drug and substance abuse, a group of youths in Bulawayo has created a platform called The Young Peaceful Minds.
The group focuses on societal issues that affect youths and contribute to them abusing drugs and substances.
One of the group members Hillary Zvidza said most youths resort to drugs and substance abuse in a bid to deal with mental heath issues such as depression among other social problems.
He said they are hopeful that by including youths in a movement that identifies with them, they will be able to open up on challenges affecting them.
“Through this platform, we want to get to the root cause of drug and substance abuse. Most youths go through a lot of societal challenges resulting in them turning to drugs and substance abuse,” said Mr Zvidza.
Another youth, Mr James Mwanga said peer pressure plays a role in terms of drug and substance abuse.
“As a way of fighting this scourge, as youths we need to find something to do in our spare time instead of spending the day at home because an idle mind is the devil’s workshop,” he said.
A dance group in Makokoba suburb by the name Lokshen was formed to keep youths occupied. The group performs in various functions. Zimbabwe is working towards a drug-free society through a drug masterplan which will help the country achieve Vision 2030. The master plan aims at dealing with drug and substance abuse in society.
Addressing youths during the National Youth Day celebrations in Lupane recently, President Mnangagwa said under the Second Republic, his administration will continue to avail opportunities for the youth to realise their full potential in line with the devolution and decentralisation policy of ensuring that young people have access to quality social services such as education and health facilities. He also noted that drug and substance abuse is one of the leading causes of crime, gang violence, dysfunctional families, injury and premature death of young people.
At Government level, an inter-ministerial committee has been established to scale up the implementation of multi-pronged strategies in response to the drugs and substance abuse scourge. -@flora_sibanda
Bongani Ndlovu