Another successful partnership in education development: ORAP and African Bush Camps Foundation promote soccer in Dete

Shooting for Education Development

In September 2013 the Organisation of Rural Associations for Progress (ORAP) launched the Shooting for Education Development (SHED) Programme, to promote the use of soccer as a tool for development. The project, funded by the US Africa Children’s Fellowship (USACF) and One World Futbol, saw ten thousand ‘nearly indestructible’ One World Futbols being shipped to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. ORAP has formed strategic partnerships to distribute these, ensuring that the primary aim of enhancing the lives of youths and communities is achieved.

Strategic Partnership in Dete

In 2014 ORAP partnered with the African Bush Camps Foundation to assist schools in the Dete area of Hwange rural district, starting at Mambanje Primary School.

Mambanje Primary School is a very remote school, located 15km from the town of Dete (located along the Bulawayo – Victoria Falls road, approximately 415 km north-west of Bulawayo and 93 km south-east of Hwange), along a road which is so run down it takes over an hour to get there. The community at Mambanje mainly relies on subsistence farming, which is not a very reliable or profitable income. The school has an enrolment of 120 students. The African Bush Camps Foundation currently supports 79 orphans and vulnerable children at the school whose parents and guardians are unable to raise the US$15 fee per term or US$45 per year school fee per child. The Foundation also provides the salary for one additional teacher at $500 a month and again the community matches that and fundsan additional teacher.

As part of its commitment to education development, the African Bush Camps Foundation has identified soccer as a key developmental resource for the students and community at large. An annual soccer tournament is held, incorporating teams from other schools in the surrounding communities.The students are given the chance to explore their capabilities by showcasing their talents in the sports field.

“Umangisenkundleniyebhola yikholapha engitshengisela khona ubungqwethi bami”, (when I am on the sports field I got to show off my dazzling skills) -Ntandoyenkosi a grade 5 pupil.

Part of the Mambanje Primary School team

Accessing adequate sporting equipment has been a significant challenge for the programme, and this year the fruitful partnership with the Organisation of Rural Associations for Progress (ORAP) has been helpful in mitigating this challenge. Through the SHED project,ORAP has made soccer balls available to Mambanje Primary and other schools in Dete, initiated at the time of the African Bush Camps Heroes Day Tournament.

The Heroes Day Soccer Tournament is an annual event, supporting the Dete Soccer League, a ZIFA (Zimbabwe Football Association) registered soccer league that is made up of 18 clubs representing the 14 villages surrounding Hwange National Park. It is held in August each year celebrating the Zimbabwean public holiday of National Heroes Day. As per the previous years, the Primary Schools are also involved and this year the five schools which make up the Dete cluster played a round-robin tournament, kicking off proceedings for the day.

ORAP donated 60 balls for the Tournament, which meant all the participating teams managed to take some back with them, enhancing sports development among out of school youth, high school and primary school teams. 

The Main Camp Primary School team with their soccer balls

The effects of the rough Dete terrain on the futbols

Some of the much-loved and much-played balls 

Mambanje Primary received ten balls, with great appreciation as they traditionally rely on homemade balls that are fashioned from plastic bags, old fabric, and other refuse materials. To show how much use the balls received, seven of them were destroyed by September (i.e. a month after being received). This is due to the extent of use but also the poor terrain that the students are forced to play on. The balls used come from One World Futbol and are ‘nearly indestructible and suitable for play on all sorts of terrain’. While they are designed to last for years on the roughest terrain, the Mambanje youths have taken up the challenge and utilized the balls without restraint! 

ORAP is proud to partner with the African Bush Camps Foundation and their education and community development programmes. 

 The balls bring hours of stimulation to both boys and girls, and help to motivate the teachers in their work.

