By Simon Ngena
SUNDAY, 25 May, is Africa Day. It is the day Africa celebrates the founding of the Organisation African Unity (OAU), now the African Union (AU). It is also one of the days when Africans celebrate their Africanness in the form of the continent’s traditional fashion, food, drink and everything else under the sun.
In Zimbabwe, one of the leading torch bearers is First Lady Amai Auxillia Mnangagwa who is spearheading the Gota/Nhanga/Ixhiba programme, an innovative intervention designed to equip boys and girls with the necessary information to be morally upright and grow into responsible citizens and leaders of tomorrow.
Launched in 2021, the programme has its roots in 2019 when Amai Mnangagwa first launched what she called the “First Lady and Girl-Child” interface programme in a bid to end early childhood marriages and other challenges affecting them.
Addressing about 500 girls and young women from Grade 6 to tertiary level at the inaugural interface at Belvedere Technical Teachers’ College in Harare, the First Lady bemoaned the scourge of early childhood marriages which she said was preventing girls from realising their full potential.
The interface – held under the theme “Our girl, Our pride, Our future, Let’s invest in her” – also created a platform to fight teenage pregnancies, drug abuse and sexual immorality.
“We are faced with a problem of child marriages, whereby another child is herself having a child ,” she observed.
“Most children are failing to finish school because of early childhood marriages. There are statistics which show that this a problem that we have in all our 10 provinces.
“We all have different and at times difficult backgrounds, but you have to strive to be someone in life. You will be called someone through your hard work, perseverance and self-respect.
“I am also pained by what is happening these days, where girls are going to bars, strip naked and dance, in what is called strip tease. You have to get your education first, then you will make a choice on whom you would want to marry.”
Through the interface programme, girls were afforded a rare opportunity to speak out about their everyday challenges, such as sexual reproductive health, early childhood marriages, confidence, grooming, etiquette and personal hygiene.
A common problem among adolescent schoolgirls was the unaffordability of sanitary wear, forcing many of them to miss out on school during “that time of the month”.
This was the genesis of the Gota/Nhanga/Ixhiba programme, which is aptly captured in one of her outreach sessions: “I have come so that we teach you what is expected of the girl-child. Are you aware that you are important? We are looking at the respect that you accord elders, your dressing and the way you walk. All of us with your grandmothers here, we have come to talk to you and mould a girl-child we want as parents, a morally upright daughter. We hope as you leave this place you would have learnt a lot that would help you in future.
This motherly advice was echoed by one the traditional leader’s spouses, who always accompany the First Lady during such meetings, who said:
“We want you to learn to fear men when the time is not ripe. You must view men as lions and run away until you have matured. When I was married I was a virgin as we respected the counsel of our elders. When you enter into marriage you should be dignified and submit to your husband, respect him, prepare food for him and iron his clothes. When giving him food you should show respect,” she said.
“Do not behave like a wild fruit tree which is frequented by everyone. Respect your body. If a man fondles you inappropriately, report to the elders immediately. Learn to dress properly and put on dignified clothes. A boy who impregnates you might deny paternity if he sees you dealing with many boys like a wild fruit tree,” she said emphatically.
As part of their practical lessons, the girls are taught how to prepare mouth-watering traditional dishes, how to iron clothes, pound and grind peanut butter.
In line with the Second Republic’s mantra of leaving no one and no place behind, Amai Mnangagwa has since taken boys on board under the gota component of the programme.
Speaking as the guest during of the outreach meetings held at his homestead, Chief Nekatambe of Mulonga, in Hwange, described the Gota/Nhanga/Ixhiba as critical in moulding boys and girls into responsible citizens.
During the dare, Chief Nekatambe spoke strongly against infidelity which he said was contributing significantly to the collapse of marriages.
“When you get married, stop womanising and be content with your wife. This dare was built for you to come and learn what is expected of a man. Today I woke up with you to milk cows but some of you did not even know how to do it, something that every man should know. A man should be able to perform many tasks at home,” he said.
The boys were taught how to conduct themselves and understand the rites of passage from boyhood to manhood as well as how to skin a goat and prepare the meat.
THIS WEEK’S RECIPE
Beef Bones
Beef bones, mabhonzo, are one of our traditional Zimbabwean dishes and across Africa. They may take a little time to prepare but it is absolutely all worth it when you sit down to enjoy the goodness! Mabhonzo are typically served with sadza and greens or cabbage if you wish.
Ingredients
- 1 kg beef bones
- 2 large tomatoes, chopped
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 tsp chopped garlic
- 1 beef stock cube
- 600ml boiling water
- 1/2 medium green pepper, chopped
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp salt
Recommended Utensils
- Good sized pot
- Chopping board
- Sharp knife
- Wooden spoon
- Measuring jug
- Teaspoon
- Tablespoon
Cooking Instructions
- Heat oil in pot. Fry your beef bones in batches until they are browned. It’s best to do it in batches as we don’t want to overfill the pot since our objective is to achieve an even toned browning of the beef bones.
- Add onions and curry powder. Fry for two minutes. Add the tomatoes, garlic, Worcestershire sauce and green pepper. Fry for a further 2-3 minutes.
- After the two minutes, put the stock cube into a measuring jug, add boiling water and mix mix until the stock cube has dissolved. Add the stock into the pot.
- Close pot and reduce heat. Allow to simmer gently until the meat is tender and cooked through. Enjoy this mouthwatering dish this Africa Day!