Regina Pasipanodya
While other community members gather for one of the village’s regular developmental oversight meeting’ Tawanda Mataka (25) is fixed on his daily hustle of selling packed honey by the roadside in Fairfield, a small community along the Harare-Masvingo highway.
This young entrepreneur is writing his own rules of success, working as a trader by the roadside.
To him, survival in Zimbabwe’s economic volatile conditions requires one to identify an opportunity within one’s circles and grab it.
“I do not see myself wasting time at community gatherings while losing business. All I care about right now is making a livelihood. From what I have seen over the years, attending gatherings which are part of government initiatives does not yield anything, especially for us as the young generation. We only get empty promises,” Mataka told She Corresponds Africa.
Crushed dreams.
Mataka (25) finished his A’ Level in 2017. He attained eight points, and hoped to continue his education. His dreams soured when his parents, who survive on peasant farming in Fairfield told him that they could not afford to send him to university.
The news was bitter for Mataka who dreamt of studying Accounts at university.
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On average, state universities in Zimbabwe cost about USD500 per semester an amount which is beyond the reach of many families in the country.
Mataka’s new life involves fending for his family through menial jobs and working as a trader.
But whenever there is an engagement meeting organised in his community, Mataka has no interest. He believes that only a few people with connections in the ruling party benefit, while others like him struggle to make ends meet.
“Why should I attend such gatherings?” Mataka said angrily. “They’ll talk, make promises, and leave us behind with empty promises”.
Mataka is one of the youths in Zimbabwe whose hopes have been shuttered by unending empty promises by the government.
Government’s empty promises.
For decades, the government of Zimbabwe has been promising jobs, economic growth, resuscitation of industries, and free education among other things.
For example President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s second republic made a promise to create two million jobs in Zimbabwe after winning the 2018 elections.
However, according to a first-quarter report by the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat-2019), more than 2.8 million people of working age in the country remained unemployed.
During the National Youth Celebration at Mushagashi Vocational Centre in Masvingo on February 21, 2021 under the theme “Positioning Youth Empowerment and Development”, Mnangagwa committed to ensuring youth inclusion and participation in all socio-economic activities and governance systems of the nation.
In an interview with She Corresponds Africa, Dr. Sehliselo Mpofu a local economist, said the labour market in Zimbabwe has been shrinking for decades with several industries closing. However, to show resilience, the people in the country have engaging in the informal sectors as traders, taking part-time jobs for livelihood.
“Most of these youths have never been in the formal sector because they grew up in a volatile economic environment and this never gave them any opportunities to work in the corporate world,” she said.
The unemployment rate in Zimbabwe has fluctuated over the years, as of 2022, it stood at approximately 7.94% according to Zimbabwe Statistical Agency. Those in informal employment including vendors are counted among the employed. Youths take up the bulk of informal jobs.
Youth victims of corruption?
A report of the survey on the knowledge, attitudes and perceptions about corruption among Zimbabwean youths was recently conducted in Harare, Bulawayo, Manicaland, Midlands, Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South.
This research was in line with the Strengthening institutions and youth agencies in accountability and Narratives (#SIYA) project an initiative which is benchmarked to foster youth participation in decision-making processes by the Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development (ZIMCODD), a socio-economic justice coalition.
It revealed a disconcerting reality about the country’s young generation as they are now being involved in corruption themselves.
Zimcodd official, Nimrod Nyakudyano said the findings highlight that the change in youth’s perspective towards corruption has been influenced by the current socio-economic environment. Corruption in Zimbabwe has been normalised to an extent that those who should be seen in the forefront fighting it are also now involved in corruption.
“It is even clear that Zimbabwean youths possess a clear understanding of corruption as they can recognise its various forms, including bribery, abuse of power, and illicit transactions which shows that they are no longer passive victims but active participants in perpetuating corrupt practices.
“During the survey one of the respondents highlighted that peer pressure and persistent control of elders over children as they tend to control them, lack of exposure to opportunities, and not being given the space to make decisions in one’s upbringing among other things are hindering youth involvement in the decision-making process,” Nyakudyano said during his presentation.
Presenting the findings on the ‘gaps and opportunities on youth participation in accountability and decision-making process in Zimbabwe’ to identify barriers, challenges, opportunities, and enablers that affect youth involvement in national engagements and dialogue, research consultant, Grace Chirenje highlighted that several key factors influence youth towards corruption and hinder them from participating in the decision-making process.
“One of the key factors is that there are no resources for youth to participate and in other cases, young people are excluded from participating by their elders and this has influenced the youth’s perception in the decision-making process,” Chirenje said.
“Most of them are now more passive and even become involved in illegal activities knowingly or unknowingly.”
A young woman from Chitungwiza who identified herself as Gladys said there is nothing called corruption these days.
“Recently, I even paid money to a police officer at the Vehicle Theft Squad (VTS) to get my car cleared not that it has any criminal records but to speed up the process. I knew very well that if I didn’t do that, my paper work would have taken long to be completed,” she said.
Prince Mupindu, Social and Economic Ambassador with Zimcodd said most Zimbabwean youths are participating in corruption knowingly because of how things have been done in the country’s justice system.
“A lot of catch and releases have been happening right in front of our eyes. The country is now faced with a dilemma of integrity because if a person is released on condition of not being able to stand trial and tomorrow you see that person being promoted. What does that mean in terms of accountability?
“We as mere youths are now focusing on making money whether through legal or illegal means, all we now do is hustling,” said Mupindu.
Mupindu stressed that there is a need for stakeholders to understand youth should be considered in terms of resource content, how are they supported and so fourth.
This will promote integrity and encourage them to participate in decision-making promises.
“As the fight against corruption intensifies, it is imperative to recognize the dual role of Zimbabwean youths both as potential catalysts for positive change and as unwitting accomplices in perpetuating corruption. Their empowerment and engagement are critical to shaping a more transparent and accountable future for the nation. As the nation grapples with these challenges, the perspectives of Zimbabwean youth are crucial for shaping policies and fostering positive change,” added Mupindu.
A National Youth Council official said youths are now involved in corruption and are no longer just victims.
“This has become a new normal which needs to be addressed collectively to promote integrity amongst the youth,” the official said.
Youth legislator for Chiredzi Central Constituency, Hon. Ropafadzo Makumire told She Corresponds Africa that he understands the dilemma that the youth in Zimbabwe and how it has been influenced by corruption emanating from high offices.
“Seeing corruption happening in public offices and a new norm of celebrating arrests, this cancer has been killing our young generation and as a youth legislator, I intend to work hard to make sure those things are addressed.”
“As the young parliamentarians are saying take action, let’s recover what has been stolen.
“Through the #SIYA Corruption campaign there is need to reach out to everyone from the high offices to the grassroots because after seeing the collective efforts only then will the youth become key drivers of integrity. Unfortunately, most of the millionaires’ role models in this country do not have traceable wealth they just have luxurious cars and big mansions and this has influenced our youth in a way that they no longer believe in doing formal work,” added Hon. Makumire.
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