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ORAP CEO Participates in an online event preparing for the World Humanitarian Summit on Humanitarian effectiveness: Regional priorities in Eastern and Southern Africa

Organisation of Rural Associations for Progress C.E.O Mvuselelo Huni with Hon. Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises and Cooperatives Development Sithembiso Nyoni 

The Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection (PHAP) is organizing a series of online events in support of the World Humanitarian Summit regional consultation process for Eastern and Southern Africa. The World Humanitarian Summit is being convened by the UN Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and will be held in Istanbul in 2016, with the aim of setting a new agenda for global humanitarian action. The main themes will be:

·         Humanitarian effectiveness,

·         Reducing vulnerability,

·         Managing risk,

·         Transformation through innovation, and

·         Serving the needs of people in conflict.

Learn more about the Summit at www.worldhumanitariansummit.org.

The Chief Executive Officer of ORAP, Mvuselelo Huni, was asked to be one of the presenters at the event on the Priorities for Improving Humanitarian Effectiveness in Eastern and Southern Africa. Below is the 5 minute presentation she made. The other speakers at the event were:

·         Michael Charles, Regional Programs Coordinator for the Southern Africa region, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

·         Francis Onditi, Regional Child Protection Coordinator for West and East Africa, Save the Children International.

·         Filipa Gouveia, Programme Officer and Humanitarian Focal Point, UNFPA Mozambique.

·         Rania El Rajji, Humanitarian Affairs Advisor, MSF-Spain (Kenya).

·         Joseph Nkinzo, Executive Director, Hope in Action International, (Kenya).

The recorded event is available at phap.org/23oct2014.

Topic: Coordination among agencies towards the empowerment of local organizations is the key to efficient and sustainable humanitarian interventions in Eastern and Southern Africa.

The humanitarian challenges in Eastern and Southern Africa are varied across a broad spectrum. This means that the responses need to be diverse too. However, the common factor of all humanitarian action is that it must improve the lives of people in need. I shall speak briefly about my belief that the key to effective humanitarian action is the empowerment of local organisations and communities through effective coordination.

Humanitarian action in Africa is implemented by many different groups that come together towards a common goal. These include governments, donors, NGOs, communities themselves, and even the private sector. The goal is to relieve the immediate distress of the people and prevent further harm, and in some instances building their resilience as well. These different actors are guided by the Humanitarian principles of:

·         Humanity

·         Impartiality

·         Independence, and

·         Neutrality.

As they work together they are knit together by the universally agreed Principles of Partnership, which are:

·         Equality,

·         Transparency,

·         Result-orientated approach,

·         Responsibility, and

·         Complementarity.

However, when it comes to implementation there are many other forces that dictate the way that the various organisations act, ranging from government internal and foreign policies, availability of funds, the extent of the crisis, and the capacities of the actors. Meaning that these principles can be interpreted in different ways by different actors.

The empowerment of local organisations (and I use the term ‘organisation’ to refer to any grouping from local communities to government) is key to humanitarian effectiveness for two main reasons:

Firstly, locals have a close understanding of the context, the history of the place and the people, including the causes of the crisis and possible remedies. They also understand how the crisis affects different sectors of society – youth, elderly, women, children, the disabled etc – and how best they can be incorporated. Unfortunately, in many cases the engagement of locals is done in such a way as to disempower the main actors, for example, when they are recruited to be lower level staff that has no influence on programme design.

Secondly, locals have a close interest in the outcomes of the intervention, i.e. the future of the people and the place. They have a significant bearing on the sustainability of the action and the building of resilience among the people.

Empowerment comes through the intentional inclusion of local organizations in the planning, implementation and monitoring of any humanitarian work. While external actors may have technical expertise, it becomes ineffective and unsustainable if used outside the context and acceptability of the target communities.

Empowerment also comes through instilling comprehensive accountability into the local organisations. This means that they are held to the high standards demanded of donors, UN agencies and other external technical partners. This is demanded by the Principles of Partnership, to ensure that those in need receive high quality assistance. This calls for openness from both local and external organisations so that they can teach one another. Admittedly, this is not a simple task, but the effort pays off in the long term and ensures that the financial investment has a significant return.

At ORAP we believe that bringing about positive change to communities, whether they are in an emergency situation, recovering from a disaster, or working towards sustainable development, bringing about change comes through relationships and dialogue. Acknowledging the role played by those in need and those able to assist. A one sided approach that is delivered by those bringing assistance often creates a situation of dependency, does not build any level of resilience, and often leaves a community open to future vulnerability.

