Providing hope through desperate times

By Ian Chivers, Managing Director of Country Management, Merrill Lynch

It was with mixed emotions that I arrived at Harare Airport at 9pm on a damp evening. Almost 25 years ago my wife and I had spent two exciting and highly personally rewarding years working in the newly independent Zimbabwe. Kate had worked for an educational publisher and I for a government organisation – providing loans to commercial and communal farmers. It was very much a time of great hope and promise for the future.

In contrast, over recent years I had read much about the economic and political problems in the country. I was deeply concerned about what I would find and how people had been affected by years of hardship.

“Camfed is reaching some of the most vulnerable children who need support through these desperate times.”I was visiting Zimbabwe to get a first-hand insight into the work of CAMFED, one of Merrill Lynch’s Charities of the Year. I was very keen to judge for myself the impact CAMFED’s work is having on the welfare and opportunities for girls and young women – both now and in the longer term – at this pivotal time.

In some ways I found the experience depressing and upsetting. Wages become irrelevant within a week because of horrendous inflation. People have to buy food and basic commodities as soon as they get paid. Many people are really living on the margins. But it was not all gloom. It was exciting and uplifting to see the difference CAMFED is making to many of the most vulnerable Zimbabweans.

By providing direct help to people who need it, CAMFED is reaching some of the most vulnerable children through these desperate times. Whether it’s fees to help a girl to go to school through their bursary programme, or a desperately-needed pair of school shoes through the Safety Net Fund, or putting food on orphans’ tables through Mother Support Groups, CAMFED is providing hope at a time when hope is in short supply.

Support to those who need it

We travelled into the heart of rural Zimbabwe to visit two schools. At Zimondi Secondary School, 20 kms or so down a dirt road, we presented 14 girls in Year 1 – aged about 12 – with new school uniforms and shoes. I spoke to one girl who was very slight for her age. She didn’t have any parents and lives with relatives. It’s very daunting to be left all alone at such a young age. And the tragedy is that the situation is not uncommon.

As we set off on our way back to Chivhu, we were flagged down by the head of a local primary school. One of his young students had a suspected fractured arm and needed to get to hospital at Chivhu. There is no bus or formal public transport, so our arrival was very timely indeed. The head master was taking the girl to hospital himself because her parents are both dead – she was probably no more than six years old.

I met with some of the women from the local Mother Support Group, who are helping orphans and vulnerable children like this young girl with shelter and food, and they could do even more if greater resources were available. The group of mothers was highly organised. They presented us with their list of priorities, including money to build a fence to protect their gardens in the dry season from wandering livestock and a sewing machine to enable them to make school uniforms and clothes for sale.

A further 10 kms down the dirt road brought us to the Holy Cross Secondary School at Manyene. This school – under the leadership of its headmaster Mr Chagonda (pictured right) – has the best exam results in the district. Mr Chagonda was full of enthusiasm and gratitude for the help we were providing that day. We were presenting four more Year 1 girls with school shoes and uniforms, as well as 100 or so exercise books and pens. He also introduced us to his Maths teacher, Lucia Punungwe (pictured above right), a bright and committed young woman who was herself supported through school by CAMFED. Here is a young woman who, without CAMFED, would not have had a chance to go to school. She’s now gone on to do great things and to pass along the benefits of her education to her own community.

Making a significant impact

Although I am deeply saddened by the scale of the economic decline in Zimbabwe, I am also highly encouraged by the determination and resilience of the people I met: the highly professional CAMFED staff, the local officials, CAMA members, the teaching staff, students and Mothers Support Groups – all working together with the very limited resources they have to make a significant and tangible impact. I am very confident that the money my colleagues donated so generously will be used effectively by CAMFED and will change the lives of many young people and families in Zimbabwe.

I think Angeline Mugwendere, Director for CAMFED Zimbabwe, summed this up best when she said: “We remain totally committed to ensuring this generation of girls remain in school, as it is with them that the future and destiny of Zimbabwe lies.”