Rare cattle project used to empower and heal communities

Chinoera was initiated by a group of former University of Zimbabwe (UZ) students as a way of ploughing back to the communities in which they were brought up.

My cow produces 15 litres of milk every day. I drink tea with milk every day and keep some of the milk to have it with sadza for lunch. Besides I had a bumper harvest last year because I used manure from my cattle pen. My first born child is doing his sixth form at Mandadzaka and I expect to send him to university next year, said Mercy Machokoto.

I plough other peoples fields with my cattle and get some money for a living. We have for a long time been ignored by politicians in terms of development projects. We dont mind as we now concentrate on animal rearing and farming crops such as maize, millet and rapoko. We also grow vegetables.

I used to live in poverty but now my life has improved as I have managed to build a two roomed house, she added.

Chinoera was born in 1981 when former UZ students came together to form the Bikita Education Association. It comprised Paramu Mafongoya, Foreman Foto, Anthony Gori, Walter Mutsauri and Claudious Maredza.

As a way of helping the community, which helped them attain education, the group resolved to help temporary teachers in Bikita who had failed O Level.

We travelled in the area every weekend to teach the temporary teachers the various subjects that they had failed. Professor Mazuru Gundidza and Chris Rambanepasi provided us with transport,” said Sessel Zvidzai, a founding chair of Chinoera.

In 1994, Zvidzai came up with rudimentary surveys on issues to do with poverty prevalence in Bikita. He realised that projects done since 1980 to empower people always failed. His analysis showed the projects lacked social cohesion. Rabbit, fishery and poultry projects that had been started in Bikita had not done well. It was discovered that a high proportion of the people had strong religious beliefs in Zionism and the Apostolic faith and did not eat pork or rabbit meat.

“Participants in the various projects lacked involvement in deciding on the relevant projects to improve their lives. Most of the projects were embarked upon without any ground rules or governing instruments like the constitution. In 1994 I formed Chinoera, which had embarked on cattle fattening, ostrich keeping, orchard and and seed development projects. We also set up a constitution.”

The other founding members Onesmo Muridzo, Joshua Munatsi and Tomupeyi Mukanyi decided that we concentrate on cattle rearing in order to empower the community with draught power. The lack of draught power was the major cause of poverty among the people in Bikita.

The group approached Heifer International with a project proposal for Chinoera. The project proposal was endorsed by church leaders Bishops Harmony Masuka, Zebert Mutingwende and Simon Mureruswa as well as traditional leaders Chiefs Budzi, Mukanganwi and Mazungunye.

Satisfied with the positive impact the project would make on rural communities, Heifer International donated 172 Brahman heifers and 15 Brahman bulls to Chinoera.

The cattle were distributed to 86 families with each family getting two heifers and a bull per village. Each member signed an agreement to pass on two calves to the next needy family. Groups A to Z were formed. Group A received the first donation.

To date, Group A has passed on an equal number of cattle it received from Heifer International to groups B, C and D. More cattle were later donated to other groups in Mupamaonde and Silveira because Chinoera had succeeded in rearing cattle and giving people draught power. Poverty and diseases associated with malnutrition like kwashiokor were gradually declining in Bikita.

This was so because people could now plough their fields on time. They also had ready organic manure from the cow dung hence an improvement in their yields.

Chinoera had a district committee responsible for assessing how the projects were being run. It also taught the people skills to start and manage other projects like rearing of livestock such as sheep, goats and pigs.

Now Chinoera has become a platform for national healing since people from various political parties meet, share and interact on development projects.