The ManicaPost
Freedom Mutanda
Post Correspondent
Zimbabwe is home to thousands of refugees who have comfortably settled in the country and are hesitant to go back to their countries of origin due to various reasons.
Some of them have allowed their entrepreneurial skills to flourish, with their various agricultural and commercial projects growing in leaps and bounds.
A number of Zimbabweans have even married into the Tongogara Refugee community.
The provision of sports, education and health facilities at the Tongogara Refugee Camp has been the primary aspiration of the Department of Social Welfare and its partners.
According to figures supplied by the Department of Social Welfare, the Tongogara Refugee Camp houses more than 14 000 refugees from the Great Lakes Region and other parts of Africa.
The Tongogara Refugee Camp administrator, Mr Johane Mhlanga, has drawn a plan for refugees to be integrated into the Zimbabwe way of life.
As a result, sustainable projects are being run by the refugees. Gone are the days when they would wait for Government and donor support only.
“We have built a state of the art Information Communication and Technology Centre for the refugees. Various projects are improving the refugees’ livelihoods. These include, among others, poultry, fish farming and beekeeping. The refugees are currently working on their bean crop. Others are manufacturing soap ,’’ said Mr Mhlanga.
“The Government has always prioritised the education, health and general welfare of the refugees,’’ he said.
Government has also partnered with the Zimbabwe Council of Churches to strengthen sporting programmes at the camp and link talented footballers to national clubs.
As a result, the country has benefited from the soccer wizardry of some of these refugees with Ngandu Mangala, the former Dynamos striker, being one such person.
Mangala honed his skills at St Michaels Secondary School.
But there are thousands of tales to be told at the camp, most of them heartrending.
Ms Solomido Ramazani from the Democratic Republic Congo in the Kasai Region says she left her home in a huff after rebels ransacked it.
Along with three other relatives, she traversed until she got to Zambia.
“For days, we thought our travails would never end. Rain pounded us and food was a luxury as we travelled. At times, the searing heat was too much for us, but we trudged on.
Finally, we crossed Mupulungu River into Zambia,’ she said.
However, Ms Ramazani has no kind words for the truck driver who helped her cross into Zimbabwe.
She said she was sexually abused. However, the poor woman was too frightened to report him to the police.
“I am just happy that despite the emotional and sexual abuse I have endured, my life here at the camp has been peaceful and fulfilling. The hosts are very friendly,’’ she said.
Her tale of strife and tribulation resonates with that of hundreds of others who are happy to be among their fellow Africans at the camp.
A Congolese who only identified himself as Totti said he left his home after his parents were killed.
His first port of call was Tanzania where he was bundled into a truck together with other DRC nationals. The truck took them to Tongogara Refugee Camp.
“I attained my primary education at Tongogara Primary School. From there I went to St Michael’s Secondary School and finished my O-Levels there. Over the years, I have come to love this country. I can even speak Shona very well,’’ said Totti.
Tongogara Primary School has an enrolment of about 3000 pupils, while that of St Michael’s Secondary School stands at 780 pupils.
The Chipinge College of Horticulture houses about 400 of the Grade 4 pupils.
According to the District Schools Inspector, Mr Richard Gabaz, education officials are aware of the growing number of pupils at Tongogara Primary School and are working on addressing the challenge.
“We appreciate the Covid-19 protocols, hence the move to de-congest the school by moving a class to Chipinge College of Horticulture is welcome. However, we would like to see more blocks being built at the school,” Mr Gabaza said.