Dialogue and relationship building is a continuous process but it is most critical at the point where the need is identified. Just as a technical team ensures that all the relevant disciplines are brought to the table to design a comprehensive intervention, it is imperative that the people in need are also represented so that their true needs are met.

There are significant strides being made towards achieving the goal of empowering local communities. In Zimbabwe there are donor agencies such as USAID that are placing emphasis on the inclusion of local organisations in all stages of programme design. This has become easier as the country has stabilized, but it was the willingness of such agencies to engage directly with locals at various levels that has contributed to the stability we now enjoy.

In conclusion, humanitarian effectiveness requires great effort and intentionality from all involved. The local communities and organizations must be willing to reveal themselves in order to be met at their true point of need. They must be open to being taught and critiqued and held to high standards, with due respect to their experience and knowledge. While those bringing the assistance need to be willing to listen and learn in order to tailor their interventions appropriately and bring about meaningful change.

Coordination among agencies has been happening at higher levels for a long time. The successes of that need to be instilled into all levels of humanitarian action.

Thank you 

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Etymology of Zimbabwe

Etymology of Zimbabwe

The name "Zimbabwe" is based on a Shona term for Great Zimbabwe, an ancient ruined city in the country's south-east whose remains are now a protected site. There are two theories on the origin of the word. Various sources hold that the word is derived fromdzimba-dza-mabwe, translated from the Karanga dialect of Shona as "large houses of stone" (dzimba = plural of imba, "house";mabwe = plural of bwe, "stone").^[16][17][18] The Karanga-speaking Shona people are found around Great Zimbabwe in the modern-day province of Masvingo. Archaeologist Peter Garlake claims that "Zimbabwe" is a contracted form of dzimba-hwe which means "venerated houses" in the Zezuru dialect of Shona, and is usually applied to chiefs' houses or graves.

Zimbabwe was formerly known as Southern Rhodesia (1923), Rhodesia (1965), and Zimbabwe Rhodesia (1979). The first recorded use of "Zimbabwe" as a term of national reference was in 1960, when it was coined by the black nationalist Michael Mawema,^]whose Zimbabwe National Party became the first to officially use the name in 1961. The term Rhodesia—derived from the surname of Cecil Rhodes, the primary instigator of white colonisation of the territory during the late 19th century—was perceived as inappropriate because of its colonial origin and connotations. According to Mawema, black nationalists held a meeting in 1960 to choose an alternative name for the country, and the names Machobana and Monomotapa were proposed before his suggestion, Zimbabwe, prevailed. A further alternative, put forward by nationalists in Matabeleland, had been "Matopos", referring to theMatopos Hills to the south of Bulawayo.

It was initially not clear how the chosen term was to be used—a letter written by Mawema in 1961 refers to "Zimbabweland"—but "Zimbabwe" was sufficiently established by 1962 to become the generally preferred term of the black nationalist movement. In a 2001 interview, black nationalist Edson Zvobgo recalled that the name was mentioned by Mawema during a political rally, "and it caught hold, and that was that". The name was subsequently used by the black nationalist factions during the Second Chimurengacampaigns against the Rhodesian government during the Rhodesian Bush War. The most major of these were the Zimbabwe African National Union (led by Robert Mugabe from 1975), and the Zimbabwe African People's Union, led by Joshua Nkomo from its founding in the early 1960

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What is Lumpy-skin disease (Lsd)?

What is Lumpy-skin disease (Lsd)?

’ It is a viral disease of cattle and is typically characterised by nodules or lumps on the skin.

’ All cattle breeds in South Africa can be affected.

’ It usually occurs during the wet summer and autumn months, when flies are in abundance.

’ The disease occurs throughout Africa.

Why is Lumpy-skin disease so important?

’ It is a notifiable disease,which means the state veterinarian must be informed because there are specific control schemes for this disease.

’ Up to 45% of your herd can get infected and the mortality (death) rate may reach 10%.

’ The disease causes emaciation (loss of body condition because of unwillingness to eat); temporary or permanent loss of milk production, lowered or complete loss of fertility in bulls and cows, abortion as well as permanent damage to hides (skin).

