VICE-PRESIDENT Joice Mujuru has urged women entrepreneurs to use their skills to generate income through various sustainable projects. PERPETUAL PHIRI OWN CORESPONDENT
Speaking at a Zanu PF women’s league ZimAsset conference held at Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo (JMN) Polytechnical College in Gwanda yesterday, Mujuru said women needed to be empowered under the programme in order to build a strong nation.
“President (Robert) Mugabe included the Women’s Affairs ministry as he wants women to be empowered, thus each and every woman has a full right to develop this country because the government is there to tell us how to generate income under ZimAsset. We should be in charge of this country as we want to build a strong nation by giving people riches,” said Mujuru.
She said women were important and needed to be empowered by being given chances to engage in sustainable activities.
“We know this is a golden province, but the problem is where is that gold in our families and how can we enjoy gold in our area? Moreover, if you look around, Matabeleland South is rich and there are vast tracts of land, but if you check, you hardly see a beast and I wonder where the Ministry of Agriculture is to make use of those jungles.
“We are all thinking mining because we heard of abundance of gold in Matabeleland South, but we are all not miners. Some people should turn to something sustainable and there are four clusters of production we can focus on – maize, roadrunners (chickens), cattle (rearing) and milk,” she said.
Mujuru said Agriculture minister Joseph Made and his deputy Paddy Zhanda would be sent to teach people cattle breeding so that people do not just look to mining.
“The problem we have is that we are strengthening sanctions by stealing that gold and smuggling it to South Africa yet that same gold if sold to the Mines ministry would do something that could also benefit us at the end of the day. More so, industries are closing down because they lack support from the government due to the poor agriculture-based economy.”
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Mujuru also urged women to motivate each other by holding village competitions in their various projects to enable them to sell their goods and wares as a consignment.
“Mopane worms are plenty here in Matabeleland South, but you always make complaints that you don’t have money to grind mealie-meal or send your children to schools.
“The government will be looking forward to seeing us doing things for ourselves and the ministers are there to help you out on how to generate income through ZimAsset,” Mujuru said.
She said every woman should be educated on the new economic blueprint and every corner of the country would be visited to accomplish this feat.
