By Gracious Mugovera, recently in Nyamapanda

A BOY runs behind the cattle he is herding. 

It is raining heavily but he stops and waves to the cars driving along the dirt road, commonly known as Bhinya Road, in Nyamapanda.

It is on the same road that warning signs of danger from minefields or anti-personnel (AP) mines are erected but this does not deter the boy and other villagers from doing their day-to-day chores.

To them, life has to go on despite the danger being posed by the AP mines.

But one may ask why they continue living in spaces where their lives are always in danger?

Why did they not move to safer areas?

It is only the theory of sense of belonging that can explain how affiliation, identity and choice can have much influence in behaviour and decision-making of humans.

Zimbabwe is among several African countries still in the process of clearing AP mines, leftovers from the liberation struggle of the 1970s.

The Rhodesia Army laid minefields between 1976 and 1979 along the Zimbabwe’s northern and eastern borders to prevent infiltration and resupply of Zimbabwean liberation fighters operating from Mozambique and Zambia.

The minefields are across six provinces of the country which include Matabeleland North, Mashonaland West, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland Central, Manicaland and Masvingo.

Without doubt, the minefields have a significant economic and social impact on communities, especially those near mined areas.

Villagers in Tembo Village, Nyamapanda, are a reflection of some villages and villagers who are yet to enjoy total freedom gained at independence in 1980.

For them, their freedom comes at a price as the AP mines pose restrictions on freedom of movement, access to and sustainable use of livelihoods, farming and tourism development, among others.

However, as part of its National Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Programme, the Government sought international assistance to clear the leftover mines. 

In its efforts to clear the mines, Zimbabwe started by ratifying the Ottawa Convention in 1997 which was on the Prohibition of the Use, Production, Stockpiling, Transfer and on their Destruction which entered into force in 1999.

In simple terms, Zimbabwe is among the countries that have agreed not to use AP mines in any type of war.

Since 1997, due to limited support and lack of resources, Zimbabwe‘s efforts of demining were slow, resulting in requesting for revised deadlines to comply with the Convention’s obligations.This culminated in the country being granted five deadline extensions.

Under the lead of National Mine Action Authority Zimbabwe (NAMAAZ) and the Zimbabwe Mine Action Centre (ZIMAC), Zimbabwe developed a strategy to fulfill and implement its Convention obligations.

In her Mine Action Programme, Zimbabwe roped in International operators and various stakeholders which include; Government Ministries, the National Mine Clearance Units (NMCU), APOPO, HALO Trust, Mines Advisory Group (MAG)  and Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention’s Implementation Support Unit (ISU).

However, despite having support from these stakeholders and operators, Zimbabwe still needs an increased international funding to meet a deadline of a mine-free country by December 31 2025.

At a recently held national Stakeholder Dialogue, the Minister of Defence and War Veterans Affairs Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri said lack of funding is stalling clearance of mines.

“Zimbabwe requires approximately US$49 million to clear the remaining 18,4 kilometre square,” she said.

Minister Muchinguri Kashiri urged stakeholders and donors to continue playing an important role of saving lives through increasing funding of the demining initiative.

“May I, therefore, take this opportunity to call both our existing and other potential donors to join the programme and support this worthy cause,” she said.

“At the local level, may I call upon other national institutions, the corporate world and individuals with the requisite resources, to also consider assisting with financial material  resources  for this worthy national cause.”

In line with the same issue, Government is in the process of amending the War Victims Compensation Act so as to include landmine victims.

The EU, on the other hand, is making strides to assist Zimbabwe to meet the deadline for clearance of the mines by December 31 2025. 

They have also pledged to fund a national stakeholder on landmine victim assistance to be held in 2024.

“I am proud that we will fund, for the first time, a national stakeholder on victim assistance. The Implementation Support Unity (ISU) will support the Ministry of Public Safety, Labour and Social Welfare and ZIMAC in hosting,” said EU Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Jobst von Kirchmann.

Some of the EU member-States, such as Ireland, have been assisting Zimbabwe through HALO Trust in demining.

Other main donors of Zimbabwe are Japan, Norway, Switzerland, UK and the US.

A field visit to one clearance site being done by MAG in Nyamapanda showed that there is still more work to be done.

According to data released by MAG, it was allocated 66,943km and has released 26,531km — the area remaining is 40,402km.

Clearance rate is being affected by a number of factors that include growth of vegetation which needs to be trimmed or cleared and rocky areas slowing progress as there is need to remove the rocks before detection.

There are also problems of missing mine drills, accidents of livestock that make it difficult and dangerous to remove from the scene, ploughshare directional fragmentation which spread everywhere leading to detectors detecting the whole ground, uncomfortable protective clothing and outbreak of diseases, such as COVID-19.

However, though lack of funding might slow progress, Zimbabwe has recorded a success story in some cleared and released areas or land.

In the education sector, children across Mozambique can now walk freely to attend school in some areas of Chipinge.

Infrastructural development is also another sector that has recorded a success story, especially in Mashonaland West in Kariba where there was a minefield protecting Kariba Power Station and Kariba Town.

After clearance, construction of houses, lodges and roads became possible.

Clearance of minefields in Victoria Falls boosted tourism and opened avenues for recreational facilities.

For women who lived in mine-infested areas, fetching water and firewood or just doing other chores was a dangerous ordeal but demining has opened avenues for socio-economic development.