’ There is a loss in income because of lower production (deaths, milk and meat, abortions, lowered breeding potential, and damage to valuable hides), and the costs of drugs to treat sick animals.

What type of animals can be affected?

’ Cattle of all ages can be infected.

’ Cattle which are vaccinated annually are protected and therefore less likely to be infected.

’ Cattle which have had the disease and survived cannot be infected again (also immune).

’ Calves under 6 months of age are protected against the disease if their mothers were vaccinated or had the disease previously.

how do cattle become infected?

’ Biting flies play the most important role in spreading the virus. Infections increase during the wet summer and autumn months when there are more flies.

’ Calves can be infected by drinking milk from a cow which has the disease.

The disease can also spread through the saliva of infected animals when they use the same drinking trough.

What are the signs of Lumpy-skin disease in cattle?

Any one or more of the following:

’ Skin nodules and ulcers:

–  can vary from a few to hundreds

–  the size ranges from 0,5–5 cm

–  they occur anywhere on the skin, including the nose, udder and vulva in cows, the scrotum in bulls, as well as in the mouth (the gums)

’ Legs which become swollen and develop sores

’ Enlarged lymph nodes

’ Pneumonia/coughing—as a result of infection of the respiratory tract

(the windpipe) and lungs

’ Nasal discharge—thick, watery to pussy fluid from the nose

’ Infertile bulls—due to orchitis (infection of the testes)

’ Infertile cows

’ Mastitis—this lowers milk production

’ Lachrymation, infection of the eye or even blindness

’ Fever

’ Emaciation

’ Salivation.

how can Lsd be diagnosed?

’ A basic diagnosis can be made by the presence of the typical lesions on the skin and in the mouth. In longhaired animals you should feel for the nodules on the skin, or you can wet the hair so that you can see the nodules more easily.

’ A definite diagnosis can only be confirmed by a veterinarian by taking samples of the skin to a laboratory where they can identify the virus (this has to be done because there are other diseases which cause similar signs in cattle and therefore require different methods of control and treatment).

’ If you suspect LSD in your herd, you must inform the state veterinarian so that the disease can be confirmed and he/she will help you to control the disease.

how is Lsd treated?

There is NO TREATMENT for lumpy-skin disease.

Nonspecific treatment (antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs and vitamin injections) is usually directed at treating the secondary bacterial infections, inflammation and fever, and improving the appetite of the animal.

how can you prevent Lumpy-skin disease in your herd?

Prevention is the cheapest and best method of control of the disease. If your animals are protected, you will not suffer any production or financial losses as a result of the ill effects of the disease.

vaccination (the best)

The attenuated Neethling strain vaccine is a product that contains a weakened LSD virus. When this vaccine is administered the animal will develop protective  antibodies (made by white blood cells). These antibodies then resist the actual virus that is transmitted by biting flies or milk and saliva of infected animals. The animal is therefore protected or immune.

The Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute or the local veterinarian can supply vaccines.

All cattle should be vaccinated annually (once a year), and preferably before the summer rains to ensure good protection.

Animals that had the disease and recovered, are immune and therefore do not have to be vaccinated.

Calves which are under 6 months old and were born to cows which have been vaccinated or had the disease, do not need to be vaccinated. However, as soon as they are 6 months old, they have to be vaccinated annually.

There may be a swelling at the site where the vaccine is given, and a temporary drop in milk production, but the swelling will disappear after a few weeks with a return to normal milk production.

it is important to read the instructions for use on the vaccine labels. if you have any questions or need assistance with vaccination, contact your state veterinarian or animal health technician for help.

fly control

It is unpractical and almost impossible to control all the flies in your herd. It is better to prevent flies from biting your animals.

Cattle should be dipped in a product that contains an insecticide. Make sure that the dip includes insecticides effective against flies. Read and follow the instructions on the labels of the products.

Fly repellents can be sprayed on cattle.

Note that fly control will not prevent all cattle from being infected by LSD. The only way to ensure that all cattle are protected is by vaccination alone.

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